Dubai rent increases, and what the index actually allows

The five-step scale, in the words of the decree

Official rule Article 1 of Decree No. 43 of 2013, in force since 18 December 2013 and unchanged today, ties the permitted increase solely to the gap between the rent currently agreed and the market average for comparable property.^[1] The further below the market the running rent sits, the more may be added.

Worked example Your apartment is let at AED 70,000 a year and the index shows AED 95,000 for comparable property. The running rent is therefore about 26 per cent below the market average. That puts you in the third step, so you may raise by 10 per cent, to AED 77,000. Not to AED 95,000. The route to market level runs over several contract periods, not in one jump.

Official rule The scale applies across the emirate. Article 2 of the decree expressly covers all landlords including special development zones and free zones, with the DIFC named explicitly.^[1]

What the Smart Rental Index changed

Before 2025 the rental index worked with averages by district and property type. A refurbished new build and a twenty year old block on the same street were treated identically. Since 2 January 2025 the Smart Rental Index grades the individual building.^[3]

Official rule According to Dubai Land Department announcements the grading takes in technical and structural condition, the quality of finish and maintenance, location and spatial value, and the level of service, meaning upkeep, cleanliness and parking management.^[3]

What matters in practice is the direction of travel: an owner who invests in maintenance and finish can improve the building's grade and therefore the permitted rent corridor. The Dubai Land Department official responsible said as much when the index was introduced.^[3]

You can check the figure free of charge through the Dubai REST app, through DubaiNow, or on the Dubai Land Department website. You enter the contract expiry date, the property type, the area or building, the number of rooms, the size and the current annual rent, and you get the permitted increase back immediately. It is open to tenants and owners alike, which is worth remembering before you send a letter.

The deadlines landlords actually fail on

Official rule Article 14 of Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, requires the party wishing to change a contract term to give notice at least 90 days before the tenancy expires, unless otherwise agreed.^[2] A rent increase is such a change. Miss the deadline and the contract renews on the existing terms.

Nexus Bridge experience This is by a distance the most common failure among owners managing from abroad. Nothing about it is complicated. It is simply a date that passes while nobody is watching the calendar.

Official rule Ending a tenancy is a different matter from adjusting it. If the owner wants the property for their own use, for a first-degree relative, or intends to sell, Article 25(2) requires notice at least 12 months before the vacating date, served through a Notary Public or by registered mail.^[2] Article 26 adds a protection: if the owner re-lets within two years of a vacancy taken for personal use, the former tenant may claim reasonable compensation before the rental tribunal. For commercial property the period is three years.^[2]

The two-year myth

We hear it constantly: rent may not be raised during the first two years of a tenancy. That rule did once exist, in the original Article 9 of Law No. 26 of 2007. It was deleted by Law No. 33 of 2008. Today's Article 9 governs only how the rent is determined.^[2]

A two year period survives in current law at exactly one place: Article 26, as the protection period after a vacancy taken for personal use. Confusing the two costs an owner an adjustment they were entitled to, or drags a tenant into an argument they did not need to have. What governs the increase is the scale in Decree No. 43 of 2013 read together with the index, and nothing else.

Ejari is the ticket to everything else

Official rule Article 4 of Law No. 26 of 2007 requires all tenancy contracts to be registered, and provides that courts and authorities will not hear a dispute while the contract is unregistered.^[2] The obligation legally falls on the landlord. In practice the tenant usually registers, because they need the certificate for utilities and visa matters.

Registration costs AED 177.75 through Dubai REST and AED 220 at a trustee centre.^[4]

For an owner this is not a formality, it is the entry ticket to the rental tribunal. Without Ejari you can enforce neither an increase nor a vacancy. Anyone managing from abroad should ask for proof of registration every year rather than assume it.

Managing from abroad

Nexus Bridge experience Three things need to sit with someone on the ground, with a named date attached to each: the index check about four months before expiry, the notice itself inside the 90 day window in a form that can be evidenced, and the annual proof of Ejari registration. Owners who lose money on a Dubai tenancy almost never lose it on the rate. They lose it on a date.

Five mistakes we see every month

1. Missing the 90 day notice period. Set a reminder four months before expiry. Without notice in time the contract renews on the old terms.
2. Trying to move straight to market rent. The scale caps the increase at 20 per cent, and only when the running rent is more than 40 per cent below market. Getting there takes several periods.
3. Assuming a two year freeze on increases. Deleted in 2008. The two year period today concerns compensation after a vacancy for personal use.
4. Sending the vacancy notice informally. Article 25 requires service through a Notary Public or by registered mail. An email or a message does not satisfy it.
5. Treating Ejari as the tenant's problem. The obligation is the landlord's, and without registration the tribunal is closed to you.

How we work

Our fee is paid by the client, not by product distribution. We take no commission from banks or sellers, the fee is agreed in advance, and we accompany you to the bank rather than working for the bank. On a tenancy we set out the published rules with their sources so that you, or whoever manages the property for you, can act on a date instead of on an assumption. This page is information, not legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Sources