RERA Rent Calculator Dubai: check your legal rent increase
If your landlord has proposed a rent increase at renewal, Dubai law caps how much they can legally add. Enter your rent below and this calculator applies the RERA sliding scale under Decree 43 of 2013 — with the market average suggested from registered Dubai Land Department contracts, so you don't have to hunt for it.
Is my rent increase legal?
Dubai only. Pick your area to auto-fill the market average, or enter it yourself.
to see the maximum legal increase.
How the RERA rent cap works
Dubai does not allow unlimited increases. Under Decree 43 of 2013, the maximum a landlord can raise your rent at renewal depends on how far your current rent sits below the market average for a comparable home in your area. The further below market you are, the larger the permitted increase — but it is always capped.
| Your rent vs. market average | Maximum increase |
|---|---|
| Within 10% of the average | 0% — none allowed |
| 11–20% below | up to 5% |
| 21–30% below | up to 10% |
| 31–40% below | up to 15% |
| More than 40% below | up to 20% |
The 90-day rule. Even when an increase is permitted, your landlord must give written notice at least 90 days before your contract expires. Miss that, and you are entitled to renew at your existing rent — whatever the calculator shows.
Worked examples
1-bed in JVC, 21% below market
Studio in International City, 20% below market
1-bed in Deira, close to market
Not sure what your area really rents for?
See the median registered rent for every Dubai community — the same data that powers the market-average suggestion here.
Average rent by community →How we suggest the market average
The market-average figure this tool pre-fills comes from registered tenancy contracts lodged with the Dubai Land Department — the rents people actually signed, not listing prices. It is an indicative median for your community and apartment size, meant to give you a realistic starting point. For a binding figure in a dispute, use the official RERA Smart Rental Index on the DLD website or Dubai REST app, and enter that number in the calculator instead.
Renting outside Dubai? Decree 43 is Dubai-only — check the cap for all seven emirates (Abu Dhabi is currently frozen at 0%), and if a landlord pushes past the limit, see where to file a dispute in each emirate.
Common questions
How much can my landlord increase rent in Dubai?
Between 0% and 20% depending on how far below the market average your rent is — within 10% of market, no increase is allowed. Always with 90 days' written notice.
Can rent be increased mid-contract?
No — only at renewal, and only with proper 90-day notice. A mid-term increase is not permitted.
Is the market average here the official figure?
It's an indicative median from registered contracts. The binding figure is the official RERA Smart Rental Index — use that for a dispute.
Does this apply outside Dubai?
No. Other emirates set their own caps; use the all-emirates tool for those.
Source & licence. Market-average suggestions are computed from registered tenancy-contract data © Dubai Land Department / Dubai Data Establishment, published as open data via Dubai Pulse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Figures are aggregates, not raw records.