Lease-to-own registration (deferred sale or Oqood)
Registers a lease-to-own (Ijarah) arrangement on a deferred-sale or Oqood property with the Dubai Land Department.
How it works
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Documents
You
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Reviewed by MARIO E.G.S.H AI
MARIO E.G.S.H AI
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Registered at trustee office
Runner at DLD
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Title deed issued
DLD
Documents required
Lease letter from the bank showing the rental (financing) amount and the start and expiry dates
originalElectronic no-objection certificate (e-NOC) from the developer (requested through the Dubai REST app)
in some casescopyOnly if: Needed for properties in freehold areas (and off-plan/Oqood units).Emirates ID of the seller and the buyer (shown for identification only; no copy is taken) or a valid passport for non-resident foreigners
originalLegal power of attorney, if someone acts for a party
in some casesoriginalattestedlegal Arabic translationOnly if: Only when a representative attends; it must expressly cover this transaction on this property. A POA made abroad must be attested and legally translated into Arabic.If a party is a company: trade licence (with the partners page), memorandum of association with annexes (MOFA-attested with Arabic translation), job-title certificate of the signatory, and a POA or notarised board resolution
in some casesoriginalattestedlegal Arabic translationOnly if: Only when the owner or buyer is a company. A company that is not yet registered in the DLD system must first be registered (separate company-registration service).
Conditions, time and validity
- A company buyer must first be registered in the DLD system.
- For off-plan units the developer can also register the lease-to-own itself on the Oqood portal (DLD: 6 working days); the sale contract must be registered within 90 days of signing. On that route DLD's Arabic page (read 2026-10-08) charges 0.25% of the lease value (lessee), 2% + 2% of the sale value, AED 20 and the developer's AED 1,000 self-registration fee; the English page writes '2% of the rental value', which looks like an error.
- Processing time
- DLD: 15 minutes at most at the trustee office once the bank's letter is ready.
- Validity of the result
- Until the lease-to-own is released after the last payment (separate release service).
- Where it is applied for
- Real Estate Registration Trustee offices (in person). All outputs are electronic.
Steps at the authority
- Client gets final Islamic home-finance (Ijarah) approval and the bank's lease letter; seller and buyer prepare the sale documents.
- Our centre checks the file and submits it at a Real Estate Registration Trustee office; all documents are uploaded to the DLD digital vault.
- The fees are paid (e-pay, Dubai Pay, Noqodi or a manager's cheque to DLD) and a receipt is issued.
- DLD audits and registers the transaction; the updated title deed / certificate is sent by email.
Tips that save you a trip
- Banks do not usually finance the DLD fees; budget the 4% + 0.25% + trustee fee in cash.
Common reasons for rejection or delay
- Bank lease letter missing the rental amount or the start/expiry dates.
- Developer e-NOC missing.
Questions and answers
Is lease to own the same as a mortgage at DLD?
No. With a mortgage you are the owner and the bank holds a mortgage; with lease to own the bank's right is registered as an Ijarah and you become the full owner after the release. The fees are similar (0.25% of the financed amount).
Checked by the MARIO E.G.S.H team on 2026-10-08. Rules can change at any time; our consultant confirms the details for your case.
Legal basis
Dubai Law No. 7 of 2006 concerning Real Property Registration; Dubai Law No. 14 of 2008 concerning Mortgages (financing rights)
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