Dubai's rent increase law fits in one sentence: a landlord may raise rent at renewal only by the percentage the RERA index gap permits, with 90 days' written notice — nothing more, nothing sooner, nothing retroactive. Everything else — the slabs, the deadlines, the edge cases, and what each side should actually do — is the detail this guide covers in full, with the dirhams worked out.
The slabs: Decree No. 43 of 2013, with real numbers
The permitted increase depends on how far your current rent sits below the market band in the Smart Rental Index. The law's slabs, each with a worked example on a unit whose index market rent is AED 100,000:
| Your rent vs the index band | Maximum increase | Worked example (market = AED 100,000) |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 10% below | 0% | Current rent AED 92,000 → stays AED 92,000 |
| 11–20% below | 5% | AED 85,000 → up to AED 89,250 |
| 21–30% below | 10% | AED 75,000 → up to AED 82,500 |
| 31–40% below | 15% | AED 65,000 → up to AED 74,750 |
| More than 40% below | 20% | AED 55,000 → up to AED 66,000 |
Read the table's deepest implication: even the cheapest tenancy in the city cannot be pulled to market in one jump. A rent 45% below market takes several renewal cycles of maximum slabs to close the gap — the law deliberately trades landlords' speed for tenants' stability.
The 90-day rule: where increases live or die
A permitted percentage is only half an increase — the other half is written notice at least 90 days before the renewal date. Miss the window and that year's increase is simply unavailable; it does not bank into next year, where a fresh index check and fresh notice start over. Two practical consequences follow. For landlords, the real deadlines are the notice dates, not the renewal dates — the calendar that runs a landlord's year marks them three months early for exactly this reason. For tenants, any increase letter deserves two checks: the percentage against the index, and the date against the 90 days. Either failing defeats it.
The two playbooks
If you're the landlord: check every tenancy against the index annually (October, once the year's data settles, is the natural moment); where a slab applies, serve notice properly — written, dated, through a channel you can prove; and weigh each increase against the relationship, because a AED 4,000 permitted increase that loses a five-year tenant to a summer vacancy is arithmetic done badly. Long-stay tenancies drift below market by design; the discipline is claiming the slabs steadily rather than dreaming of catch-ups the law forbids.
If you're the tenant: run the calculator yourself before responding to any letter; if the number or the notice date fails, say so in writing, calmly, citing both — most invalid increases die at that email; and if pressed, the Rental Dispute Center resolves it, with the law's text on your side. What you cannot do is ignore a valid increase — properly noticed, slab-compliant rises are the deal Dubai's stability comes with.
The edge cases, settled
- Mid-tenancy increases: never. The rent is fixed for the contract term; increases exist only at renewal.
- New contracts: uncapped. The slabs govern renewals with a sitting tenant. A vacant unit re-lets at whatever the market pays — which is why landlords sometimes prefer vacancy and tenants underestimate their sitting-tenant advantage.
- Commercial tenancies: same regime. The decree's slabs and the index cover Dubai's commercial leases too, alongside whatever escalation terms the contract adds — a wrinkle covered in our commercial management guide.
- "No increase for three years": not Dubai. That's Sharjah's rule — the most-imported piece of cross-emirate confusion, debunked with its cousins here.
- Decreases: no mechanism forces one mid-term, but nothing stops a renewal negotiating downward in a soft market — and above-index rents give tenants exactly that conversation.
Renewal season at scale: where RIOO fits
One tenancy's slab check is five minutes; a portfolio's renewal season is hundreds of index positions, notice deadlines and letters. RIOO runs it as a pipeline — every tenancy surfaced 90+ days out with its band gap and permitted slab attached, notices generated and dated on time. See it in action — book a demo.
Conclusion: a fair machine, for whoever operates it
Dubai's increase law is unusually legible: one decree, five slabs, one deadline. It rewards landlords who work it methodically — slab by slab, notice by notice — and protects tenants who simply check the two numbers every letter must satisfy. Neither side needs a lawyer for the ordinary case; both need the five minutes the checks take.
Frequently asked questions
Q1. How much can a landlord legally increase rent in Dubai?
Between 0% and 20% at renewal, set by how far the current rent sits below the RERA index band — the slab table above — and only with 90 days' written notice. Within 10% of market, no increase is permitted at all.
Q2. Can my landlord increase rent every year in Dubai?
Yes, at every renewal if the index gap still permits a slab and notice was proper each time — there's no waiting period between permitted increases in Dubai. Each year stands alone: fresh index check, fresh notice.
Q3. What happens if the 90-day notice wasn't given?
The increase is unenforceable at that renewal — the tenancy renews at the existing rent, and the landlord's next opportunity is the following cycle with proper notice. The missed year never stacks onto a later increase.
This guide is for general information, not legal advice. Rent increases are governed by Decree No. 43 of 2013 under Law No. 26 of 2007 (as amended) — full texts at the Dubai Legislation portal, and your unit's position via the index at dubailand.gov.ae.
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