Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I rented a warehouse from a landlord on September 13, 2022, for an annual rent of 50,000 AED. I paid the first installment of 12,000 AED. The warehouse is our workshop where we manufacture customer orders. The landlord had an issue with Abu Dhabi Municipality, so he did not issue us a tenancy contract until February 15, 2023. After we received the tenancy contract, we discovered that the landlord also had an issue with ADDC. Due to these issues with the landlord, we were unable to get an electricity connection for our workshop until March 9, 2023. The landlord is now demanding rent for this period, but we refused to pay because it was not our fault. We also suffered a lot of losses during this time because we were unable to fulfill customer orders due to the lack of electricity. We also had to pay salaries to our idle workforce. The landlord has now filed an enforcement case against us by using the installment cheques. What legal actions can we take against the landlord now?

Q: Greetings, Dear Sir, I have rented one warehouse in Feb 2018 and want to terminate my contract because of financial issues, but the landlord is demanding 4 months rent as a penalty. Please be noted that in the contract, the termination clause is mentioned as "Termination of the tenancy contract is possible only after fully agreed terms by both parties". Kindly advise, and also give any reference form law section.

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, We are in the process of setting up our company in the UAE. We have found a warehouse that fits our requirements and we have paid the security deposit and the agency fees. We would like to confirm some points before signing the contract: - Notice period: The owner said that we should inform him one month in advance if we want to leave and exit the contract. Is there a clause in the DREC contract that states this? Are there any penalty fees? How can we avoid any problems with this? - No Objection Certificate (NOC): The owner promised to give us an NOC after the contract is signed to allow us to upgrade the power and install air conditioning. How can we make sure that this happens? Should we have him include this in the contract terms? In general, can we trust their promises or should we get a letter before signing the contract? Note that they are refusing to give us an NOC and we have been told that we took too long to finalize the contract. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

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 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.

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.

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.