Ejari registration in Dubai
Ejari is the registration of a tenancy contract in Dubai. The registration centres on a unified Ejari contract, and a copy of that contract can be obtained through the Ejari website. If you are a tenant moving into a Dubai property, or renewing a Dubai tenancy, the direct answer is that registration runs through three channels, the tenant can start the process, and the landlord must approve it before the process is completed. The documents you need and the fee components you face depend on the channel you use, so the right route is to pick the channel first, then follow the document and fee list for that channel only.
Only what the Dubai Land Department FAQ page states is stated: the channels, the documents for each channel, and the fee components for each channel. The FAQ page does not state a single total payable, a step by step procedure, or renewal steps separate from registration, and none is added. Where the FAQ page gives an answer without showing its question, that is said, and the statement is recorded only as the page states it.
Ejari registration unified contract
The unified Ejari contract includes all data required for registration, as well as sample clauses and the possibility of adding special conditions. A copy of the unified contract can be obtained through the Ejari website. That contract is the document at the centre of registration in every channel described below, although the form in which it must be presented differs by channel.
Ejari and DEWA move-in
Yes. All customers require Ejari for the DEWA Move-in service. That requirement is stated on the FAQ page without exception, and it is one practical reason why registration matters even before any question of documents or fees.
Registration channels
Registration can be completed through three channels.
- The first is the Dubai REST app or the Department website. The Dubai REST app helps tenants and landlords submit Ejari management requests, including registration, renewals, and cancellations.
- The second is a Real Estate Services Trustee Centre, where registration takes place in the presence of one of the owning parties, an owner or a tenant, or whoever acts on their behalf under an official power of attorney.
- The third is the Ejari system for real estate companies, owners, and their representatives.
Creating an Ejari user account is free of charge. That statement covers the account only. It does not mean that Ejari registration itself is free, and it is not presented that way.
Tenant start and landlord approval
A tenant can initiate registration of the Ejari contract, but the landlord’s approval is required for the process to be completed. The tenant can submit the details of the rental agreement via the Dubai REST mobile app, or visit a trustee office with an NOC from the owner. Starting the process and completing the process are therefore different steps, and landlord’s approval is the step that completes it.
Registration responsibility
The responsibility for registering Ejari is borne by both the tenant and the landlord, “but in most cases, the tenant or the real estate agent is the party who completes the process.” That is the FAQ page wording. Shared responsibility does not remove the landlord’s approval requirement described above, and it does not answer who pays. The FAQ page does not state who pays the fee components, and no payer is stated.
Documents, channel by channel
The FAQ page lists documents under headed blocks for each channel, and the lists differ. Use only the list for your channel, because a document listed for one channel is not stated for another.
Via the application, the document listed is a copy of the unified tenancy contract.
Via the Real Estate Services Trustee offices, the documents listed are the original unified tenancy contract, showing the applicant UAE ID card, and showing the official power of attorney if the applicant is an attorney. If the power of attorney is issued from the Emirate of Dubai, the power of attorney number can be entered without attaching it. If it is issued from another emirate, it must be attached.
Via the Ejari system for real estate companies, owners, and their representatives, the FAQ page lists no documents. The headed block for that channel states none.
UAE ID is mandatory to register a tenant in the system. That requirement is stated on the FAQ page in general terms, and it sits alongside the channel lists above rather than replacing them.
Fee components stated by Dubai Land Department
The FAQ page lists fee components under headed blocks for two channels. It does not state a total payable, and no single total is given.
Via the Dubai REST App or the Department website, the headed block lists:
- AED 100 for registering a tenancy contract
- AED 10 Knowledge fee
- AED 10 Innovation fee.
Via Real Estate Services Trustee Centers, the headed block lists AED 120, and in addition, the service partners’ fees are AED 95 + VAT for the service partners’ fees.
No fee components are listed in the material summarised here for the Ejari system channel. Do not assume that the components for one channel apply to another channel. A reader who adds components together would be creating a figure the FAQ page does not state, so the components are left as listed.
Single total fee position
No single total is stated on the FAQ page. The components differ by channel, and the trustee channel adds a service partner element with VAT that the app and website block does not list.
Ejari contract cancellation
Free cancellation is available if the cancellation is done by the owner or real estate company. AED 40 is the cancellation fee if the cancellation is done by trustee offices. The fee rule turns on who carries out the cancellation, not only on the channel used.
The owner can cancel a contract via the app or by visiting any trustee office and get Ejari terminated to be able to register a new Ejari. If a tenant tries to cancel from service centres, they need an NOC from the owner. If the tenant cancels from Dubai REST, an approval request is sent to the owner. A tenant cannot cancel Ejari contracts for someone else. A tenant can cancel only their own contract.
Tenant cancellation routes
A tenant can cancel only their own contract, and only through the routes above: an NOC from the owner at a service centre, or an approval request sent to the owner through Dubai REST. Cancellation by a tenant without that owner link is not described on the FAQ page.
Renewal earlier years and term changes
A lease contract can be renewed and registered for a period less than a year. Renewal is therefore not limited to full year terms on the FAQ page wording.
Earlier years matter. It is not possible to register a lease contract with Ejari if the previous contracts are not registered already. Missed previous years registrations must be registered before the current year contract registration. A gap in the earlier years therefore blocks the current registration until the earlier years are registered.
One answer on the FAQ page states the contract period runs “from less than a year to a maximum of 10 years.” The question behind that answer is not shown on the page, so the maximum is recorded only as the page states it, and no further rule is built on it. The 10 year figure is not treated as a standard term or as a renewal promise.
If either party desires to amend any conditions or reconsider the rental allowance, whether an increase or a decrease, they must notify the other party no less than 90 days prior to expiry of the contract, unless the two parties agree otherwise. That 90 day notice rule is a notice rule for changing terms, not an Ejari fee or an Ejari step. That 90 day notice rule is relevant to renewal timing.
A tenancy law rule, not an Ejari procedure
Dubai Land Department also states a tenancy law rule that must not be confused with Ejari procedure. If the tenant continues occupying the property after expiry without the landlord’s objection, the lease renews automatically for the same term or one year, whichever is shorter, on the previously signed terms. That is a tenancy law renewal fact, and it is not presented as an Ejari re-registration.
The FAQ page does not state renewal steps separate from registration. A reader looking for a renewal procedure will not find one in the material summarised here, and none is invented.
Unstated points on the FAQ page
The FAQ page does not state a total payable, a time limit for landlord’s approval, a service time, a renewal procedure separate from registration, a late registration fine, or who pays. A guide that stated any of those points would be adding material the FAQ page does not state. The verified position is the narrower one set out above: channels, channel documents, fee components, cancellation rules, and the renewal and notice points the FAQ page does state.
Sources
- https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/frequently-asked-questions
- https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/news-media/lease-gets-renewed-automatically-when-the-tenant-continues-to-occupy-the-real-estate-without-the-owners-objection/
