q I received an eviction notice on April 16 this year. Rereading the notice with an Arab speaker last week, it was established that my name reads differently to my own. Secondly, my nationality is mentioned as Irish. However I am Dutch. Can these two facts be considered as “technical mistakes”, making the eviction notice irrelevant? CM, Dubai
a I assume that the notification to vacate was sent in the proper manner, ie through a notary public or registered mail. The details on the notification obviously have to be correct, and assuming the details on your tenancy agreement are also correct – I mean in terms of the spelling of your name and nationality – then the notification has to be null and void and redone. I have checked this with a lawyer and he has confirmed this to be the case.
I have an office in JLT that was leased for two years and the lease is expiring soon. The contract states that "renewal is at sole discretion" of the landlord and I have already notified the tenant that I want him to vacate because he has a habit of bouncing cheques. He thinks otherwise and says the law requires me to give him 12 months' notice. Can I evict the tenant? PS, Dubai
Your tenancy agreement stating “renewal is at sole discretion of landlord” is not valid and you can only evict the tenant under certain circumstances. If cheques continually bounce you need to explain that each day and every time this happens there will be a penalty. This is normally a charge of Dh1,000 per bounced cheque. If he fails to pay his rent you can give him 30 days’ notice to pay up. If this period expires and no money is paid you can register a complaint at the rentals committee, whereby it will execute the eviction for you.
We're in a bit of a situation and require immediate guidance and clarification based on the Abu Dhabi rental law. As tenants, we've only been in our apartment for less than a year, but the owner wants to sell. The potential buyer, however, would like to move in (I presume when we complete the year). This is bad news for us. Had we known the owners' intent to sell, we would have chosen another unit to avoid relocation costs. From what I understand, we can't be evicted until four years have passed. Is that still correct? YA, Abu Dhabi
The four-year term before a tenant can be evicted is no longer valid, unfortunately. Now a landlord can evict a tenant given two months’ notice for a residential property and three months’ notice for a commercial property.
My landlord wishes to move into the apartment that I'm renting and has served notice through the Dubai Courts. But the notice was served six months after our last contract was renewed. When the time comes to renew, my landlord has said the new contract will only be for the remaining six months. Other people are saying that a tenancy contract cannot be renewed for less than a year. Who is correct? SA, Dubai
I’m afraid your landlord is correct. When a renewal is due in the middle of a 12 months’ notice period, the new tenancy agreement can only be for the remaining months that will bring you up to the end of the 12-month notification period. The rent can be calculated pro rata.
Mario Volpi is the managing director of Prestige Real Estate in Dubai (prestigedubai.com). He has 30 years of property industry experience in the emirate and London. Send any questions to mario@prestigedubai.com
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek appropriate independent legal advice
