Rent Increase in Dubai: How Much Can Your Landlord Raise the Rent?

How a rent increase in Dubai works: the 0–20% caps, the 90-day notice rule, how to check the DLD Smart Rental Index and what to do if you disagree.

A rent increase in Dubai is not simply a number your landlord chooses. The emirate caps renewal increases by law, ties them to an official rental index run by the Dubai Land Department (DLD), and requires written notice well before the contract ends. Whether you are a tenant facing a renewal letter or a landlord planning next year's income, knowing these rules saves time, money and arguments.

The legal caps on a rent increase in Dubai

Renewal increases are governed by Decree No. 43 of 2013. It compares the current rent with the average rent for similar units, as set by the Dubai rental index approved by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA). The further below the average your rent sits, the more it can rise at renewal:

• Up to 10% below the average: no increase is allowed.
• 11% to 20% below the average: up to 5% of the current rent.
• 21% to 30% below the average: up to 10%.
• 31% to 40% below the average: up to 15%.
• More than 40% below the average: up to 20%.

These percentages are ceilings, not entitlements. A landlord whose rent already sits close to the market average cannot raise it at renewal at all, however much demand there is in the building. The decree applies to private and public landlords, and extends to special development zones and free zones.

The 90-day notice rule

Under Dubai's tenancy law (Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008), a party who wants to change the terms of a lease, including the rent, must tell the other party at least 90 days before the contract expires, unless both sides have agreed otherwise. When the DLD introduced its new index it confirmed that this notice requirement is unchanged.

In practice, put any increase in writing and keep proof of delivery. Check your own contract too: many leases set their own deadlines for renewal or non-renewal notices, and legal commentators generally advise following whichever obligation is stricter.

How the Smart Rental Index works

In January 2025 the DLD launched a Smart Rental Index to replace the older calculator. Instead of relying only on broad area averages, it makes a property-specific assessment, drawing on the building's classification, existing and new rents within the same building, and rents in the wider area. Factors such as build quality, finishes, maintenance, location and services feed into the building's rating. The DLD has said the index will be updated regularly.

The result is still expressed as a permitted increase between zero and 20%, in line with the decree. Because the assessment is specific to the building, two similar flats in neighbouring towers can return different answers, so it is worth checking your own unit rather than relying on general area figures.

How to check if a rent increase is legal

The DLD's rental index service is available on the DLD website, through the Ejari system, in the Dubai REST app and in the DubaiNow app. You will typically be asked for:

• The property type and area, or the Ejari number of your current contract.
• The number of rooms.
• The contract expiry date.
• Your current annual rent.

The tool shows the average rent for comparable units and the maximum increase it allows. Save or screenshot the result: if you later need to negotiate or file a dispute, it is the clearest evidence of what the index permitted on the date you checked.

Check the index before you reply to a renewal letter — it turns a negotiation about opinions into one about numbers.

What to do if you disagree

• Start with a conversation. Share the index result and ask the landlord or agent to explain how they reached their figure.
• Keep everything in writing, including the date the notice arrived — late notice weakens a landlord's position to enforce a higher rent.
• If you cannot agree, either party can take the matter to the Rental Dispute Centre, which can decide a fair rent for the property.
• Keep paying the agreed rent while the matter is resolved, so you do not create a separate dispute over non-payment.

What this means for landlords and investors

For landlords, the index makes renewal income more predictable but also slower to follow the market. Rents on existing tenancies can lag well behind new lettings in a rising market, which is one reason investors look closely at a building's rating, maintenance and service quality before buying: these now influence what the index will allow. For buyers comparing apartments for rental yield, ask what the current tenant pays, when the lease renews and what the index currently permits, rather than assuming the asking market rent from day one.

Tenants, meanwhile, gain a transparent reference point. If your rent is already close to the area average, a renewal increase may not be permitted at all, and a well-timed, polite reference to the index often settles the matter quickly.