A Dubai landlord who wants the property for personal use, for a first-degree relative, to sell it or to demolish it must serve an eviction notice through a notary public or by registered mail, with at least 12 months between the notice and the eviction date. Unpaid rent works differently.
A message on WhatsApp saying the owner needs the flat back is not the start of anything. Tenants pack anyway, because nobody explains that the clock does not begin until a notice is served through one of two named channels and states a reason and a date.
Twelve months is a long runway if you know you have it. Here is what the Dubai Land Department publishes, ground by ground.
How much notice must a Dubai landlord give to evict a tenant?
The Dubai Land Department separates the grounds into two families, and the notice periods are not close to each other.
Every row above is from the Dubai Land Department's own published rental FAQs. The department applies the same two service channels to all of them.
How must an eviction notice be served in Dubai?
Through the notary public, or by registered mail. The Dubai Land Department names those two routes and requires the notice to state the reason for the eviction and to specify the required eviction date.
What does a landlord have to prove to evict you for personal use?
More than intent. Alongside the twelve-month notice, the Dubai Land Department requires the landlord to prove that they do not have an appropriate alternative — and it defines that carefully. A suitable alternative does not mean the landlord owns no other property. It means that even where other properties exist, only the one in question is suitable for the intended purpose.
The sale ground carries a matching test. The department requires proof that the sale is serious and that no suitable alternative exists, on the same definition.
What happens to a sub-tenant when the main tenant is evicted?
The answer turns entirely on consent. Where the sub-lease was agreed to, the Dubai Land Department states that the eviction does not apply to the sub-tenant, who stays until the end of their own contract. Where there was no consent to the sub-lease, the eviction applies to the original tenant and the sub-tenant together.
The department points to the controls in Articles 8 and 30 of Law No. 26 of 2007 regulating the relationship between landlords and tenants in Dubai, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008.
Can a landlord evict a business from a commercial unit in Dubai?
There is a separate ground for it. The Dubai Land Department cites paragraph (d) of Article 25 of Law No. 33 of 2008, amending Law No. 26 of 2007, under which commercial premises may be vacated if the tenant leaves them unoccupied and without reason for thirty consecutive days, or ninety intermittent days in one year, unless the two parties agree otherwise.
What should you do with twelve months' notice in Dubai?
Twelve months is the only move-out in Dubai where you are not doing everything in a fortnight. It is also the only one where the wear on the walls is entirely within your control before anybody inspects it.
Deposits are lost at the handover inspection, not at the tribunal. Our guide to Dubai security deposit and move-out rules sets out what a landlord can and cannot deduct, and move-out painting in Dubai explains why a repainting deduction is the line most often argued over. If the argument is about a repair rather than decoration, who pays for maintenance in a Dubai rental covers who the law puts it on.
When the notice period ends you will also need to close the tenancy record itself, which our guide to cancelling Ejari in Dubai walks through.
Leave the repaint to the last fortnight and you will take whatever price is available. Book it with a year in hand and you get to choose.
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Frequently asked questions about eviction notices in Dubai
How many months notice must a Dubai landlord give to evict a tenant?
For personal use, use by a first-degree relative, sale or demolition, the Dubai Land Department requires at least 12 months between the notification and the requested date of eviction. Non-payment of rent is governed separately: the notice asking the tenant to pay carries a deadline of no less than 30 days.
How must an eviction notice be served in Dubai?
The Dubai Land Department names two channels and no others: through the notary public, or by registered mail. The department also requires the notice to state the reason for the eviction and to specify the required eviction date, so a notice that omits either element does not meet the published requirement.
Can a Dubai landlord evict you for not paying rent?
Yes, but only after a formal step. The Dubai Land Department requires a notice sent through the notary public or by registered mail asking the tenant to pay the rent or the eviction allowance, with a deadline for payment of no less than 30 days, and the tenant must then have defaulted on that payment.
Can a landlord evict you to sell the property in Dubai?
A sale is a recognised ground, with conditions. The Dubai Land Department requires a notice through the notary public or by registered mail giving at least 12 months, and requires the landlord to prove the sale is serious and that no suitable alternative property exists, even where the landlord owns other properties.
What happens to a sub-tenant if the main tenant is evicted in Dubai?
Where the sub-lease was consented to, the Dubai Land Department states that the eviction does not apply to the sub-tenant, who continues to occupy the property until the end of their own contract. Without consent to the sub-lease, the eviction applies to both the original tenant and the sub-tenant.
