What a Dubai developer is liable for, and for how long

The crack in the wall rarely appears on handover day. It appears in the second year, long after the buyer has signed, and the developer points at the handover report. UAE law has an answer for exactly that situation, in two strands with very different clocks.

Strand one: the Dubai jointly owned property law

Official rule Article 40 of Dubai Law No. 6 of 2019 sets two periods side by side.^[1]

For ten years from the date the developer received the completion certificate for the project, the developer remains obliged to remedy defects in the structural parts of the building. Note what that clock is attached to: the project, not your purchase. Buy a unit two years after completion and you have eight years left, not ten.

Alongside it runs the shorter period. For one year from handover of the unit to the owner, the developer is liable to repair or replace defective installations, meaning mechanical and electrical systems, plumbing and drainage.

Strand two: decennial liability, renumbered in June 2026

Official rule Independently of the jointly owned property law, UAE civil law imposes decennial liability on the architect and the contractor. It bites on collapse, and on defects that threaten the stability and safety of the building. The period is ten years from handover of the works, and the defect must manifest within those ten years for the claim to exist at all.^[2]

Until 31 May 2026 this sat in Articles 880 to 883 of Federal Law No. 5 of 1985. Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025 replaced the Civil Code in full with effect from 1 June 2026, and decennial liability now sits in Articles 821 to 824.^[2]

The substance carries over: ten years, no contracting out, and a three year limitation from discovery. Two things are new. Engineer and contractor are now expressly jointly and severally liable to the employer, and the rules are expressly excluded from the contractor and subcontractor relationship, meaning a main contractor can no longer pass strict decennial liability straight down the chain but must pursue a contractual or fault based claim instead. For property handed over before June 2026, transitional principles leave the old version applicable.

Official rule Agreements that exclude or limit decennial liability are void. That was the position before and it remains the position now. The corollary is worth stating too: do not assume your contract gives you more than the law does.

Every deadline, and when it starts

Almost every dispute we see is about when a period began, not about how long it is.

The 5 per cent retention nobody uses

Official rule Under Article 14 of Law No. 8 of 2007 the escrow trustee retains 5 per cent of the account once the completion certificate is issued, and releases it only one year after the units are registered to the buyers.^[3]

Nexus Bridge experience This is rarely thought of as a remedy, but it behaves like one. During that year the developer has a direct financial interest in clearing defects. Complaints raised in this window are, in our experience, resolved considerably faster than the same complaint raised eighteen months later. If you take handover in a new building, this is the year to be thorough rather than polite.

What the handover report does and does not do

Signing the handover report accepts the property in the condition found. Visible defects you could have identified and did not raise are, in practice, closed. That is precisely why the snagging inspection belongs before the signature and not after it.

What the signature does not do: it does not remove the ten year liability for structural parts, nor the one year on installations, nor decennial liability. Those claims arise independently of the report, and decennial liability cannot be contracted away at all. Find a settlement crack in year two and you have a claim, whatever the report says.

How to raise a defect properly

Three things decide the outcome.

1. Documentation. Dated photographs, a written description, and for anything substantial a technical report from an independent surveyor.
2. The right addressee. Defects in common property go to the management company first. Defects inside the unit go to the developer. Decennial claims run against the engineer and contractor, who are now jointly and severally liable.
3. Writing, with proof of receipt. In a dispute the date of discovery and the date of notification are what count, and both need to be evidenced rather than asserted.

And the point at which claims most often fail: the three year limitation from discovery. The ten year headline invites people to leave it. Discover a defect in year three, complain in year seven, and you have nothing, even though the ten year period is formally still open. Discovered means discovered, not proven.

Five mistakes we see every month

1. Counting the ten years from your own handover. It runs from the project's completion certificate. Ask for that date before buying a completed unit.
2. Delaying handover to buy time. If you do not take handover, the one year installation period starts at the completion certificate anyway.
3. Relying on a clause that excludes liability. Void for decennial liability. Equally, do not assume the contract gives you more than the law.
4. Trusting the ten years and leaving the defect. The claim lapses three years after discovery. Put it in writing as soon as you notice it.
5. Quoting the old article numbers. Since 1 June 2026 the provisions sit in Articles 821 to 824 of the new Civil Code. A letter citing Article 880 does not read as prepared.

How we work

Our fee is paid by the client, not by product distribution. We take no commission from banks or from sellers, the fee is agreed in advance, and we accompany you to the bank rather than working for the bank. On a defect we help you establish the dates and assemble the file. Which strand applies and how to pursue it belongs with a lawyer, and this page is information rather than legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

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