Yes, a foreigner can buy a home in Dubai outright, with no need to live there. Freehold ownership is open to non-UAE nationals in the areas the Ruler has designated for it. In January–September 2026 the median home sold for AED 1,369,288, almost three in four sales were off-plan, and the buyer usually pays a 4% registration fee on top.
Our figures are sales registered with the Dubai Land Department. One limit before we start: the records we hold don't show the buyer's nationality, so the prices below describe the whole market, not overseas buyers alone. Rules are stated as of 8 October 2026.
Can a foreigner buy property in Dubai?
The rule sits in Article 4 of Dubai Law No. 7 of 2006, the property registration law. It gives the general right to own real property to UAE nationals, nationals of the other GCC states, companies wholly owned by them, and public joint stock companies. Everyone else can be granted two kinds of right, but only in areas the Ruler has designated:
- Freehold ownership with no time limit.
- A usufruct or long lease of up to 99 years.
In practice, freehold is the one that matters. Outside the designated areas a foreign buyer can't take title, so check the area on the title deed, or ask DLD's trustee office, before anything else.
You don't need a UAE visa or residence to buy. You need a passport, the funds, and for a mortgage, a bank willing to lend to you.
How much money do you need to buy a property in Dubai?
More than the price. Plan for four layers:
- The 4% DLD fee. DLD charges 4% of the property's value to register a sale, paid as agreed between seller and buyer. On a AED 1.5 million flat that is AED 60,000. Buyers usually carry it, so budget for all of it.
- Registration and admin charges from DLD and the trustee office. They're small next to the 4%, but ask for the full list before you sign.
- Your deposit if you borrow. The Central Bank of the UAE caps how much a bank may lend against the property's value.
- Running costs: service charges every year, plus maintenance. Our service charges guide has the figures by community.
The Central Bank's limits for expatriates, from its mortgage regulation:
Table: maximum mortgage loan-to-value for expatriate buyers, UAE, as of October 2026. Source: CBUAE Rulebook, Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans, Article 3.
| Purchase | Maximum loan |
|---|---|
| First home, under AED 5 million | 80% |
| First home, over AED 5 million | 70% |
| Second home or investment property | 60% |
| Any off-plan purchase | 50% |
The same regulation sets a 25-year maximum term and caps an expatriate's loan at seven years' annual income, with repayments within 50% of income. The rule makes no separate category for buyers living abroad; it sorts by nationality and use. A home you'll let out rather than live in is, in the regulation's own words, an "investment property". Banks can lend less than these caps, and each sets its own terms for non-residents.
So what does a home cost? Here is the median apartment by size, off-plan and ready.
Table: median Dubai apartment sale price by bedrooms, off-plan vs ready, January–September 2026. n = registered sales in our records. Source: DLD registered sales, Peak Trust Research.
| Bedrooms | Ready (AED) | Ready n | Off-plan (AED) | Off-plan n |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | 560,000 | 8,049 | 696,000 | 30,543 |
| 1 bedroom | 1,030,000 | 13,893 | 1,292,888 | 37,771 |
| 2 bedrooms | 2,000,000 | 8,636 | 2,299,999 | 20,809 |
| 3 bedrooms | 3,500,000 | 2,336 | 4,231,888 | 4,591 |
A ready two-bedroom flat at the median costs AED 2,000,000, so the 4% fee alone is AED 80,000. Off-plan costs more at every size. The median off-plan apartment sold for AED 1,798 per sq ft against AED 1,460 for ready, and our off-plan vs ready guide explains why.
What happens to your money on an off-plan purchase?
Off-plan buyers pay a developer for a home that doesn't exist yet, so Dubai puts the money in a ring-fenced account.
- The project must be registered first. DLD's Register Project service requires a 30% guarantee: 30% of construction done, a bank guarantee for 30%, or a cash deposit equal to 30%.
- Your payments go into escrow. Under Law No. 8 of 2007, each project has its own escrow account with a bank accredited by DLD, and the money can be spent only on that project.
- Your purchase is recorded on the interim register, set up by Law No. 13 of 2008. This is the step buyers know as Oqood.
- Default terms are strict. If a buyer stops paying on a project more than 60% complete, the developer can end the contract and keep up to 40% of the price; below 60%, up to 25% (Law No. 19 of 2020).
Our registration and escrow guide covers the detail. The short version: check that the project and its escrow account are registered with DLD, and only pay into that account.
Does buying property get you a UAE visa?
It can. DLD grants a 10-year renewable Golden Visa to an investor whose Dubai property cost at least AED 2 million at purchase, held wholly in their name, across one property or several. Since April 2026 a sole owner can also apply for a 2-year investor visa at any price. A third of 2026 sales, 33.9%, were at AED 2 million or more. The fees, documents and the mortgage and off-plan conditions are in our Golden Visa guide.
What are the property taxes in Dubai?
On the Dubai side, the big one-off cost is the 4% DLD fee. The UAE government says the country doesn't levy income tax on individuals, so rent from a Dubai flat isn't taxed as personal income in the UAE. That doesn't settle your tax at home, which is where the country sections below come in.
Buying from India, the UK, the US or the GCC
The Dubai rules above are the same for every foreign buyer. What changes is the paperwork and tax in your own country. We only state rules we can source to a government; for everything else, take advice where you live.
From India
The Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme lets each resident individual, minors included, send up to USD 250,000 per financial year (April to March). Its FAQs cover remittances for buying property abroad, and say relatives resident in India can combine their limits for one property, provided each meets the scheme's terms. A family of three could pool their limits for a single home. Your bank, as the authorised dealer, makes the remittance, and Indian tax rules apply to it. Ask an Indian tax adviser before you pay a deposit.
Is it better to invest in India or Dubai? We only hold Dubai's registered data, so we can't compare the two markets fairly. What we can say is how to compare: price per square foot against the area's registered level, the fees on each side, rent evidence, and the cost of moving money each way.
From the UK
GOV.UK says that if you're UK resident you'll normally pay tax on your foreign income, and rent from a Dubai flat is foreign income. If you're not UK resident, you won't pay UK tax on foreign income. Some people are eligible for the 4-year foreign income and gains regime, and the rules for those whose permanent home was abroad changed on 6 April 2025. Whether you move to Dubai or stay in the UK, take UK tax advice before you buy.
From the US
The IRS is clear: a US citizen or resident alien is taxed on worldwide income from all sources, whether living in the US or abroad. Rent from Dubai and any gain on sale belong on your US return, even though the UAE levies no income tax on individuals. Take US tax advice.
From the GCC
GCC nationals sit on the other side of Article 4. Law No. 7 of 2006 names them, alongside UAE nationals, among those with the general right to own real property in Dubai; the designated-area rights are the route for other foreign buyers. If the home you want is outside the freehold areas, ask DLD's trustee office to confirm before you commit. The Central Bank's higher loan limits are written for UAE nationals; ask your bank which category it applies to you.
Where do buyers actually buy, and at what price?
Off-plan dominates. Of 147,501 home sales in our records for January–September 2026, 72.9% were off-plan. These are the ten areas with the most off-plan sales.
Table: Dubai areas with the most off-plan home sales, January–September 2026, with median price per sq ft and median sale price across all sales. n = registered sales in our records. Source: DLD registered sales, Peak Trust Research.
| Area | Sales (n) | Off-plan sales | Off-plan share | Median AED/sq ft | Median sale (AED) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai South | 15,216 | 14,334 | 94.2% | 1,648 | 1,050,000 |
| Wadi Al Safa 5 (Dubailand Residence Complex, Villanova) | 7,997 | 7,046 | 88.1% | 1,463 | 960,428 |
| Jumeirah Village Circle | 10,290 | 6,104 | 59.3% | 1,482 | 1,025,000 |
| Wadi Al Safa 3 (Majan, Al Barari) | 6,842 | 5,631 | 82.3% | 1,539 | 987,998 |
| Dubai Islands | 4,912 | 4,912 | 100.0% | 2,819 | 2,799,900 |
| Al Yelayiss 1 (DAMAC Islands 2) | 4,813 | 4,623 | 96.1% | 1,822 | 2,912,000 |
| Jabal Ali First (Al Furjan) | 5,879 | 4,430 | 75.4% | 1,537 | 1,440,000 |
| Wadi Al Safa 4 (City of Arabia) | 3,617 | 3,586 | 99.1% | 1,724 | 691,314 |
| Business Bay | 6,514 | 3,398 | 52.2% | 2,545 | 2,270,496 |
| Jabal Ali Industrial Second (Downtown Jebel Ali) | 3,252 | 3,119 | 95.9% | 1,700 | 746,911 |
Three things stand out. Most of this volume is priced around AED 1 million: seven of the ten areas have a median sale between AED 691,314 and AED 1,440,000. The price per sq ft varies more than the price, from AED 1,463 in Wadi Al Safa 5 to AED 2,819 on Dubai Islands. And the two areas where ready homes are a big part of the market, Jumeirah Village Circle and Business Bay, are the ones with resale evidence a buyer can check today.
Al Yelayiss 1 is a villa and townhouse market, so its AED 2,912,000 median is for houses, not flats. Everywhere else in the table, flats make up most of the sales.
Citywide, sales split almost evenly into thirds: 32.5% under AED 1 million, 33.6% between AED 1 million and AED 2 million, and 33.9% at AED 2 million or more.
What it means for investors
- Confirm the area is freehold before you look at the unit. Foreign title depends on it, and the deed records the area.
- Budget beyond the price. The 4% fee, admin charges, service charges and, off-plan, at least 50% of the price in cash.
- Compare off-plan prices with ready ones in the same area. Off-plan costs more per square foot at every bedroom count in 2026. Decide whether staged payments and a new building are worth that to you.
- Pay only into the project's DLD-registered escrow account and read the default terms before you sign.
- Settle the home-country side first. Remittance limits in India, foreign-income rules in the UK and worldwide income in the US all apply before and after you buy.
- Check the rent evidence for the area. Our rental yields by area guide ranks 40 areas, gross and net.
For an opinion on whether a specific home fits your plans from abroad, see how we work with investors.