{"id":31394,"date":"2019-05-31T08:34:18","date_gmt":"2019-05-31T08:34:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/?p=31394"},"modified":"2026-11-04T08:15:21","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T08:15:21","slug":"extraordinary-investment-opportunities-in-the-uae","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/en\/extraordinary-investment-opportunities-in-the-uae\/","title":{"rendered":"Property in the UAE: What Holds True Today and What Has Changed"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-size:0.85em;color:#777;\">We wrote this article in 2019 and fully revised it in November 2026. Several old claims no longer hold, or we could not support them with a source.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size:1.15em;line-height:1.7;\">The United Arab Emirates has seven emirates, and property rules differ between them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size:1.15em;line-height:1.7;\">So the first question is always where the property is.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background:#f2f6f9;border-radius:8px;padding:16px 20px;margin:24px 0;\">\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:700;color:#004274;\">In short<\/p>\n<ul style=\"margin:0;\">\n<li>In Dubai, foreigners can own in designated freehold areas.<\/li>\n<li>In Abu Dhabi, they can own floors and apartments in designated areas, but not land.<\/li>\n<li>Corporate tax has existed since 2023, so the old &#8220;no tax&#8221; claim is no longer accurate.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Where can foreigners buy?<\/h2>\n<p>The government portal says foreigners can own property in Dubai&#8217;s freehold areas, even if they do not live in the UAE. In Abu Dhabi, floors and apartments can be owned in designated areas, but not land. For Sharjah, the portal mentions usufruct rights.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"margin:1.5em 0;\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/b2-153851212644.jpg\" alt=\"Dubai towers at dusk\" \/><figcaption style=\"font-size:0.85em;color:#777;\">Illustration, not a specific property. Photo: Andreas M \/ Unsplash<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>What has changed since 2019?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Tax:<\/strong> corporate tax applies to tax periods starting on or after 1 June 2023: 0% up to AED 375,000, 9% above that. It does not apply to an individual&#8217;s salary.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Expo:<\/strong> the old article relied on Expo 2020. That is no longer a reason to buy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>State guarantee:<\/strong> we found no source for the old 100% guarantee claim, so we removed it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Payback:<\/strong> we could not verify the old 5\u20138% figure either, so we removed it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure style=\"margin:1.5em 0;\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/b3-1546412414-2.jpg\" alt=\"The Burj Al Arab seen from the shore\" \/><figcaption style=\"font-size:0.85em;color:#777;\">The Burj Al Arab in Dubai. Photo: Darcey Beau \/ Unsplash<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Residency linked to property<\/h2>\n<p>Dubai&#8217;s immigration authority says the ten-year Golden Visa needs property worth at least AED 2 million. It does not come automatically with the purchase. It has its own application and conditions.<\/p>\n<h2>What we do not promise<\/h2>\n<p>The UAE market changes quickly. We do not promise returns or price growth. Check legal and tax questions with a local lawyer and a tax adviser before you buy.<\/p>\n<h2>Thinking about the UAE?<\/h2>\n<p>Tell us which emirate interests you and how you would use the property. That shows which rules to look at first.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:16px 0;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/en\/contact\/\" style=\"display:inline-block;background:#dd3333;color:#fff;font-weight:700;padding:10px 16px;border-radius:6px;text-decoration:none;\">Write to us about the UAE<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>You may also like<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/en\/?p=40151&#038;lang=en\">Dubai Harbour: Where the Marina District Stands Now<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.horvatingatlanok.com\/en\/?p=40933&#038;lang=en\">SLS Dubai: The 75-Storey Tower Downtown<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Sources:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/u.ae\/en\/information-and-services\/moving-to-the-uae\/expatriates-buying-a-property-in-the-uae\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UAE government portal: Expatriates buying a property in the UAE<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/tax.gov.ae\/DataFolder\/Files\/Guides\/CT\/CT%20General%20Guide%20-%20EN%20-%2010%2009%202023.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Federal Tax Authority: Corporate Tax General Guide<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gdrfad.gov.ae\/en\/services\/8ea80da4-f43e-11eb-0320-0050569629e8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">GDRFA Dubai: Golden residence permit (investors)<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our 2019 article, rewritten: what is known today about foreign ownership, tax and residency in the UAE.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":169707,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"property in the uae","_yoast_wpseo_title":"","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Where foreigners can buy in the UAE, what has changed since 2019 in tax, and what is known about the Golden Visa.","footnotes":""},"categories":[893],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.9 - 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