A tenancy contract in Dubai is the single most important document in your rental - it controls your rent, deposit, notice period, and legal rights for the next 12 months. Get the format wrong and it will not register on Ejari, cannot renew your visa, and has no legal standing at the RERA Rental Dispute Centre.
What is a Dubai tenancy contract?
A Dubai tenancy contract is a bilingual (Arabic + English) agreement between landlord and tenant covering a specific rental property. The Dubai Land Department (DLD) issues a mandatory template - the DLD Unified Tenancy Contract v1.4 - the only format recognised by RERA, the Rental Dispute Centre, DEWA, GDRFA (visa), and KHDA (schools). Custom-drafted agreements in Dubai are legally worthless.
The 6 required sections
- Section 1: Owner / Landlord details (name, Emirates ID, contact)
- Section 2: Tenant details (name, ID, contact, nationality)
- Section 3: Property details (plot, unit, DEWA premises, building, area, type)
- Section 4: Contract period (start, end, sign date - 12 months residential)
- Section 5: Financial terms (rent, deposit, mode of payment, cheque schedule)
- Section 6: Additional terms (8 slots for negotiated clauses)
Fees breakdown (2026)
- Contract generation: FREE at tenancycontract.com (typing centre AED 150-300)
- Ejari registration: AED 220 (AED 195 + AED 25 knowledge fee)
- Broker commission: 5% of annual rent (if using agent)
- DEWA setup: AED 2,000-4,000 refundable
- Chiller deposit: AED 1,000-2,000
- Total first-time cost: AED 3,500-7,000 typical
Security deposit rules
- Unfurnished: maximum 5% of annual rent
- Furnished: maximum 10% of annual rent
- Refundable within 30 days of move-out minus documented damage
- Above the cap = illegal, refuse or negotiate down
Rent increase rules (RERA Rent Index)
Dubai Decree No. 43 of 2013 sets caps on how much a landlord can raise rent at renewal:
- Rent 0-10% below market: 0% increase allowed
- Rent 11-20% below market: up to 5% increase
- Rent 21-30% below market: up to 10% increase
- Rent 31-40% below market: up to 15% increase
- Rent more than 40% below market: up to 20% increase
- 90 days written notice required for any change
Ejari registration (mandatory within 30 days)
Ejari is the RERA-operated rental registration system - the only official record of your tenancy. Required for DEWA connection, residence visa renewal, school admission, bank account opening, and enforcing disputes. Register online via Dubai REST app in 15-30 minutes for AED 220.
Step-by-step: create your contract
Notice periods to remember
- Non-renewal: 90 days written notice
- Rent increase: 90 days written notice
- Early termination (tenant): 60 days + penalty per contract
- Landlord eviction: 12 months notice via notary (limited grounds)
Common mistakes to avoid
- Custom Word template downloaded from Google (won't register on Ejari)
- Above-cap security deposit (illegal)
- Rent increase without 90-day notice (invalid)
- Delaying Ejari past 30 days (blocks DEWA + visa)
- Not photographing property at handover (deposit disputes)
Dispute resolution
File at the RERA Rental Dispute Settlement Centre. Fee: 3.5% of annual rent (min AED 500, max AED 20,000). Typical resolution: 30-60 days. Requires Ejari-registered contract and written correspondence.
For Ejari, see complete Ejari registration guide. For creation, see create tenancy contract complete guide. For downloads, see download tenancy contract template guide.