Wills and Inheritance for Dubai Property: The DIFC Wills Guide

Short answer: Without a registered will, succession to your Dubai property is governed by UAE law, which applies Sharia principles by default — and assets can be frozen while the estate is resolved. Non-Muslim owners should register a DIFC will, which applies a common-law framework and names your chosen beneficiaries. A DIFC Property Will covers up to five UAE properties and costs AED 7,500 for one testator or AED 10,000 for mirror wills, plus 5% VAT.

What happens if you die owning Dubai property without a will?

UAE law governs the devolution of UAE assets. Federal law has been liberalised in recent years to allow non-Muslims' home-country law to apply in some circumstances, but the practical position for a Dubai property owner who has registered nothing is difficult:

• Sharia principles apply by default to the distribution of UAE assets, which produces fixed shares that may bear no resemblance to your intentions — a surviving spouse typically receives a defined fraction rather than the whole estate.
• Assets can be frozen while the estate is determined. Bank accounts, including joint accounts, may be suspended. The property cannot be sold or transferred in the interim.
• A foreign will is not automatically effective. It must be translated into Arabic, legalised, and recognised through a court process, which takes time and money and is not guaranteed.
• Guardianship of minor children defaults to UAE law rather than to whomever you named in a will drawn in London or Mumbai.

None of this is exotic or unlikely. It is the ordinary consequence of holding a valuable asset in a jurisdiction whose default succession rules differ from your own — and it is entirely avoidable for a few thousand dirhams.

What is a DIFC will?

The Dubai International Financial Centre operates a common-law jurisdiction inside Dubai, with its own courts and its own Wills Service Centre. A DIFC will lets a non-Muslim register a will under common-law principles — testamentary freedom, named executors, named guardians — which is then binding on UAE assets within its scope.

It is the most widely used route among non-Muslim expatriates in Dubai, precisely because the framework is familiar to anyone from the UK, Australia, India, Canada or any other common-law jurisdiction.

Eligibility: you must be non-Muslim and aged 21 or over. Muslim owners are subject to Sharia succession rules, for which specialist advice — not a DIFC will — is the right route.

Which DIFC will do you need, and what does it cost?

DIFC Wills Service Centre registration fees as at 2026, exclusive of 5% VAT. Fees are for registration only and do not include legal drafting.

You can register more than one type, and many owners do — a Property Will plus a Guardianship Will, for instance. But note the arithmetic: a Property Will at AED 7,500 plus a Guardianship Will at AED 5,000 comes to AED 12,500, against AED 10,000 for a Full Will that covers both plus everything else. For most villa owners with children, the Full Will is both broader and cheaper.

Budget separately for drafting. Registration fees do not include a lawyer, and while the DIFC provides templates, a will that has to deal with a foreign estate, a trust or a business interest is not a template job. Expect AED 3,000 to AED 10,000 for competent drafting on top.

How do you register one?

1. Confirm eligibility — non-Muslim, aged 21 or over.
2. Decide the scope. Property Will or Full Will; single or mirror wills if you are a couple.
3. Have the will drafted, either from the DIFC template or by a UAE-qualified lawyer. Get the interaction with your home-country will right — a badly-drafted revocation clause in one can inadvertently revoke the other.
4. Book a registration appointment at the DIFC Wills Service Centre. Registration can be done in person or, for some will types, by video conference.
5. Attend with original passport and supporting documents — title deeds, Emirates ID, and the details of executors and beneficiaries.
6. Sign before the registry officer, who witnesses and registers it.
7. Store the registration reference safely and tell your executor where it is. A registered will nobody knows exists is not much better than none.

The whole process typically takes two to four weeks including drafting, and the appointment itself under an hour.

How does it interact with your will at home?

This is where most mistakes happen, and they are avoidable.

• Use two wills, scoped carefully. A DIFC will covering UAE assets and a home-country will covering everything else. Each should expressly state its territorial scope.
• Watch the revocation clauses. A standard English will revoking “all former wills” can wipe out a DIFC will registered a year earlier. Both documents must be drafted knowing about the other.
• A DIFC will does not defeat forced heirship at home. French réserve héréditaire and similar civil-law regimes may still reach a worldwide estate. See our European buyers' guide.
• Inheritance tax is a separate question. The UAE levies none. UK-domiciled individuals remain exposed to UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets, as covered in our UK guide. A DIFC will controls who inherits, not what tax is due.
• Review it when things change — marriage, divorce, children, or buying an additional property. A Property Will covering five properties still needs updating if the properties change.

The broader UAE tax position on property is in our piece on property taxes in Dubai, and if you are still at the buying stage, the full cost breakdown sets out where a will fits in the professional-fee budget. It is, by some distance, the highest-value few thousand dirhams in the whole transaction.

Frequently asked questions

Sources & further reading: DIFC Courts Wills Service Centre · Dubai Land Department · UAE Government portal
Written by Faizan Ahmed, Digital & SEO Lead, Swank Development. Last updated 7 September 2026. Figures are indicative and were verified against official UAE government sources at the time of writing; always confirm current fees with the Dubai Land Department or your conveyancer.