Think about that for a second. Not selling it. Not putting it in a will someday. Just. giving it. To your kid, your spouse, your parent.
Dubai actually has a legal process for exactly this, and honestly, it’s one of the more thoughtful things about the property market here. It’s called a Hiba, an Arabic word for gift, and once you understand how it works, it starts to feel less like legal paperwork and more like a really meaningful act made official.
So let me walk you through it.
First, who can you actually gift a property to?
This is where people sometimes get surprised. The reduced-fee gifting process is specifically for first-degree relatives. That means your spouse, your kids, your parents. And if you own a company 100%, you can also transfer property to that company.
That’s it.
Your sibling? Unfortunately, no. Neither is your cousin, your stepparent, or your grandparent. I know, it feels like an odd line to draw. But those transfers are treated as standard sales by the Dubai Land Department, and you’ll pay the full 4% transfer fee instead of the gifting rate.
The gifting rate, by the way, is just 0.125% of the assessed property value. Minimum AED 2,000. On a property worth AED 2 million, that’s AED 2,500 versus AED 80,000 at the standard rate. The difference is real.
A few things that could trip you up before you even start
If there’s a mortgage on the property, you’ll need your bank’s approval first. Some banks want the loan cleared. Others will let it transfer or be refinanced under the recipient’s name. Either way, don’t skip this step, because without the bank’s NOC, the whole process stalls.
If the property is still off-plan, you can’t gift it yet. The title deed has to exist. So if you bought off-plan and the building isn’t handed over, sit tight.
And here’s one people miss: each property can only go through the gifting process once under the reduced fee. If you gift it to your child today and they want to transfer it to someone else down the road, that second transfer is treated as a regular sale.
Okay, so how does the actual process work?
It’s five steps, and none of them are complicated once you know what’s coming.
Step one: get your documents together. You’ll need the original title deed, Emirates IDs and passports for both parties, and something that proves your relationship, a birth certificate or marriage certificate, properly attested. If you’re using someone to represent you, you’ll also need a notarised Power of Attorney.
Step two: get a valuation from the DLD. This isn’t optional. The Dubai Land Department sets the official assessed value, and that number is what the 0.125% fee is calculated on. You can request it online or at a DLD service centre.
Step three: get your NOC. If it’s a freehold property, you need one from the developer confirming your service charges are all paid up. If there’s a mortgage, you need one from your bank too. Unpaid service charges will get the NOC rejected, so check that first.
Step four: Submit the Hiba application at the DLD. Both parties (or their representatives) show up with their documents. The DLD verifies everything, confirms the relationship, checks the valuation, and issues you a payment slip.
Step five: pay and collect the new title deed. Once fees are cleared, the deed is reissued in the recipient’s name. Done. You can verify it on the Dubai REST app.
A few edge cases worth knowing
If the recipient is a minor, there may be a need for court approval and legal representation. Not necessarily complicated, but plan for it.
Expats can absolutely do this, but only for properties in designated freehold zones. Think Dubai Marina, Palm Jumeirah, Business Bay, Downtown Dubai Dubai Marina, Palm Jumeirah, Downtown Dubai, Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC), Business Bay, and Dubai Hills Estate. Both the person giving and receiving need a valid UAE residency.
And on tax… Dubai doesn’t have gift tax, inheritance tax, or capital gains tax on property transfers. The only real cost is that DLD fee. For a lot of families, this is actually one of the cleanest ways to do succession planning here.
The one thing I’d tell anyone doing this
Don’t let the documents catch you off-guard. If your birth certificate or marriage certificate was issued outside the UAE, it needs to be translated and attested before the DLD will accept it. I’ve seen this create real delays when people don’t realise it in advance.
Sort that early. Everything else moves pretty smoothly once your documents are in order.
This is one of those things that feels big but doesn’t have to be complicated, especially when you’ve got the right people in your corner. Our team knows this process inside out. Get in touch and let’s walk through it together.