Q: I'm a foreigner landlord and my tenant is paying rent. His cheque has bounced and he's not in Dubai, but his friend is living in the apartment.

Q: Hi, I need legal advice. My tenant's cheque has bounced twice. What is the legal process, timeframe, and estimated professional fee to recover the outstanding rental amount?

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, Rental dispute with my tenant. Timeline of events: 1. Cheque due date: June 8, 2023. 2. Gave him 25 days as requested. 3. Raised a formal police complaint for a bounced cheque (as the account was closed/fraud) on July 3, 2023. 4. Again asked him to pay up or vacate; he asked for more time and I gave him more time. 5. Sent him a formal 30-day legal notice to pay and vacate the property on August 2, 2023. 6. On August 24, he called me to offer a partial payment; I said he had to pay in full by the due date. 7. On August 25, I received the RDC notice of offer and deposit, in which he stated the following: "The applicant requests your kind approval to accept an offer and deposit a cash amount of AED XXX in exchange for the rental value." If I accept the notice, how much time will he be given by the court to pay the amount? If I reject the offer, what will be the implications? Can I still open a case against him to vacate the unit when the 30-day legal notice expires on September 1?

In the UAE, cheque bounce is a very frequent problem faced by people during their span in the country. It is covered under the purview of Commercial Transactions Law, and legal implications/penalties can be financially severe and daunting for more “serious” offenses. Bounced cheque issues may arise in a variety of commercial transactions, including but not limited to, companies’ exchanges, bank loans, property rents or purchases, and individual transactions.

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 residential retail properties pertaining to the liability for property maintenance and the repercussions of defaulting on rent payments in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

As the civil and commercial transactions in the UAE have been growing rapidly, and due to replacing cash with other financial instruments such as cheques for big amounts of money, this had caused some hiccups at times leading to criminal and civil consequences on the person who defaults on fulfilling obligations.

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.

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. 

The provisions of this Decree by Law amend the Federal Law No. (18) of 1993 by replacing Clause (4) of Article (379) as well as Articles (600), (617), (641), (642), (643), (644), and adding new articles numbered (635) Bis, (641) Bis (1), (641) Bis (2), (641) Bis (3), (641) Bis (4), (643) Bis (1), (643) Bis (2), (644) Bis (1) and (644) Bis (2). The Decree-Law also repeals Articles (401), (402) and (403) of the Federal Law No. (3) of 1987.