Dubai · Guide · Property ownership
Guide: who can own property where in Dubai. Law No. 7 of 2006 gives Kuwaiti and other GCC citizens the right to own anywhere in the emirate; other foreigners buy in freehold areas
Dubai's Law No. 7 of 2006 on real property registration limits the right to own property in the emirate to UAE nationals, nationals of the Gulf Cooperation Council states, companies wholly owned by them, and public joint stock companies. Other foreigners may own freehold, or hold usufruct or a lease of up to 99 years, only in areas set by the Ruler, first listed plot by plot in Regulation No. 3 of 2006 and widened by later resolutions.
Why it mattersOur view for a Kuwaiti buyer: this is one of the quiet advantages of a Kuwaiti passport in Dubai. Most foreign buyers are limited to the freehold areas, while the law puts a Kuwaiti citizen alongside UAE nationals in the right to own across the emirate, and a company wholly owned by Kuwaitis has the same right. The practical gain is choice: older neighbourhoods and plots outside the areas opened to other foreigners are also open to you, subject to any conditions written in the plot's own record. The second lesson matters as much as the first. In Dubai the register is the proof: a sale does not take effect until it is recorded at the Land Department, and the title deed it issues is conclusive. So whatever you buy, and wherever it is, do not treat a reservation form or a receipt as ownership; ask for the transfer at the Land Department and the title deed in your name.
