Q: We have a tenant, it was clearly stated in the lease contract that she has to hand over the property in the same condition it has been handed over to her. Now, she's leaving the apartment in the Palm (2BR). Imagine 16 busted bulbs, the guard rail of the fridge is broken lots of nail holes and the property is dirty. She got it painted and cleaned and now she's claiming that she will report to RERA as she's not responsible for the painting and cleaning (so she wants a refund) and she's not going to replace those 16 bulbs and the guard rail in the fridge. When we handed over the property, we gave her 14 days to snag it and we rectified all the issues. Is she entitled to all these claims she's telling us? We are not giving back her deposit yet until she fixes the property. Do we have the legal right to demand these from her? I know the lights are consumables and she's supposed to replace it as all the lights were working when she got the keys. Thank you.

Q: Dear sir/madam, Can a landlord refuse to return the remaining rental cheques if the tenancy agreement has been terminated earlier with proper notice in place? I am vacating a quarter earlier, but the landlord refuses to return the 4th quarter cheque until I vacate the premises and he makes post-inspection despite having a separate security deposit amount in place.

Q: Hi, I work with a company called [-----]. Recently we moved offices and unfortunately, our previous landlord is not refunding the security deposit due to us and is not giving any explanation as to why. We have tried to contact him several times via calls and messages but to no avail. It appears his only intention is to harass us. The tricky part is that we have only one employee in our Dubai branch and he is on a long vacation. Can someone file a complaint on behalf of our organization? I'd appreciate any info on how I can take this forward via the right procedure.

Q: Dear sir/madam, What would be the charges for filing a complaint for a security deposit not returned by the landlord? My landlord is not returning a single penny of my deposit and is not giving a breakup of charges for maintenance. He says that he will do it when the next tenant comes.

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I recently moved from my old premises to a new one because the landlord wanted the tenants out after an inheritance case as he wants to increase the rent in the building. That case made the renewal of the contract impossible for months but once settled, I paid the amount in one go so I could move out. In order to avoid any issue, I moved out but the landlord is taking time to give me back my deposit telling me that some agent from the justice needs to sign the deposit cheque in order for him to give it to us. Therefore I wanted to inquire if that is true as I'm struggling now financially and that cheque would help me big time. I paid for moving out and moving in, in one go, which caused me a lot of expenses at once and that deposit cheque is more than needed. I gave them time, as they told me it needs 15 days, now it's been 22 days and they're still telling me the court agent did not come to sign the cheque. Could you please advise what is the legal action that I can take?

The relationship between tenants and landlords is regulated in Dubai by Law No. 33 of 2008 Concerning the Relationship Between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai. The arising rental disputes are referred to Rental Disputes Settlement Centre (“RDSC”) created by Decree No. 26 of 2013 to reconcile between the parties and reach an amicable settlement or seek a final judgment issued and enforced by the RDSC.

An interview-format article covering the topic of defaulting on commercial lease in the UAE and related procedures. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW. In this article, Ludmila discusses what one should do if the tenant becomes unresponsive.

The provisions of this Law apply to real property leased out in the Emirate of Dubai, including vacant and agricultural lands, but excluding hotel establishments and real property provided by natural or legal persons as accommodation to their employees at no charge.

Provisions of this Law supersede articles (2), (3), (4), (9), (13), (14), (15), (25), (26), (29), and (36) of Law No. (26) of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai. 

This Decree establishes a specialised judicial system to hear rent disputes and develops the procedure for determination of such disputes through an expeditious and simple process for the purpose of realising social and economic stability for all persons involved with the real property rental and other related sectors.