Property in Dubai: How Title Passes on Death
Real property is, for most senior expatriates in the UAE, the single largest asset they own. It is also the asset whose succession is most often misunderstood.
Freehold title held in the name of a non-Muslim individual passes, in the absence of a recognised Will, according to the default inheritance rules applied by the Dubai Land Department. These rules may produce results materially different from those a testator from a common-law jurisdiction would assume. A registered UAE Will permits the property to pass to the named beneficiary directly, by application to the court following the prescribed procedure.
Joint ownership, while superficially familiar to British or American testators, does not carry the survivorship presumption it carries at home. A jointly held apartment does not automatically vest in the survivor on the first death. It must be dealt with through probate, and the surviving owner's position is materially weaker without a Will that addresses the property by name.
Leasehold and off-plan interests carry further considerations: developer consent, sub-purchase obligations, and the timing of title registration may all affect how the interest passes. None of these is insurmountable. All are simpler to resolve when the Will has been drafted with the property in contemplation.
Written by the solicitors of LEX Services for the senior expatriate reader.
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