Dubai tells homeowners and tenants to register co-occupants within two weeks

The update follows changes to family laws in the UAE to allow unrelated flatmates to live together

Residents in Dubai must register all co-occupants living in owned and rented properties within two weeks. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Residents in Dubai must register all co-occupants living in owned and rented properties within two weeks, the emirate's housing authority has said.

The ruling applies to all owners, developers, property management companies and tenants, who can register co-occupants via the Dubai REST app, if they have not already done so.

The Dubai Land Department said the registration must be completed within a “maximum of two weeks with immediate effect”.

Registering is simple and can be done online through an eight-step process.

No details were given on potential penalties for failing to register co-occupants within the two-week deadline.

The DLD notified owners and management companies on Friday, September 23.

Once registered, co-occupants will automatically be updated on the Ejari tenancy contract.

The update follows changes to family laws in the UAE to allow unmarried couples to live together, as well as unrelated flatmates.

Registering all the people living in a home will allow each resident to use an Ejari contract as proof of address.

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“It is now legal for unmarried people to live together and also for people to sub-let their property when they have written consent from their landlord,” said Dean Charter, owner of Paragon Properties in Dubai.

“If someone wants to rent an apartment or villa and there are multiple families living there, this change will ensure these occupants get treated well and fairly.

“It will also help those who are sub-letting a property to get paid the rent they are owed."

There have been problems in the past with people being evicted immediately if they had not paid their rent, without having any rights, Mr Charter said.

“By adding these tenants to an Ejari contract it gives them more tenancy rights in a sub-let situation," he said.

“The process is very simple to add new occupants to an Ejari.”

How to register:

1. Open the Dubai REST mobile application and log in with the primary account holder’s user name and password.
2. If you are a new user, you will have to first register with Dubai Land Department.
3. Choose your role as “individual” and login with UAE Pass for quick access
4. Authenticate yourself via the UAE Pass mobile application
5. From the Dashboard, select the property where you are a tenant
6. Select manage co-occupants to proceed
7. Select “add more” to add co-occupants to the property where you are a tenant
8. Enter the Emirates ID number and date of birth of the co-occupant and select “verify”.
9. Add all members of the family who are living in that property.
10. To remove a co-occupant, select the delete icon and submit.