This guide explains Dubai rent increase bands in plain terms. A Dubai landlord cannot simply name a new rent at renewal. Two official pieces have to line up. Decree No. 43 of 2013 sets the maximum increase bands. The Dubai Land Department (DLD) rental index supplies the average that those bands are measured against. Law No. 26 of 2007, as applied in Dubai, then requires notice if a party wants to change the terms.
This article explains how to read that system. It does not replace the index. The official number is the DLD rental index result for your unit, on the DLD website or the Dubai REST app. Gulf Expat Tools (Shekh Firoj, Qatar) publishes planning tools around those sources.
Run the figures through the Dubai rental index increase planner and the Dubai rent increase bands explainer after you have the official index output. Check the calendar with the Dubai rent notice date checker. If you disagree, the forum is the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre (RDSC), not a WhatsApp argument.
The bands in Decree 43 of 2013
DLD publishes the decree. The Government of Dubai Legal Affairs English text, reproduced in DLD’s legislation materials, sets the maximum increase when renewing a real-property lease as follows.
| Current rent compared with the average rental value of similar units | Maximum increase on renewal |
|---|---|
| Up to 10% less than the average | No increase |
| 11% to 20% less than the average | 5% |
| 21% to 30% less than the average | 10% |
| 31% to 40% less than the average | 15% |
| More than 40% less than the average | 20% |
Article 3 of the same decree says that, for those percentages, the average rental value of similar units is determined in accordance with the Rent Index of the Emirate of Dubai approved by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA).
Article 2 says the decree applies to landlords of public and private authorities in Dubai, including special development areas and free zones, including Dubai International Financial Centre. Read that next to DLD’s later Smart Residential Rent Index FAQ, which says the residential index covers all residential areas in Dubai, including free zones and privately developed areas, excluding DIFC. Those two sentences are not the same. For a DIFC unit, confirm on DLD/REST and against DIFC leasing rules rather than assuming either document silently cancelled the other.
The decree is a cap, not a duty to raise rent. A landlord may propose less. A tenant may agree a different figure, but RDSC will still look at the index if the increase is disputed.
The official number is the DLD rental index
Older tenants remember a simple community-and-bedroom average. DLD’s current Smart Residential Rent Index materials describe a system that classifies buildings and uses registered rental contracts and other data. The ministry PDF says tenants and landlords can verify rental values through the “Rental Index” service on the department’s website or the Dubai REST application.
That output is the figure this article will not invent. Asking prices on property portals are not the index. A neighbour’s cheque is not the index. Your own last contract is the current rent. The index is the average of similar units that DLD’s tool returns.
Enter the details the official service asks for, which commonly include contract expiry, property type, area, and current annual rent. Save the result. Screenshot it. If you later file at RDSC, that file is evidence.
Commercial and industrial indices are described in DLD’s FAQ as under development. Do not force a residential result onto a warehouse.
Ninety days’ notice is a separate switch
Bands and notice are not the same test.
Article 14 of Law No. 26 of 2007, on the Dubai Legal Affairs legislation site, says that where either party does not wish to renew the lease or wishes to amend any of its terms, that party must notify the other no less than ninety (90) days before the lease expires, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.
“Notice” is defined in Article 2 of the same law as a written notification sent through the Notary Public, registered post, by hand, or any other technological means approved by law.
If the index would allow 10% but the landlord writes to you 40 days before expiry, the band does not repair late notice. If notice is on time but the index allows 0%, a 15% demand is still above the decree. You need both, unless you freely agree something else that the tribunal will accept.
Article 9 of the 2007 law as published on that page also contains older language about not increasing rent before two years from the original relationship. Law No. 33 of 2008 later amended Law 26. Do not treat the 2007 wording as a live two-year freeze without reading the consolidated amendment. The 90-day rule in Article 14 is the notice rule this article relies on, because it remains on the published English text and is the rule DLD tenancy materials keep repeating.
Example: how to read the table, not how to replace the index
Suppose your Ejari contract shows AED 80,000 a year. You run the official DLD rental index for the same unit type and expiry. The tool returns an average of AED 100,000. Your current rent is 20% below that average. On the decree table, 11% to 20% below average maps to a maximum 5% increase.
That 5% is a reading of the bands. It is not a DLD printout. The printout is whatever the official service shows for your building, rooms and dates. If the official service shows 0%, the table does not let you argue 5% because a blog used round numbers.
Then count 90 days back from the contract end date. If written notice of a change did not arrive by that day, unless the contract agreed a different notice period, the increase is the second argument you take to RDSC.
Disputes go to RDSC
The Rental Disputes Settlement Centre was established under Decree No. 26 of 2013, which the rent-increase decree itself recites. DLD is the department. Ejari registration of the lease matters: Law 26 of 2007 Article 4 says judicial authorities may not consider a dispute relating to a lease unless the contract is registered with RERA.
Filing fees and forms change. Confirm them on DLD’s RDSC channels or Dubai REST when you file. This article will not invent a percentage of annual rent as a live fee.
FAQs
Who sets the legal rent increase in Dubai?
Decree 43 of 2013 sets the maximum bands. The DLD rental index supplies the average those bands use. The official number is the index result, not this page.
What are the increase bands?
No increase if current rent is up to 10% below the average of similar units; then 5%, 10%, 15% or 20% as the gap widens, up to more than 40% below average.
How much notice is required?
Article 14 of Law 26 of 2007 requires at least 90 days’ notice before expiry if a party wants not to renew or to amend terms, unless the parties agreed otherwise.
Does the index replace Decree 43?
No. Article 3 of the decree points to the index for the average. The percentages still come from Article 1 of the decree.
What if the landlord and I disagree?
Take a registered Ejari contract, the notice, and the official index result to RDSC through DLD or Dubai REST.
Does this apply in free zones?
Decree 43 Article 2 includes special development areas and free zones, including DIFC. DLD’s Smart Residential Rent Index FAQ currently excludes DIFC from that residential index product. Confirm the tool and the forum for your building.
Sources
Reviewed 31 August 2026.
Dubai Land Department, Decree No. 43 of 2013 (PDF): https://dubailand.gov.ae/media/z2dn3gtr/rental-increase-decree-43-in-dubai.pdf
Dubai Land Department, tenancy guide (English PDF): https://dubailand.gov.ae/media/051bem5a/tenancyguideen.pdf
Dubai Land Department, Smart Residential Rent Index FAQ (PDF): https://dubailand.gov.ae/media/thwlcxn4/smart_rental_index_en.pdf
Dubai Legal Affairs, Law No. 26 of 2007: https://dlp.dubai.gov.ae/Legislation%20Reference/2007/Law%20No.%20%2826%29%20of%202007.html
Dubai Land Department: https://dubailand.gov.ae/
Gulf Expat Tools, Dubai rental index increase planner: https://gulfexpattools.com/dubai-rental-index-increase-planner/
Gulf Expat Tools, Dubai rent notice date checker: https://gulfexpattools.com/dubai-rent-notice-date-checker/
Gulf Expat Tools, Dubai rent increase bands: https://gulfexpattools.com/dubai-rent-increase-bands/