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Buying off-plan in Dubai

How payment plans work, where your money is held, what you register with the Dubai Land Department, and what to check before you reserve.

Updated 15 September 2026

What off-plan means

An off-plan home is bought from the developer before the building is complete. Instead of paying the price at a transfer, you pay in stages set out in a payment plan: a first payment when you reserve, instalments while the building rises, and the balance at or after handover.

Where your money goes

Under Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007, off-plan buyers' payments go into an escrow account opened for that one project with an approved escrow agent. The money can be used only to build that project, and the developer's creditors cannot seize it.

Off-plan adverts must show the project's escrow account number. Make every payment to that account and no other.

Registering your purchase

The purchase is registered on the Dubai Land Department's Oqood system, which records you as the buyer before a title deed exists. The fee is 4% of the price plus AED 20. Developers may add their own administration charge, so ask for it in writing.

What an off-plan advert must show

  • A Trakheesi advertising permit. Since April 2024 each off-plan unit needs its own permit, not just the project
  • The developer's name and the project's escrow account number
  • The expected completion date
  • A Madmoun QR code, on printed and video adverts

Checks before you reserve

  1. The developer and the project.Confirm who the developer is and that the project is registered with the Dubai Land Department.
  2. The escrow account.Match the account number on the advert with the one in your agreement, and never pay into any other account.
  3. The payment plan.Read every instalment's amount and what triggers it: a date, or a stage of construction.
  4. The completion date.Note the expected completion date and read what the sale agreement says about delays.
  5. Every cost.The 4% Oqood fee, any developer charges, and the service charge you will pay once the building is handed over.

Mortgages and off-plan

Under the Central Bank of the UAE's limits, a bank may lend up to 50% of the price of an off-plan home. Some buyers pay the construction instalments themselves and arrange a mortgage for the balance at handover. Ask a bank what it offers for the specific project.

Off-plan and the Golden Visa

The Dubai Land Department's and GDRFA's pages on the property Golden Visa do not say whether an off-plan home counts towards the AED 2 million threshold. Confirm with GDRFA before you buy with the visa in mind. The Golden Visa guide sets out the published rules.

Questions buyers ask

Is my money protected when I buy off-plan in Dubai?

Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007 requires off-plan payments to go into an escrow account for the project, used only for its construction and out of reach of the developer's creditors. Pay only into the escrow account named for the project.

What is Oqood?

The Dubai Land Department's register for off-plan sales. It records your purchase before the title deed is issued, for 4% of the price plus AED 20.

Can I get a mortgage on an off-plan home?

Yes, for up to 50% of the price under the Central Bank of the UAE's limits, subject to the bank's policy on the project.

What should an off-plan advert show?

Its Trakheesi permit number, the developer, the project's escrow account number and the expected completion date. Printed and video adverts also carry a Madmoun QR code.

Sources

Off-plan or ready: how to choose in Dubai

How the two compare on payments, fees, mortgages, protection and moving in, using the rules that apply to each.

Read the guide

Handover and snagging in Dubai

What happens when an off-plan home is completed: the completion certificate, your title deed, inspecting for defects, and how long the developer must put things right.

Read the guide