Tenancy Contract Dubai: Rules for Tenants and Landlords

A tenancy contract in Dubai is governed by Law No. 26 of 2007 regulating the relationship between landlords and tenants, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, and it must be registered with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency through the Ejari system. Rent increases at renewal are capped by Decree No. 43 of 2013, which sets percentage brackets by reference to how far the current rent sits below the market benchmark for comparable property.

Those three instruments do most of the work. Almost every argument between a Dubai landlord and a Dubai tenant comes down to one of four things: whether the contract was registered, whether a rent increase was within the permitted bracket, whether the right notice was given at the right time, and whether the landlord had a lawful ground to end the tenancy. This article takes each in turn.

What must a Dubai tenancy contract contain?

The law does not prescribe a single form of words, but it does assume the contract identifies certain things clearly, because the rest of the regime depends on them. In practice a usable Dubai tenancy contract records:

• The parties, with the landlord identified as the registered owner or a person holding written authority from the owner.
• The property, described so it matches the title deed and the Ejari record.
• The term, with clear start and end dates.
• The rent, the number of cheques or instalments, and the dates they fall due.
• The permitted use, residential or commercial, and whether subletting is allowed.
• Who pays for maintenance, and where the line falls between major and minor works. In the absence of agreement, responsibility for maintenance sits with the landlord.
• The security deposit and the basis on which it is returned.

The standard Dubai Land Department unified tenancy contract covers this ground and is what most agents use. Additional terms are commonly added in an addendum. An addendum is enforceable, but it cannot override the parts of the tenancy law that are mandatory, and the rent cap and the notice rules are mandatory.

Do I have to register the tenancy with Ejari?

Yes. The amended law requires lease contracts relating to real property in Dubai to be registered with RERA, and Ejari is the mechanism. Registration is the landlord’s obligation in the ordinary case, though in practice either side can complete it and tenants often do so themselves when a landlord is slow.

Registration matters well beyond form. An Ejari certificate is what you produce to connect utilities, to apply for or renew certain residence permits, and to file a case at the Rental Disputes Centre. A tenant holding only an unregistered contract is not without rights, but is in a materially weaker practical position. Fees for registration are set by the Dubai Land Department and change from time to time, so check the current schedule rather than relying on a figure you read somewhere.

How much can a landlord raise the rent?

Decree No. 43 of 2013 sets the maximum increase permitted on renewal, expressed as a percentage of the existing rent and determined by how far that rent sits below the average market rent for a similar unit:

• Up to 10 per cent below the benchmark: no increase permitted.
• 11 to 20 per cent below: up to 5 per cent.
• 21 to 30 per cent below: up to 10 per cent.
• 31 to 40 per cent below: up to 15 per cent.
• More than 40 per cent below: up to 20 per cent.

The benchmark comes from the rental index published by the Dubai Land Department, and the department publishes a calculator that applies the brackets for you. From January 2025 the index moved to what the department calls the Smart Rental Index, which classifies buildings by quality, finishes, maintenance and services rather than treating every unit in an area as equivalent. That changed how the benchmark is produced. It did not change the brackets in Decree 43, and it did not give landlords a route around them. A landlord who asserts a higher increase because the building has been reclassified still has to land inside the bracket the calculator produces.

What notice is needed to change the terms at renewal?

Ninety days. If either party wants to vary the terms of the tenancy on renewal, including the rent, that party must notify the other no less than 90 days before the contract expires, unless the parties have agreed otherwise. Miss it and the contract renews on the existing terms.

This is the single most common landlord error in Dubai. A rent increase notice served 60 days out, or served by message with no record of receipt, is routinely defeated at the Rental Disputes Centre even where the proposed increase was itself within the permitted bracket. Tenants should note that the obligation cuts both ways: a tenant who wants to renegotiate downwards is subject to the same period.

When can a landlord evict a tenant?

There are two separate regimes and conflating them causes a lot of trouble.

During the term, eviction is available only on the specific grounds in Article 25(1), which include non-payment of rent after a 30 day notice to pay, unauthorised subletting, use of the property for an illegal purpose, damage caused by the tenant, and breach of the tenant’s obligations after a 30 day notice to remedy.

At the end of the term, the grounds in Article 25(2) are narrower: demolition or reconstruction, works requiring vacant possession that cannot be carried out with the tenant in place, the landlord wanting the property for personal use or for a first degree relative where the landlord has no suitable alternative, or sale of the property. In each of those cases the landlord must give at least 12 months notice, and the notice must be served through the notary public or by registered mail. Service by any other route is a frequent point of failure.

There is a sting attached to the personal use ground. Where a tenant is evicted so that the landlord or a relative can occupy, the landlord cannot then let the property to a third party for at least two years in the residential case, or three years in the non-residential case, without exposure to a compensation claim.

Where do rent disputes get decided?

The Rent Disputes Settlement Centre, established by Decree No. 26 of 2013, has exclusive jurisdiction over rent disputes between landlords and tenants of property in Dubai, including in free zones. Its structure includes mediation, a first instance division, an appellate division and its own enforcement directorate, so a case can start and finish within the centre.

Two exclusions matter. Free zones that operate their own tribunals or specialised courts fall outside the centre’s jurisdiction, which is why a lease inside the DIFC is not a Rental Disputes Centre matter. Long term leases governed by Law No. 7 of 2006 and finance lease arrangements are also outside it. Filing fees are set by the centre and are usually calculated by reference to the annual rent, subject to a ceiling, so check the current schedule before you budget.

Note also that the parties cannot simply agree their way out of this. The Dubai courts have treated an attempt to confer jurisdiction over a Dubai property lease on a different forum as contrary to public order.

Where do people get caught out?

Four points account for most of the losses. First, notice periods, and in particular serving a 12 month eviction notice informally instead of through the notary or by registered mail. Second, assuming a rent increase is lawful because the market has moved, without running the calculator. Third, treating an eviction ground available at expiry as if it were available mid term. Fourth, leaving the tenancy unregistered and then needing the Ejari certificate at short notice.

Before you renew, run the calculator, diarise the 90 day date, and check the Ejari record still matches the contract. Before you serve any eviction notice, check the ground, the period and the method of service in that order, because a defect in any one of them will usually end the case.

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.

Legal Desire has published legal industry news and analysis since 2012. This article is part of our UAE desk, which tracks the laws, courts and regulators of the Emirates for lawyers and in-house teams.