Budget roughly 6–8% of the price on top of the purchase price. The core items are: the Dubai Land Department (DLD) transfer fee of 4%; a trustee office fee of about AED 4,000 + 5% VAT; the title deed issuance of about AED 580; agency commission of 2% + 5% VAT; a developer No Objection Certificate (NOC) of AED 500–5,000; and, if you finance, a mortgage registration fee of 0.25% of the loan + AED 290. On an AED 2,000,000 property that is around AED 130,000 in cash, or about AED 135,000 with a mortgage. Confirm every figure with the DLD and your conveyancer before you commit.
The all-in cost, line by line
Dubai has no annual property tax and no stamp duty in the European sense, but the transaction still carries clearly defined one-off fees. The largest by far is the DLD transfer fee: 4% of the purchase price, paid to the Dubai Land Department to register the transfer into your name. On top of that sit several fixed or small percentage items that most buyers underestimate because they are quoted separately: the registration trustee office fee (about AED 4,000 for properties above AED 500,000, plus 5% VAT), the title deed issuance fee (about AED 580), and the agency commission, market-standard at 2% of the price plus 5% VAT.
Two further items are deal-specific. The developer or master-community NOC — the No Objection Certificate confirming the seller has no outstanding service charges — ranges from about AED 500 to AED 5,000 depending on the developer. And if you buy with a mortgage, the DLD levies a mortgage registration fee of 0.25% of the loan amount plus AED 290, and your bank will typically charge a valuation fee (roughly AED 2,500–3,500) and an arrangement fee. Taken together, a cash buyer should budget around 6–7% over the price, and a financed buyer a little more.
Worked example — an AED 2,000,000 property
Nobody publishes this cleanly, so here it is. The table below models a genuine AED 2,000,000 purchase, first in cash, then with a 50% mortgage (AED 1,000,000 loan). Figures use market-standard rates; your exact NOC, valuation and bank fees will vary.
The headline: on a two-million-dirham home you are looking at roughly AED 130,000 in transaction costs paying cash — about 6.5% — rising to around AED 135,000 once mortgage registration, valuation and a typical arrangement fee are added. Note the DLD transfer fee alone (AED 80,000) is more than half the total, which is why negotiating who bears it (legally the buyer, though it is occasionally shared) matters. These are current, directional figures; confirm the precise fee schedule with the DLD and your conveyancer for your specific transaction before you rely on them.
| Cost item | Cash purchase (AED) | With 50% mortgage (AED) |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price | 2,000,000 | 2,000,000 |
| DLD transfer fee (4%) | 80,000 | 80,000 |
| Trustee office fee + 5% VAT | 4,200 | 4,200 |
| Title deed issuance | 580 | 580 |
| Agency commission (2%) + 5% VAT | 42,000 | 42,000 |
| Developer NOC (typical) | 3,000 | 3,000 |
| Mortgage registration (0.25% + AED 290) | — | 2,790 |
| Bank valuation (typical) | — | ~3,000 |
| Total transaction costs | ≈ 129,780 (≈ 6.5%) | ≈ 135,570 (≈ 6.8%) |
Illustrative only. Trustee fee is AED 4,000 (+VAT) for properties above AED 500,000; NOC, valuation and any bank arrangement fee vary by developer and lender.
Sources
Primary and expert sources behind this answer:
- Dubai Land Department (DLD) — Fees, transfer, title deed and Oqood off-plan registration ↗
- RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Agency, part of DLD) — Trustee offices, escrow audit and Service Charge Index ↗
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) — Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans (LTV caps) ↗
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Dubai property fees, escrow, mortgage and freehold rules — and the tax of your own country of residence — are technical and change frequently. Every figure and rule here must be confirmed with the Dubai Land Department, a UAE bank and a tax adviser or notary in your country of residence for your specific situation before you act.
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