Leaving Dubai: getting your deposit back
The deposit is usually lost in the gap between what the landlord remembers and what you can prove.
A security deposit in Dubai is typically five per cent of the annual rent for an unfurnished home, which on a villa is a real amount of money. It is withheld far more often than it should be, and almost always for the same reason: nobody agreed, in writing and with photographs, what condition the home was in when it was handed back.
What landlords deduct for
Fair wear and tear is not deductible; damage is. The argument is always about which one a given mark is. Common deductions: repainting, holes from wall-mounted televisions and shelves, damaged or missing keys and access cards, a deep clean, AC servicing, and unpaid final utility bills.
The last one catches people out most. A DEWA bill or a chiller account left open after you fly keeps accruing, and the landlord settles it from your deposit.
What actually protects you
Photographs at handover, timestamped, of every room, including the ceilings and the floors. Not a handful — all of them.
A written condition report that you and the landlord or their agent both agree to on the day. If they will not sign one, your dated photographs are the next best thing.
Final bills closed and the clearance certificates in your hand before you go: DEWA, chiller, internet, and the Ejari cancellation. Keep the receipts.
A move-out permit from the building, where one is needed, and the lift booked. Buildings fine for moving without one, and the fine lands on you.
The order matters
Sell or ship your furniture first, then deep clean, then do the final meter readings, then hand over. Doing the handover before the clean means the landlord photographs a dirty home, and that photograph is what the deduction is argued from.
Give yourself more than a week. The admin — final bills, Ejari cancellation, clearance letters — takes longer than people plan for, and it all has to be done from Dubai.
What we do about it
The move-out inspection with a photo report is included in the exit fee, because it is the part that gives you something to argue from. So is the exit admin: the DEWA final bill, the Ejari cancellation, the chiller and internet accounts, and the move-out permit. The landlord handover happens within 14 days, with the condition agreed in writing.