UAE

The general rule of the country: a foreigner owns property only in zones designated by the authorities of the emirate. A residence permit is not needed to buy.

What is worth knowing:

• In Dubai, of the 131 districts in the directory, 108 are fully open to foreigners, 14 partly, and 3 are closed. In two large partly open districts the share of deals in full ownership is about a third (Dubai Investment Park 33%, Dubai Silicon Oasis 40%): there the specific building needs to be checked.
• For Abu Dhabi the official sources differ: the 2019 law speaks of full ownership in investment zones, while the government portal describes 99-year holding and a right of use. A safe wording: ownership in certain zones, not outside them.
• Company. A foreign company cannot own property in Dubai directly. Companies of Dubai free zones approved by the land department are allowed. For companies from Ras Al Khaimah there is no official document yet, only brokers' statements.

Buying a completed apartment for AED 2m (about $545k) without a mortgage:

With a mortgage, 0.25% of the loan amount is added. By law the registration fee is split equally between seller and buyer, but the contract can change this; in practice the buyer usually pays it. In other emirates the fee is lower: Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah about 2%, Ajman 3%.

Holding:

• There is no property tax. The annual "0.4%" fee that some websites mention does not exist.
• The service charge for a building is approved by the regulator for each project and is calculated in dirhams per square foot per year. The rate for a specific building can be looked up in the official index.
• The housing fee of 5% of annual rent is paid by whoever lives in the apartment, together with the water and electricity bill.

Sale and inheritance:

• A private individual pays no capital gains tax. For a company, the gain is part of profit: 9% above AED 375k (about $100k).
• On resale the developer's consent is needed; it costs from AED 500 to 5,250.
• There is no inheritance tax. But without a will, the property of Muslims is divided under Sharia, while for other foreigners since 2023 half goes to the spouse and the rest to the children in equal shares. A will covering property is registered at a dedicated centre in Dubai (fee AED 7,500 (about $2k)) or in the Abu Dhabi court.

Long-term:

• The contract is registered in the government system (Ejari, about AED 180-220); the court does not hear disputes over unregistered rentals.
• For the first two years the rent cannot be raised. After that, only if it is below the average in the official index, and by no more than 5-20% depending on the gap. Notice of an increase is given 90 days ahead.
• At the end of a contract, eviction is possible only on four grounds (demolition, major renovation, the owner's own use, sale) with 12 months' notice. After an eviction for the owner's own use, the home cannot be let for two years.
• Abu Dhabi has its own rules, and contracts are registered in a different system (Tawtheeq).

Short-term:

• In Dubai a permit from the tourism department is needed: AED 300 per bedroom a year, registration of every guest, an approved electronic lock. Operating without a permit carries a fine from AED 5,000 (about $1.4k).
• The permit changes the tax position: this is now a licensed activity (see below).
• Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah have their own licences. Fujairah has no established procedure.

Tax on rent:

• A private individual letting a home without a licence pays no tax at any income.
• A private individual with a licence (including a short-term rental permit) pays 9% only if annual turnover is above AED 1m (about $270k), and only on income above AED 375k (about $100k).
• A company pays 9% on profit above AED 375k (about $100k) with no turnover threshold.
• The frequently seen "threshold of 375 thousand for a private individual" is an error.

This section is about tax in the UAE. Tax in the investor's country of residence depends on their passport and residency and is calculated separately.

Central bank rules for foreign residents:

The term is up to 25 years, and payments are no more than half of income. For non-residents the regulation has no separate rules: the 50-70% figures quoted by brokers are the policy of individual banks.

The golden visa extends to spouse, children and parents. A mortgaged property is accepted with a letter from the bank. An off-plan property from an approved developer is accepted, according to reviews, since February 2026; this is worth re-checking before a deal. The application is filed in person in the UAE. There is no citizenship for investment.

Every figure is given twice: as published and adjusted for inflation. The dirham is pegged to the dollar (3.6725), so no exchange-rate conversion is needed; the adjustment is for dollar inflation, 25.5% over the period.

What this means:

• Half of the published growth was eaten by dollar inflation.
• Apartments and villas are two different markets. Over six years apartments gave 3% a year above inflation, villas 11%.
• Housing did not rise in price because of construction: cost in real terms fell, while the gap between price and cost grew one and a half times.

2026, from the land registry and monthly indices:

• New-build apartment prices have hardly changed since January (99.5 in September with January = 100); completed apartments fell to 97.1.
• Sales of completed apartments fell from 3.8 thousand in February to about 2.4 thousand a month.
• Rent growth slowed from 10% a year (January 2025) to 4.9% (September 2026), which is close to inflation. For new apartment contracts, rates have been falling since June.
• Construction cost over two quarters rose by 8.8%, as much as over the previous four years. This rise has not yet reached new-build prices.

Market size: for the first half of 2026 the Dubai land department reported 112,850 deals worth AED 420bn (about $110bn). For the whole of 2025, about 215 thousand sales worth AED 683-687bn (sources differ by 0.6%).

Land registry, January - September 2026. The price is the median of apartment deals; the dollars per square metre are converted by us.

What can be seen:

• The spread of prices is four and a half times: from $2,100 per metre (International City) to $9,500 (Dubai Maritime City).
• The market has shifted to the outskirts and to new builds. The best-selling district is Dubai South by the new airport: 92% of deals there are for homes under construction.
• Established districts, Marina and Downtown, are a market of completed homes: 7% and 24% of deals are off-plan. They can be viewed and let at once.
• In districts where almost everything is sold off-plan (Dubai Islands, Maritime City), the developer sets the price: there is as yet no resale market to test it.

The full list is 188 districts across seven emirates; 98 of the Dubai ones have registry figures.

Protection set by Dubai law:

• The contract is registered in the land department's interim register and moved to the main register when the building is handed over.
• Payments go to a special project account; the developer receives them in stages after an engineer's confirmation, and the developer's creditors cannot seize them.
• If the regulator cancels a project, the developer must return all payments.
• The buyer may seek termination through the court if the developer has materially changed the specification or the property is unfit.

Risks:

• Timing. In the first half of 2026 about 20 thousand homes were handed over, roughly 15% of the annual plan. Delays are routine.
• Buyer default. If the buyer stops paying, the developer may keep 25% to 40% of the price depending on how complete the building is.
• Resale before handover. Not guaranteed by law: developers usually allow it after 30-40% has been paid and require their own consent.
• A mortgage on an off-plan property is no more than 50% of the price.
• Ras Al Khaimah: a large volume of handovers is expected in the Al Marjan zone in 2027-2029, and this is a risk for prices and rents.

The directory has 13 developers. The largest: in Dubai, Emaar, Nakheel, Meraas, Binghatti, Ellington, Omniyat; in Abu Dhabi, Aldar, Modon, IMKAN; in Sharjah, Arada; in Ras Al Khaimah, RAK Properties.

Listings: Property Finder, Dubizzle, Propsearch. Auctions: the official platform of the Dubai land department (eMart) and Emirates Auction.

A property can be checked independently in the official services of the Dubai land department: project and account status, the approved service charge, the rent index for the building.

What a foreigner may buy. In Dubai a private individual buys offices and shops only in zones designated by the ruler; a residence permit is not needed (according to the pages of the law firms Legal500 and DLA Piper). The official Decree 3/2006 neither names nor excludes commercial property: the district and the property are checked with the land department. In Abu Dhabi, according to an agency page, commercial ownership is possible only in investment and free zones (ADGM, KIZAD); we will provide the official confirmation on request. In Ras Al Khaimah the names given are Al Marjan, Mina Al Arab, Al Hamra, RAK Central and Hayat. Our records show no requirement to buy through a company or to hold a licence.

How it differs from housing.

• The land department fee is the same, 4%: 2% each from seller and buyer.
• 5% VAT on purchase (tax authority guide, 2021). Housing is either not subject to it or is zero-rated. Only a registered taxpayer can reclaim the VAT paid.
• 5% VAT on rent as well. Registration is mandatory when taxable turnover exceeds AED 375,000 (about $100k)over 12 months; voluntary registration is possible from 187,500.
• Tax on rent for a private individual without a licence is zero, including for commercial property. If a licence is required but not obtained, this does not exempt. For a licensable activity with turnover above AED 1m (about $270k) a year, corporate tax applies; running a hotel under a licence also takes income out of the zero rate. A private individual pays no capital gains tax.
• Leasing. Dubai Law 26/2007 covers business premises too. The contract is registered with RERA, otherwise the court will not hear a dispute. For the first two years the rent cannot be raised, then it follows the RERA index. Renewal is automatic; refusal or new terms are notified 90 days ahead. The law excludes hotels, and free zones have their own rules.

Hotel rooms and serviced apartments. Sale conditions and warnings are not yet available in our records. Such properties are listed in Saadiyat, Dubai Islands, Port de la Mer, Al Marjan. All that is known is what is said above about a licensed hotel.

Residence permit. Our records do not say whether commercial property counts.

This is consultants' data as reported by newspapers: it describes the upper market, not what a private investor usually buys. The consultants differ (Cushman & Wakefield sees rates falling, Savills stable, JLL rising); the methods differ, and we do not choose between them.

Where it is concentrated. Dubai: DIFC, Business Bay, Downtown, Sheikh Zayed Road, Internet City, Media City; warehouses in Dubai Industrial City, the Al Quoz 2 and 3 industrial zones. Abu Dhabi: Al Maryah Island, Al Reem, Masdar. Ras Al Khaimah: RAK Central, the largest office district of the Northern Emirates.

Not yet available, and provided on request: yields of commercial properties, prices of small units, mortgage on commercial property, the annual tax on such properties, credit towards a residence permit, sale conditions for hotel rooms, rent and vacancy in retail and outside Dubai.