UAE Property: ‘Can I be evicted if my apartment is switched to a short-term rental?’

Question: I rent a one-bedroom apartment in Dubai Marina. My landlord has informed me that he wants to switch the apartment to short-term rental and says that, because this is a business decision, I must vacate the property at the end of my contract. He is offering me 30 days’ notice.

I’m not sure whether this is legal or if short-term rental qualifies as a valid reason to evict a sitting tenant. Can he ask me to leave for this reason? SM, Dubai

Answer: Short-term rental does not qualify as a legal reason for eviction. Law 33 of 2008 states that a landlord may only evict a tenant for four main reasons:

to sell

for personal use, or use by first degree next of kin

for major renovation that requires the property to be empty

for reason of demolition

Switching to commercial use, such as holiday home licensing, does not fall into any of these categories.

Therefore, your landlord cannot serve you a 30-day notice, nor can he refuse renewal on this basis. The correct procedure if he intended to sell or use the property personally, for example, would be a to send you a 12-month notice to vacate through notary public or registered mail.

Short-term leasing is a business choice, not a legal reason to displace a current tenant.

I suggest you inform the landlord politely of the correct legal framework. Most misunderstandings arise from poor advice. If he insists on proceeding unlawfully, you can open a case with the Dubai Rental Dispute Centre, which is likely to rule in favour of the tenant in situations like this.

Q: I rent a villa in Sharjah and my landlord has informed me that tenants must now contribute to an upgrade fee to cover road repaving and landscaping enhancements in the community. This came with no warning and wasn’t mentioned in my tenancy contract.

It would add nearly Dh4,000 ($1,089) a year to my rent. Is a landlord allowed to add this kind of fee mid-tenancy? SB, Sharjah

A: No, your landlord cannot introduce new fees midway through a tenancy unless they are explicitly written into the contract you signed.

Any upgrade works, infrastructure improvements or community enhancements fall under t