How much can a landlord raise the rent in Dubai?

Decree No. 43 of 2013 sets the ceiling by reference to how far the current rent sits below the average rental value of similar units: no increase up to ten per cent below, then five, ten, fifteen and twenty per cent as the gap widens past twenty, thirty and forty per cent. Article 3 of the Decree makes RERA's Rent Index of the Emirate of Dubai the reference for that average.

Does a Dubai tenancy contract have to be registered?

Yes. Article 4(2) of Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008 requires all lease contracts governed by the Law, and any amendments to them, to be registered with RERA. The UAE Government Portal adds that registration is compulsory across the emirates to connect utility services, with Dubai registering through the Dubai Land Department and Abu Dhabi through Tawtheeq.

Is there a cap on the security deposit in the UAE?

Not under the Dubai law. Article 20 of Law No. 26 of 2007 allows the landlord to take a deposit to secure maintenance and requires it to be refunded, or the remainder refunded, on expiry, without setting a percentage. In the DIFC, Article 22(3) of DIFC Law No. 1 of 2020 caps a residential security deposit at ten per cent of annual rent irrespective of the lease period.

Residential Lease Agreement in the UAE

Residential tenancy in the UAE is emirate law, not federal law. In Dubai the relationship is governed by Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, every lease and every amendment must be registered with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency through Ejari, and renewal increases are capped by Decree No. 43 of 2013 against RERA's Rent Index. Abu Dhabi registers leases in the Tawtheeq system and Sharjah with Sharjah Municipality, and the DIFC applies its own Leasing Law.

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Governing law

In the Emirate of Dubai, Law No. 26 of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, governs residential leases, with rent increases set by Decree No. 43 of 2013.

Law No. (33) of 2008 Amending Law No. (26) of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai, in Dubai Land Department, Real Estate Legislation of Dubai (official English compendium)

What a residential lease agreement has to contain in the UAE

The relationship is regulated by a lease contract which includes a description of the leased property leaving no room for uncertainty, the purpose of the lease, the term, the rent and its payment method, and the name of the owner where the landlord is not the owner.
Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, Art. 4(1)
All lease contracts governed by the Law, and any amendments to them, must be registered with RERA.
Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, Art. 4(2)
On renewal the maximum rent increase is nil where the rent is up to ten per cent below the average rental value of similar units, five per cent where it is eleven to twenty per cent below, ten per cent where it is twenty-one to thirty per cent below, fifteen per cent where it is thirty-one to forty per cent below, and twenty per cent where it is more than forty per cent below. The average is set by RERA's Rent Index of the Emirate of Dubai.
Decree No. (43) of 2013 Determining Rent Increase for Real Property in the Emirate of Dubai, Arts. 1 and 3
Unless the parties agree otherwise, a party who wishes to amend any term of the lease on renewal must notify the other party at least ninety days before the lease expires.
Law No. 26 of 2007 as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, Arts. 13 and 14
The landlord may take a security deposit to ensure maintenance of the property, and undertakes to refund the deposit or its remainder to the tenant when the lease expires.
Law No. (26) of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai, Art. 20 (Dubai Legislation Portal)
In the DIFC a residential security deposit may not exceed ten per cent of the annual rent whatever the lease period, and the lessor must give at least ninety days' written notice before expiry of any proposed rent increase, with an increase made in breach of that article being invalid.
DIFC Leasing Law, DIFC Law No. 1 of 2020 (Consolidated Version, March 2022), Arts. 22(3) and 31

Form, notarisation and registration

Registration is an emirate-level obligation that also gates utilities. Lease agreements must be registered by the authority in each emirate, and registration is compulsory to connect water, electricity, gas and telecommunications. In Dubai landlords register with the Dubai Land Department and in Abu Dhabi in the Tawtheeq system.
Leasing a property in the UAE, UAE Government Portal

What catches drafters out

Where a lease term expires and the tenant stays in occupation without objection from the landlord, the contract renews for the same term or for one year, whichever is shorter, on the same terms as before.
Law No. (26) of 2007, Art. 6 (unamended by Law No. 33 of 2008, which superseded Arts. 2, 3, 4, 9, 13, 14, 15, 25, 26, 29 and 36)
The Dubai rent increase cap is not confined to mainland areas. Decree No. 43 of 2013 applies to landlords in the Emirate whether private or public, including those in special development zones and free zones such as the Dubai International Financial Centre.
Decree No. (43) of 2013, Art. 2