UAE: cross-border payments and remote closing

A buyer who lives abroad can buy in Dubai or Abu Dhabi without travelling, but the route depends on whether the property is off-plan or ready, how the money is paid and who signs. This briefing sets out the usual steps and the risks, from public sources and practice notes. Confirm the current rules with a UAE lawyer before relying on them.

Off-plan: escrow and Oqood

Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007 requires a developer that sells off-plan to be registered and to take buyers' payments into a project escrow account used only for that project. Every off-plan project is recorded in the Dubai Land Department's Oqood system, which holds the sales contracts, and a buyer can have the unit provisionally registered in their name by paying the fee (overview). One practice summary adds that the escrow agent keeps a share of the account after completion until a year after units are registered; treat that detail as something to check.

The practical rule for a remote buyer: pay only into the escrow account named in the contract for a registered project, and ask the broker to show the registration of the project and of the contract.

Ready property

For a ready property the transfer is registered at the Land Department. The registration fee in Dubai is commonly quoted as 4% of the price, usually paid by the buyer, plus the broker's commission and smaller fees; confirm the current schedule. In Abu Dhabi, freehold registration is reported at 2% of the price, often shared between buyer and seller by agreement.

How the money moves

• Bank transfer from abroad is the clean route, normally to the escrow account for off-plan or to the manager's cheque or account named by the Land Department for a ready sale.
• Transfers can take days and may be questioned by the sending or the receiving bank. A buyer who has the source-of-funds papers ready avoids delays.
• A freehold payment made in physical cash of AED 55,000 or more, or in virtual assets, triggers a report by the broker under the Ministry's rules (summary). Say at the outset that you expect a bank transfer.
• Fix the currency and the exchange cost in the contract.

Signing without travelling

A buyer abroad can act through a representative holding a power of attorney. A broker-legal blog reports that a Land Department circular of 16 July 2025 (No. 29/R/2025) requires the power of attorney to name the transaction, to be verified electronically through the courts' portals (QR-code checks are not accepted), and, if issued outside the UAE, to be no more than two years old (source). The same source describes a remote e-notary service through Dubai Courts by video call for non-residents. Because these details come from one blog, ask your lawyer for the current requirement and the exact wording before the buyer signs.

What to tell a remote buyer

• Check the developer and the project registration yourself, not only through the broker.
• Pay only to the escrow or Land Department account written in the contract.
• Keep the power of attorney narrow, current and specific.
• Allow for notarisation, verification and any translation before a contract deadline.
• Expect questions on the source of funds, whatever the nationality.

Costs the buyer should see in writing

Ask for a list in the buyer's currency: the registration fee at the Land Department or ADREC, the broker's commission and any tax on it, the title-deed or document fees, bank charges on the transfer and, for off-plan, the developer's payment plan. An Abu Dhabi practice guide reports an agency commission of about 2% plus 5% VAT on it and a title-deed fee of AED 1,000, and puts the total of fees for a cash purchase at roughly 4% to 5.5% of the price (source); treat these as indicative.

Dubai and Abu Dhabi are different

Dubai records off-plan contracts in Oqood and uses escrow under its own law; Abu Dhabi has its own law and registry, with foreign freehold limited to designated zones. Do not copy a Dubai checklist into an Abu Dhabi file. Name the emirate, the registry and the law at the top of every client note.

Pitfalls

• Money sent to an account that is not the project escrow.
• A power of attorney with general wording, or one that has expired.
• A payment in cash or crypto that triggers reporting and delay.
• A buyer who was not told about the registration fee and commission.
• An off-plan buyer who did not receive the registered contract.

What a good file looks like

The buyer's identity and source-of-funds papers, the signed brokerage agreement, the project and unit registration, the payment instructions confirmed in writing, the power of attorney with the verification record, and proof of every transfer.

Working with D.H. Realting

D.H. Realting is a trilingual (Russian, English and Polish) overseas-property platform that introduces buyers, including expats living in Poland, the EU and elsewhere, to property abroad and supports the process. Agencies in the UAE that handle the deal locally and would like to be introduced to such buyers can contact us through our partners page. Terms are discussed individually.

This briefing is for information only and is not legal, tax or compliance advice. Rules change; confirm with a local lawyer and the competent authority before acting.