Tenancy Contracts and Lease Agreements in Dubai
A tenancy contract is where almost every Dubai rental problem is either created or prevented. Rent, term, who repairs what, what the deposit covers, whether the property can be sublet or used for a business, and what happens if either side wants out early are all contract questions before they are legal ones — and several provisions of the tenancy law apply only unless the parties have agreed otherwise.
We draft and review tenancy contracts and commercial leases for landlords, tenants, property managers and corporate occupiers, and register them through Ejari. The framework is Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, with the Dubai Land Department administering registration and the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre deciding what a contract means if it later goes wrong.
Jurisdiction: Dubai, UAE.
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Overview
This page covers Dubai tenancy contracts and commercial lease agreements from the drafting side rather than the dispute side: what a contract has to contain, how the Dubai Land Department’s Unified Tenancy Contract and Ejari registration work, the clauses that decide later arguments, how residential and commercial drafting differ, what to check before signing, and the documents needed to prepare or review one. It is written for landlords, tenants, property managers and businesses taking space. The governing law is Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008. Several of its provisions are default rules that a contract can displace, which is exactly why the wording matters — and why what is right in one letting is wrong in another.
What a Dubai Tenancy Contract Must Contain
Article 4 of Law No. 26 of 2007 requires the tenancy relationship to be recorded in writing and registered. Article 9 requires the rent to be specified in the contract, and where the parties fail to specify it and the agreed figure cannot be proved, the rent becomes the rental value of a similar property — which is a poor way to find out what you agreed to pay.
In practice a Dubai tenancy is written on the Dubai Land Department’s Unified Tenancy Contract, which the Department publishes as a downloadable template and which is the form Ejari expects. It captures the essentials:
- the parties, with identification and, for a company, licence and signatory details;
- the property, identified by its plot, building and unit rather than by description alone;
- the permitted use — residential, commercial, or a specific activity;
- the term, with start and end dates;
- the rent, the number of cheques or instalments, and the dates each falls due;
- the security deposit;
- who pays utilities, service charges and municipality fees;
- signatures of both parties.
The standard form is the floor, not the ceiling. Anything the parties actually negotiated — a rent-free fit-out period, a break right, a repair threshold, a restriction on sharing — belongs in an addendum that is signed and attached, not in a WhatsApp thread. An addendum that contradicts the main form without saying which prevails is one of the more common sources of argument later.
Ejari: Registering the Tenancy
Ejari is the Dubai Land Department’s tenancy registration system. Registration is not an administrative afterthought: Article 4 requires lease contracts to be registered, and an unregistered tenancy causes problems at exactly the wrong moment — when a claim is being filed, when utilities are being connected, or when a residence or licence application depends on it.
The Department publishes the service itself, and the current position on its Register / Renew Tenancy Contract page is that a tenancy can be registered:
- through the Dubai REST app or the DLD website, submitting a copy of the Unified Tenancy Contract; or
- at a Real Estate Trustee Centre, presenting the original Unified Tenancy Contract, an Emirates ID and a power of attorney where someone is acting for a party.
Tenants, individual owners managing their own property, licensed property management companies and authorised representatives can all apply. The Department publishes the fee for each channel on that page — at the time of writing, AED 177.75 through the app or website and AED 220 at a Trustee Centre — and issues an e-Contract registration certificate on completion. Fees and channels are set by the Department and change from time to time, so the figure is worth checking against the Department’s own page rather than against an article.
Two practical points. Renewals need registering too, not just new tenancies; a renewal running on an expired Ejari record is a gap that surfaces later. And the details registered should match the signed contract exactly — a mismatch in the rent, the term or the unit reference is a question you will be asked to explain.
The Clauses That Decide Later Disputes
Several provisions of the tenancy law are default rules that apply only where the parties have not agreed otherwise. That single feature explains most Dubai lease disputes: the argument is usually not about what the law says, but about whether the contract displaced it.
| Clause | Position if the contract is silent | What to settle in the drafting |
|---|---|---|
| Rent and payment | Rent must be stated; if it is not and cannot be proved, the rental value of a similar property applies (Art. 9) | Amount, instalments, dates, method, and what happens to a returned cheque |
| Maintenance and repairs | Landlord is responsible for maintenance and defects (Art. 16) | Whether minor repairs pass to the tenant, and the value threshold if so |
| Notice to change terms at renewal | At least 90 days before expiry (Art. 14) | Whether a different period is agreed, and how notice must be given |
| Non-payment | 30 days from a notice to pay before eviction can be sought (Art. 25(1)) | Whether a different period is agreed, and where notices are served |
| Security deposit | Landlord may hold a deposit for upkeep, returnable at the end (Art. 20) | Amount, what it secures, the check-out process and the return timeline |
| Condition on return | As received, fair wear and tear excepted (Art. 21) | A signed check-in record and photographs attached to the contract |
| Fees and taxes | Government fees and taxes for the tenant’s use fall on the tenant (Art. 22) | Service charges, chiller, municipality fee and who pays each |
| Alterations | Tenant may not alter without consent and permits (Art. 19) | What fit-out is pre-approved, and what must be reinstated |
| Subletting | Not without the landlord’s written consent; a ground for eviction (Art. 25(1)) | Whether sharing, assignment or short-term letting is permitted at all |
| Early exit | Neither side may terminate unilaterally during the term (Art. 7) | Any break right, notice, and the compensation formula in plain numbers |
| Renewal on holding over | Renews on the same terms for the same period or one year, whichever is shorter (Art. 6) | Whether renewal is automatic, and on what terms |
An early-exit clause deserves particular care. Article 7 prevents either party ending a valid tenancy unilaterally during its term, so a tenant who may need to leave early has nothing to fall back on unless the contract creates the right. “Two months’ rent as compensation” written as a number is enforceable in a way that “reasonable compensation” is not.
Residential and Commercial Leases: Where the Drafting Differs
Residential and commercial tenancies in Dubai sit under the same law, but the drafting problems are different and so is the amount of money that turns on them.
Residential lettings
The Unified Tenancy Contract does most of the work. The negotiation usually reduces to the rent, the number of cheques, the maintenance threshold, whether sharing is allowed, and what the deposit covers. The commonest defect is the absence of a check-in record: without one, the deposit argument at the end has no factual anchor.
Commercial and retail leases
Here the contract carries far more weight, and the standard form is rarely enough on its own:
- Permitted activity has to match the tenant’s trade licence, and the licence has to match what the premises are approved for. Using premises for something other than what they were let for is a ground for eviction under Article 25(1), and it usually creates a licensing problem at the same time.
- Fit-out and reinstatement. What the landlord delivers, what the tenant may install, who approves drawings, and what has to be removed at the end — with a plan attached rather than described.
- Service charges. What is recharged, on what basis, and whether the tenant can see the underlying accounts.
- Rent-free and fit-out periods, and whether the term runs from handover or from the rent commencement date.
- Assignment and change of control, which matter when a business is sold. Subletting without written consent is a statutory ground; assignment is what the lease says it is.
- Vacant premises. Business premises left unoccupied without valid reason for the periods the law specifies are a ground for eviction unless the parties agreed otherwise — relevant to seasonal and pre-opening operators.
- Signage, access, operating hours and exclusivity in retail schemes.
Where a corporate tenant or landlord is involved, the signing authority also has to be right: a licence, a board or manager resolution, and a power of attorney where anyone signs on behalf of the entity.
Reviewing a Contract Before You Sign
Most people send a contract for review a day before signing. The review is more useful a week before, when there is still time to change something. What we look at, in order:
- Is the landlord the person entitled to let? The title deed or a property management contract, and where an agent signs, the authority to do so. A tenancy signed by someone without authority is a problem no clause fixes.
- Does the property description match the register? Plot, building and unit, not just a marketing name.
- Is the rent and payment schedule unambiguous? Dates, instalments, and what a bounced or dishonoured payment triggers.
- Is the permitted use right for the tenant’s actual intended use and, for a business, the licensed activity?
- Which default rules has the contract displaced? Maintenance, notice periods, deposit terms — these are the “unless otherwise agreed” provisions.
- Is there an exit? A break right, a compensation figure, or an acknowledgment that there is none.
- Are the addenda consistent with the main form, and is it clear which prevails?
- Is the condition of the property recorded in something both parties have signed?
- Where do disputes go? Ordinary tenancies fall to the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre under Article 6 of Decree No. 26 of 2013; a clause naming another forum does not change that by itself.
For a tenant, the two questions worth asking before signing anything are what happens if you need to leave early, and who pays when something breaks. For a landlord, they are how the rent is secured and what evidence will exist about the condition of the property on the day the keys change hands.
Renewal, Termination and Exit Clauses
How a tenancy ends is decided when it is drafted, not when someone wants out.
Renewal. Under Article 6, a tenant who stays on after expiry without the landlord objecting renews on the same terms for the same period or one year, whichever is shorter. A contract can set out a clearer renewal mechanic — automatic renewal, renewal on notice, or expiry with no renewal — and doing so removes the most common source of confusion at the end of a term. Changing any term for the renewal period still requires notice at least 90 days before expiry under Article 14 unless the parties agreed otherwise, and any rent increase remains subject to the bands in Decree No. 43 of 2013 measured against RERA’s index. The mechanics are covered on our page about lease renewals and rent increases.
Termination during the term. Article 7 prevents unilateral termination while the contract is running. Either the contract creates a break right or it does not. Where it does, the clause should state who may exercise it, how much notice is required, in what form the notice is given, and what is payable — expressed as a figure or a formula rather than as “compensation to be agreed”.
Ending for breach. The statutory grounds in Article 25(1) exist whatever the contract says, and they run on notice served through a Notary Public or by registered mail. What the contract can usefully do is fix the notice address, so there is no argument later about where a notice should have gone.
Handover. A clause requiring a joint inspection, a signed check-out record and clearance of utility accounts turns the end of a tenancy into an administrative exercise rather than a dispute.
Documents Needed to Draft or Review a Tenancy Contract
To draft or review a Dubai tenancy contract, the useful starting file is short:
- The draft contract or the previous tenancy contract for the same property.
- Any addenda, side letters or agent’s offer letter, including the ones nobody thinks are binding.
- The title deed or ownership evidence, or the property management agreement where an agent is letting.
- Emirates ID or passport for individuals; trade licence, memorandum and signatory evidence for a company; a power of attorney where anyone signs for someone else.
- The existing Ejari certificate, where the property has been let before.
- Floor plan or unit reference, and the fit-out drawings for a commercial letting.
- The tenant’s trade licence and licensed activity for commercial premises.
- Service charge and utility statements, so the recharge clauses can be tested against real numbers.
- Photographs and any check-in or snagging record for the property’s current condition.
- For a renewal, the notice already served and the RERA rent index figure either side is relying on.
Not all of this is needed for a straightforward residential letting. For a commercial lease of any size, the fit-out and service charge material is usually where the negotiation actually happens.
Common Drafting Mistakes in Dubai Tenancy Contracts
The same handful of defects turns up again and again, and none of them is expensive to prevent:
- Terms agreed by message and never written down. A rent-free month, permission to keep a pet, an agreement that the landlord will replace the air-conditioning — if it is not in the contract or a signed addendum, it is an argument.
- An addendum that contradicts the main form with nothing saying which prevails.
- No check-in record. The single most common reason a deposit dispute is unwinnable in either direction.
- A maintenance threshold with no figure. “Minor repairs” means whatever the person paying says it means.
- An early-exit clause with no mechanism — a right to terminate but no notice period, no form of notice and no compensation figure.
- Permitted use that does not match the licence for commercial premises, or a residential unit let for a business activity.
- A notice address that is out of date or missing, so a notice that has to be served through a Notary Public or by registered mail has nowhere reliable to go.
- The tenancy never registered on Ejari, or a renewal left unregistered while the original record expires.
- An arbitration clause copied from a commercial agreement into an ordinary tenancy, on the assumption that it moves the dispute out of the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre. It does not do that by itself.
- A company signing without evidence of authority, which becomes a preliminary issue in any later claim.
How We Work on a Tenancy Contract
For a residential letting, a review is usually a single pass: we read the contract and the addenda against the law, mark the clauses that shift a default rule, flag anything that is unenforceable or simply unclear, and give you a short list of what to change before signing. For a commercial lease the work is longer and normally involves a marked-up draft and a round of negotiation on fit-out, service charges, use and exit.
Drafting from scratch starts with the commercial terms, the property and the parties, and produces a contract on the Unified Tenancy Contract with the negotiated terms in a properly drawn addendum. We register through Ejari where you would like us to, and keep the signed set together so that the file exists before anyone needs it.
Where a party is outside the UAE, a power of attorney drafted for the purpose allows signature and registration without travel.
Related pages
- Lease renewals and rent increases — the 90-day notice and the permitted increase bands.
- Rental disputes and the RDC — what happens when a contract is breached.
- Tenant lawyer in Dubai — tenant-side representation.
- Landlord lawyer in Dubai — landlord-side representation.
- Dubai landlord and tenant law — the legislation explained.
To have a contract drafted or reviewed, send us the draft and the dates. A review is far more useful before signature than after it.
Official Legal Sources
The statements of law on this page rest on the following official sources:
- Law No. 26 of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai — Dubai Legislation.
- Law No. 33 of 2008 amending Law No. 26 of 2007 — Dubai Legislation.
- Decree No. 43 of 2013 determining rent increases for real property in Dubai — Dubai Legislation.
- Decree No. 26 of 2013 concerning the Rent Disputes Settlement Centre — Dubai Legislation.
- Register / Renew Tenancy Contract and the Unified Ejari Tenancy Contract template — Dubai Land Department.
Legislation, fees and service channels change. Where a date, a fee or a notice period matters to a decision you are about to take, check it against the official source or ask us to confirm the current position.
Tenancy Contract Questions We Are Asked Most Often
Yes. Article 4 of Law No. 26 of 2007 requires the tenancy to be recorded and registered, which in practice means the Dubai Land Department’s Unified Tenancy Contract registered through Ejari. An unregistered tenancy tends to cause problems at the point where it matters most — filing a claim, connecting utilities, or an application that depends on proof of address.
Start from the Dubai Land Department’s Unified Tenancy Contract, which the Department publishes as a template and which Ejari expects. Complete the parties, the property by plot, building and unit, the permitted use, the term, the rent and instalment dates, the deposit and who pays utilities and service charges. Anything negotiated beyond the standard form — a rent-free period, a break right, a repair threshold — goes into a signed addendum attached to the contract. Then register it through Ejari.
You can use the Dubai Land Department’s own template, and for a straightforward residential letting it covers most of what is needed. What a generic online template will not do is address the points that actually cause disputes here: which default rules under the tenancy law your contract is displacing, how a commercial fit-out and reinstatement work, and whether an early-exit clause is capable of being enforced. Those are drafting decisions, not form-filling.
The Dubai Land Department sets and publishes the fee on its Register / Renew Tenancy Contract service page. At the time of writing it lists AED 177.75 through the app or website and AED 220 at a Real Estate Trustee Centre. Fees change, so the Department’s page is the figure to rely on rather than any article, this one included.
Under Article 16 the landlord is responsible for maintenance and for repairing defects during the term — unless the contract says otherwise. Many Dubai contracts do say otherwise, passing minor repairs up to a stated value to the tenant. If the clause gives no figure, expect an argument about what counts as minor; the drafting fix is a number.
Subletting without the landlord’s written consent is already a ground for eviction under Article 25(1), so a contractual prohibition largely restates the statutory position. Sharing with flatmates, listing on short-stay platforms and assignment to another business are different questions, and they are decided by what the contract actually permits — which is why a tenant who intends to share should have that written in rather than assumed.
Only if the contract gives you the right, or the other party agrees. Article 7 prevents either side terminating a valid tenancy unilaterally during its term. A workable break clause states who may exercise it, how much notice is needed, in what form the notice is given, and what is payable as a figure or a formula. “Compensation to be agreed” is not a mechanism.
Article 20 lets a landlord take a deposit to ensure the property is maintained and requires it to be returned at the end of the tenancy; the law does not fix the amount. A useful clause states the amount, what it secures, that deductions must be evidenced, how the check-out inspection happens and when the balance is returned. Pair it with a signed check-in record and dated photographs — without those, Article 21’s fair wear and tear test has nothing to measure against.
Article 22 places government fees and taxes connected with the tenant’s use of the property on the tenant unless the contract says otherwise. Service charges, cooling and utility connections are contract questions rather than statutory ones, so silence is what causes the dispute. For a commercial lease it is worth going further and setting out what may be recharged and on what basis.
If you stay on after expiry and the landlord does not object, Article 6 renews the tenancy on the same terms for the same period or one year, whichever is shorter. A contract can set a clearer mechanic. Changing any term for the renewal still needs notice at least 90 days before expiry under Article 14 unless the parties agreed a different period, and a rent increase remains subject to the bands in Decree No. 43 of 2013.
Not simply by writing it into an ordinary tenancy contract. Article 6 of Decree No. 26 of 2013 gives the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre exclusive jurisdiction over rent disputes for property in Dubai, including in free zones, subject to defined exclusions — free zones with their own tribunals, lease finance contracts, and long-term leases governed by Law No. 7 of 2006. Whether a clause has any effect depends on the property and the arrangement, so it is analysed rather than assumed.
Ordinary commercial tenancies of property in Dubai sit under the same law and the same forum, subject to those exclusions. What differs is how much the contract has to do: permitted activity has to match the trade licence, fit-out and reinstatement need a plan attached, service charges need a stated basis, and business premises carry an additional eviction ground for being left unoccupied without valid reason for the periods the law specifies.
Evidence that the signatory can bind the entity: the trade licence, the constitutional documents or a board or manager resolution, and a power of attorney where someone signs on the company’s behalf. This is worth resolving at signature, because if it surfaces later it becomes a preliminary issue in whatever claim brought it up.
It may be evidence of what was agreed, but it is a poor substitute for a term. Where the contract is silent or says the opposite, a message thread puts you in the position of arguing about what was meant rather than pointing at a clause. Anything negotiated should go into a signed addendum attached to the tenancy contract, with wording that says which document prevails if they conflict.