Dubai is the most administratively transparent of the three markets. The register is authoritative, which shifts diligence from title risk toward selecting the asset.
Ownership and the register
Foreign nationals may own freehold in designated areas of Dubai. Ownership is evidenced by a title deed or e-Certificate of Title issued through the Dubai Land Department, and the register is the authority on who owns what.
That register is the reason Dubai diligence differs from the other two markets. The question is less often whether title is sound, and more often whether the asset itself is the right one: the building, the developer's delivery record, the service charge, and the depth of resale demand for that specific unit type.
The ten-year investor visa
An investor owning property with a purchase value of at least AED 2 million at the time of purchase may apply for a renewable ten-year residence permit. A spouse, children and parents can be sponsored.
The property may be mortgaged. In that case the Land Department requires a no-objection letter from the bank confirming it does not object to the residence permit being issued, and stating the amount paid and the outstanding balance. The two million threshold is assessed on the paid amount.
The applicant must be inside the UAE to apply. Required documents are a passport, the title deed or e-Certificate of Title, a personal photograph, an Emirates ID if held, and a copy of any current residence permit.
Government fees for the visa
The Dubai Land Department publishes the ten-year permit costs as a medical examination at AED 700, a ten-year Emirates ID at AED 1,153, confirmation of the residence permit at AED 2,856.75, Land Department fees of AED 4,020 and administrative fees of AED 1,155, totalling AED 9,884.75.
These are the government fees for the residence permit only. They are separate from the property transfer costs, agency commission, service charges and any mortgage arrangement fees, all of which need to sit in the budget from the beginning.
Where buyers actually lose money
In Dubai the loss is rarely a defective title. It is buying into oversupply: a unit type with thousands of near-identical competitors completing in the same window, in a building whose service charge quietly erodes the yield that justified the purchase.
Service charge per square foot, handover pipeline in the immediate area, and the developer's record of delivering on time are the three numbers that decide the outcome. None of them appear in the price.
What to verify before you pay
- 01Confirm the area is designated freehold for foreign ownership.
- 02Verify the title deed or e-Certificate of Title through the Dubai Land Department.
- 03Ask for the building's service charge per square foot and its recent history.
- 04Check how many comparable units complete nearby within the next 24 months.
- 05Review the developer's delivery record on completed projects, not launches.
- 06For a mortgaged purchase, obtain the bank's no-objection letter early.
Reviewed September 2026 · This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Thresholds, fees and deadlines change, and they change often. Confirm every figure with a licensed lawyer in the relevant country before you commit money.
