Selling a Dubai Property from Abroad
Most of our selling clients are not in Dubai when they decide to sell. Their questions are practical: can I do it without flying in, how do I get the money out, what happens to my tenant, and what do I owe at home. This article answers them in the order the sale happens.
The exit routes
- Standard resale of a completed unit, registered at a DLD trustee.
- Assignment of an off-plan unit before handover: you sell your contractual position, the developer consents (NOC), and the Oqood is re-registered to the buyer. Developers set conditions — a minimum share of the price paid, an assignment fee — which we confirm per project.
- Sale with a sitting tenant: allowed, and the tenancy passes to the buyer, who becomes landlord under the existing Ejari contract. Investors buying for income often prefer it.
Documents that decide how fast you close
Three items cause almost every delay, and all three can be obtained before you list:
- The developer's NOC. Issued when service charges are paid up and there is no other objection. Fee per the developer's tariff, usually borne by the seller.
- The bank's liability letter, if the property is mortgaged, stating the settlement figure and the early repayment charge under your loan.
- A valid power of attorney, if you will not attend. Signed before a UAE notary during a visit, or executed at home and then legalised: the UAE is outside the Hague Apostille Convention, so the document goes through your foreign ministry, the UAE embassy and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, followed by a sworn Arabic translation. The wording must cover the sale of the specific property, obtaining the NOC, releasing the mortgage and receiving the price.
Money: how a seller is paid
At the registration trustee, against the issue of the buyer's title deed. Cash buyers hand over a manager's cheque; financed buyers' banks pay under their own procedure; if you have a mortgage, the buyer's funds first settle it and the balance comes to you. Two banks in one closing add weeks to the preparation, not to the appointment itself.
Where the money lands is your decision, but plan it early: a UAE bank account simplifies the cheque, and any transfer onward will be asked about by the receiving bank. Keep the title deed, the sale contract and the trustee's receipt: they are your proof of source of funds.
Fees: who pays what
- DLD transfer fee, 4% — formally split 2% seller, 2% buyer; in practice the buyer pays and the contract records it.
- Trustee fee and fixed DLD charges — as agreed, usually on the buyer.
- NOC — seller.
- Agency commission — per your agreement with the broker.
- Mortgage early settlement — per your loan.
Tax at home
The UAE has no capital gains tax for individuals on a property sale. Your country of tax residence is the issue: most countries tax residents on gains from property anywhere, and the calculation — cost base, allowable expenses, exchange rates, any treaty with the UAE — is done before you agree a price, so that the net proceeds are the number you are negotiating over.
Pricing and marketing
A broker agreement on the DLD form, exclusivity or not, commission in writing. Ask for evidence of contracted prices for your building from the DLD's data, not asking prices. If the unit is tenanted, decide whether to sell to an investor with the tenant in place or to wait for vacancy; the two markets price differently.
The sale contract
Signed on the DLD form. The clauses that matter to a seller: the deposit and what happens to it if the buyer withdraws; the closing deadline and the consequences of the buyer's bank being slow; who pays which fee; the condition in which the unit is handed over; and, for a tenanted unit, an express acknowledgement by the buyer of the tenancy.
What we tell sellers not to do
- List before the NOC and clearance certificate are in hand.
- Accept a deposit outside a trustee or agency account.
- Sign a power of attorney that names the wrong unit number or omits the mortgage release.
- Assume the tenant will leave: eviction requires statutory notice and grounds, and a buyer who wants vacant possession will price that in.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a sale take?
Weeks from agreeing terms, if the NOC and bank letters are ready. Finding the buyer is the variable.
Can I sell before handover of an off-plan unit?
Usually, by assignment with the developer's NOC and re-registration of the Oqood. Conditions vary by developer.
What if the buyer withdraws after paying the deposit?
The contract decides. Standard wording keeps the deposit for the seller when the buyer withdraws without grounds; check the wording before signing.
This is a general framework, not legal advice. UAE law changes, and procedures differ between emirates and free zones. We review each situation individually.