A DIFC will is a will registered with the DIFC Courts Wills Service, which allows a non-Muslim with assets in the UAE to direct how those assets pass on death according to their own wishes rather than by default succession rules. It operates under the Dubai legislation governing inheritance, wills and probate for non-Muslims, with the DIFC Courts providing the registry and the probate route.
The attraction is certainty. A registered DIFC will is intended to be admitted and administered by a common law court applying testamentary freedom, which removes a layer of argument about whether a foreign will can be relied on for UAE assets.
What is a DIFC will?
It is a will drawn up in the form required by the DIFC Courts Wills Service, signed and registered with the service, and stored in its registry. On death, the executor applies to the DIFC Courts for a grant of probate, and the court issues orders that can be taken to the relevant registries and institutions to transfer the assets.
The governing instrument is Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017 concerning inheritance, wills and probate for non-Muslims in the Emirate of Dubai, supported by the rules of the DIFC Courts Wills and Probate Registry. The service now also covers Ras Al Khaimah, by arrangement with that emirate.
The key point is that the DIFC will is a Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah mechanism. It is not a federal scheme, and it does not automatically govern assets in the other emirates.
Who can register a DIFC will?
The eligibility rules are narrow and strictly applied. According to the service, the testator must:
- Not be Muslim, and never have been Muslim.
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Own assets in the UAE, or have minor children resident in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah.
The requirement never to have been Muslim is the one that catches people. A person who converted away from Islam is not eligible, and a declaration to the contrary in the registration process is a serious matter. Where there is any history on this point, take advice before registering rather than assuming.
There is no requirement to be a UAE resident, and no requirement to hold a DIFC licence or to have any connection to the financial centre beyond owning UAE assets or having minor children in the covered emirates.
What types of DIFC will are available?
The service offers a full will and a set of shorter template wills. In outline:
- Full will. Covers movable and immovable property, and is the option where the estate is complex or where the testator wants trusts, substitutions or detailed provisions.
- Guardianship will. Deals only with the appointment of guardians for minor children, including interim guardians who can act immediately after death.
- Property will. Covers a limited number of UAE real estate holdings.
- Business owners will. Covers a limited number of shareholdings in UAE companies.
- Financial assets will. Covers a limited number of UAE bank and brokerage accounts.
The template wills are cheaper and quicker, but they are capped both in the number of assets they can cover and in the sophistication of the provisions available. A testator with a spouse, children from more than one relationship, a business and property in several emirates is usually better served by a full will.
The guardianship will deserves separate mention. For parents of young children it is often the most urgent document, because it addresses what happens in the hours and days after a death, which is precisely when a purely financial instrument is of no use.
How does a DIFC will interact with Sharia succession rules?
This is the question the whole service exists to answer, and the position has moved in recent years.
Historically, the default rule was that UAE personal status law applied Sharia principles of succession to estates in the UAE, with a route for non-Muslims to ask for the law of their home country to be applied, which in practice produced uncertainty and delay. Registering a DIFC will was the way to take that uncertainty out.
Since then, the federal position for non-Muslims has been developed separately, principally through Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2022 on civil personal status, which provides a civil framework for non-Muslims covering marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance, including provision for testamentary disposition. Abu Dhabi has its own civil personal status arrangements and a registry for non-Muslim wills.
The result is that there are now several routes rather than one, and they overlap. A DIFC will remains a well established, court backed mechanism for Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah assets. It is no longer the only option, and for an estate centred on Abu Dhabi or another emirate it may not be the right one. This is an area that has changed more than once and is worth checking rather than assuming.
How is a DIFC will registered?
Registration is an appointment with the Wills Service at which the testator signs in the required manner and the will is entered on the registry. The service offers in person appointments and virtual appointments by video conference, which means a testator outside the UAE can register without travelling. Appointments are short, because the drafting work happens beforehand.
Registration fees are set by the DIFC Courts and differ between will types and between the full and template routes. They are revised from time to time, so take the current schedule from the service rather than from a law firm’s older article.
Amending a registered will requires a further registration step. A DIFC will cannot be validly varied by a handwritten note or a codicil prepared outside the process, and an unregistered amendment is a common way for a carefully planned estate to unravel.
What are the alternatives to a DIFC will?
There are three main ones, and the right answer often involves more than one document.
- Abu Dhabi registration. The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department operates a non-Muslim wills registry, which is the natural home for an estate centred on Abu Dhabi. It has its own eligibility, format and fee rules.
- A Dubai Courts notarised will. Available for non-Muslims and registered onshore, with its own procedure and its own probate route.
- A home country will. Still valuable for assets outside the UAE, but relying on it alone for UAE assets can mean translation, legalisation and a contested application at a time when the family needs access to funds.
Where a person holds assets in more than one country, the usual approach is separate wills for separate jurisdictions, each expressly limited to the assets it covers. The drafting has to be done together, because the classic failure is a later will revoking an earlier one by a general revocation clause that nobody read carefully.
Where do people get caught out?
Bank accounts are frozen on notification of death, and joint accounts do not necessarily pass automatically to the survivor in the way people expect from other jurisdictions. That is often the first practical shock for a surviving spouse, and it is a reason to think about liquidity and about who can access funds in the short term, not only about the eventual distribution.
Company shareholdings are the second problem. Shares in a UAE company do not transfer simply because a will says so: the transfer has to be registered with the relevant authority or free zone, and the company’s own constitution and any shareholders agreement may impose pre-emption or approval requirements that override the testamentary intention.
The third is doing nothing after a change in circumstances. Marriage, divorce, a new child, a property purchase in a different emirate or a change in the eligibility position all justify a review. A DIFC will registered five years ago against a different set of facts is not a plan.
This article is general information about UAE law as at September 2026 and is not legal advice. The position varies by emirate and by free zone, and it changes often. Take advice on your own facts before you act.
Frequently asked questions
Does a DIFC will cover property in Abu Dhabi or Sharjah?
The service is built around Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah, and template wills in particular are aimed at assets in those emirates. For property elsewhere in the UAE the safer route is usually a separate registration in that emirate, such as the Abu Dhabi non-Muslim wills registry. Coverage has been extended before, so confirm the current scope.
Do I still need a will in my home country?
Usually yes, for assets held outside the UAE. The standard approach is one will per jurisdiction, each limited by its own terms to the assets in that country. The drafting must be coordinated, because a general revocation clause in a later will can unintentionally cancel an earlier one and leave an estate partly intestate.
Can a Muslim register a DIFC will?
No. The service requires that the testator is not Muslim and has never been Muslim, and that condition is applied strictly. Muslims are subject to Sharia principles of succession in the UAE. Anyone whose religious history is not straightforward should take advice before starting the process rather than making a declaration on the form.
How long does DIFC probate take after a death?
It depends on the estate and on whether the will was registered and unambiguous. A registered will with a named executor and clearly identified assets is far quicker than a contested application or a foreign will requiring translation and legalisation. Practical access to funds also depends on the banks and registries, not only on the court.
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