What to Do If Your Landlord Is Unresponsive in Dubai

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Checked against the text of Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, Decree No. 26 of 2013 establishing the Rental Disputes Centre, and the Dubai Land Department's published FAQ. Sources are listed at the end.

Key Takeaways

• Under Article 16 of Dubai's tenancy law the landlord is responsible for maintenance and for repairing any defect that affects your use of the property, unless the contract says otherwise.
• Tenant complaints about a landlord in Dubai go to the Rental Disputes Centre (RDC) at the Dubai Land Department, which has exclusive jurisdiction over rent disputes in the emirate.
• The RDC filing fee is 3.5 percent of the annual rent, minimum AED 500, capped at AED 15,000 for a money claim such as unpaid rent and AED 20,000 for eviction or renewal. Half is refunded if the case settles at conciliation.
• Conciliation must be attempted within 15 days of the parties' first appearance. Judgments on claims below AED 100,000 are final.
• Do not stop paying rent. Rent unpaid 30 days after a formal notice is an eviction ground under Article 25(1). The DLD's remedies for neglected maintenance all go through the RDC.

What Does Dubai Rental Law Require a Landlord to Do?

Ignored emails, unanswered calls and a repair that never gets done are usually a breach of Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008. Before you escalate, know which obligation the landlord is failing.

• Article 15: the landlord must hand over the property in good condition, so that you can use it fully as the contract intends.
• Article 16: unless the parties agree otherwise, the landlord is responsible during the lease for maintenance works and for repairing any defect or damage that affects your intended use of the property.
• Article 17: the landlord may not make changes that stop you using the property fully, and is responsible for any defect, damage, deficiency or wear and tear not caused by the tenant.
• Article 18: the landlord must give you the approvals that government entities require for decoration or other works that do not affect the structure.

The Dubai Land Department's FAQ splits maintenance in two. "Required maintenance" directly affects your ability to enjoy the property, and the landlord is responsible for it. "Non-essential maintenance" does not, and is typically the tenant's. A broken air conditioner in August is the first kind. A blown bulb is the second. The rest of the Act sets out the obligations on both sides.

Most silence from a landlord is a capacity problem rather than a refusal: an owner abroad, or one person managing several units. That is what professional property management for landlords exists to solve, and it is why the steps below start with a paper trail rather than a filing.

Where to Complain About a Landlord in Dubai

There are three doors, and they handle different problems.

One correction to advice you may have read elsewhere: there is no separate free route for small complaints. Every rent dispute, whatever its size, goes to the RDC, which has exclusive jurisdiction under Article 6 of Decree No. 26 of 2013.

How to File a Tenant Complaint Against a Landlord, Step by Step

Step 1: Document every attempt to reach them

Save every WhatsApp message, email and call log, note the date and content of any verbal conversation the same day, and photograph the defect with the date visible. The RDC's filing requirements list the latest Ejari-registered contract, your Emirates ID, a bank letter or statement showing your IBAN, and the documents that support the dispute, such as correspondence, notices, cheques or DEWA bills. Build that file from the first message.

Step 2: Send a formal written notice

Put the complaint in one document. State the defect, the date you first reported it, the article it breaches (Article 16 for most repairs) and a deadline for a response. The law does not fix a number of days for a repair notice, so set a reasonable one and say what follows if it passes: a case at the RDC. Send it by email and by registered mail, or through a Notary Public, so that delivery is provable. Many landlords act at this point, because the notice is the first thing a conciliator reads.

Step 3: File at the Rental Disputes Centre

If the deadline passes, register the case online and pay the filing fee. The case goes first to the Mediation and Conciliation Directorate, which under Article 10 of Decree No. 26 of 2013 must try to settle it within 15 days of the first appearance. A settlement reached there has the force of a writ of execution, and half the fee is refunded. Otherwise the case moves to a First Instance tribunal. Gulf News reports that the framework provides for a decision within 30 days of referral. Judgments on claims below AED 100,000 are final under Article 17(a) of the Decree, so file a complete case the first time. Filing runs through the RDC portal.

Step 4: Report building violations to Dubai Municipality

If the problem is the building itself, such as overcrowding or illegal partitions, report it on 800900 or through the Dubai Municipality app. The Municipality inspects residential areas and issues notices to owners. This runs alongside your RDC case, not instead of it.

What Can the RDC Order When a Landlord Refuses Repairs?

The Dubai Land Department's FAQ sets out the remedies. If the landlord neglects required maintenance, the tenant may have recourse options such as terminating the contract, reducing the rent, or carrying out the repairs and deducting the cost from the rent. None of these is self-help. Article 19 says a tenant may not carry out maintenance or restoration works without the landlord's permission and the required licences, so the deduction route needs an RDC order behind it.

Where the landlord has cut off services, the FAQ is blunt: that is prohibited, and the tenant may report it to the police and claim compensation at the RDC.

Can I Withhold Rent Until the Landlord Fixes the Problem?

No. Article 25(1) allows a landlord to evict a tenant during the term if the rent is still unpaid 30 days after a written notice to pay. Withholding rent hands an unresponsive landlord the one ground he needs. Keep paying, keep the receipts and let the RDC set any reduction. If the landlord refuses to accept the rent, the DLD FAQ says to deposit it with the RDC treasury under the deposit and offer procedure, after which it counts as paid from that date.

What If the Landlord Is Outside the UAE?

An absent owner is the usual reason a tenant hears nothing. Start with the manager or agent named on the contract. If there is none, you can still register the case, and the Centre notifies the respondent as part of the process. Owners abroad avoid all of this by appointing someone to manage the property.

FAQs

Where can I complain about my landlord in Dubai?

At the Rental Disputes Centre of the Dubai Land Department, which has exclusive jurisdiction over rent disputes under Decree No. 26 of 2013. File online through the RDC website, the Dubai REST app or a trustee centre. The fee is 3.5 percent of the annual rent, minimum AED 500, capped at AED 15,000 for financial claims and AED 20,000 for eviction or renewal, and half is refunded if the case settles at conciliation.

What if my landlord refuses to make repairs?

Article 16 makes the landlord responsible for repairs that affect your use of the property unless the contract says otherwise. Send a written notice with a deadline, then file at the RDC. The DLD FAQ lists the remedies as a rent reduction, repairs with the cost deducted, or termination of the contract, each ordered by the Centre.

How do I complain about a landlord not fixing things?

Document the defect and every message, send one formal notice that cites Article 16 and sets a deadline, and if it passes register a case at the RDC with your Ejari contract, Emirates ID, IBAN letter and the correspondence. Conciliation is attempted within 15 days of the first appearance, and a settlement there has the force of a writ of execution.

Can a tenant file a complaint against a landlord?

Yes. Either party to a tenancy in Dubai can bring a claim at the RDC, and the Centre also hears counterclaims and urgent applications. Judgments on claims below AED 100,000 are final, so include every document and figure in the first filing.

Can I report my landlord to Dubai Municipality?

Only for building and occupancy violations, such as overcrowding or illegal partitions, on the toll-free number 800900. The Municipality inspects buildings and issues notices to owners. It does not decide tenancy disputes or order a landlord to repair your unit. Those go to the RDC.

Before You Escalate

The law puts maintenance on the landlord, the RDC exists to enforce it, and the fee is modest next to a year's rent. Document, notify, file, in that order, and keep paying rent throughout. For the other side of the relationship, read tenants' rights and responsibilities in Dubai, and for the maintenance split itself, who pays for maintenance when renting in Dubai.

If you are the landlord in this story, Keyper's property management service takes the tenant's maintenance requests, sends an inspection team, sources quotes and supervises the work, so nothing sits unanswered long enough to become a complaint.

Sources

• Law No. 26 of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in Dubai (Articles 15 to 19)
• Law No. 33 of 2008 Amending Law No. 26 of 2007 (Article 25(1), rent unpaid 30 days after notice)
• Decree No. 26 of 2013 Concerning the Rent Disputes Settlement Centre (Article 6 jurisdiction, Article 10 conciliation and half-fee refund, Article 17 finality below AED 100,000)
• Dubai Land Department: Frequently Asked Questions (maintenance split, remedies, services, deposit and offer)
• Dubai Land Department: Know Your Rights for Real Estate Investors in Dubai (RDC fee 3.5 percent of annual rent, capped at AED 15,000 for financial claims and AED 20,000 for eviction or renewal claims)
• Leaders Advocates on Mondaq: How to File a Complaint Against Your Landlord in Dubai, 21 July 2026 (minimum AED 500, half refund, stages)
• Gulf News: Dubai rental dispute process, 28 September 2026 (channels, documents, money claims capped at AED 15,000, decision within 30 days)
• Dubai Municipality: monitoring of residential areas (toll-free 800900 for reporting violations)