Article 21 of Dubai Tenancy Law: Handing Back the Property
Article 21 governs the single moment every tenancy in Dubai ends on: the handover. It sets one clear duty for the tenant — to give the property back in the condition it was received in — and then softens that duty with two exceptions the law treats as fair: ordinary wear and tear, and damage caused by things outside the tenant's control. That short rule is the legal test behind almost every end-of-tenancy argument, because it is what decides whether a landlord may charge for a repair or must accept the property as normal ageing. This page explains what Article 21 actually says, what it means for a landlord and for a tenant, when it applies, and what happens when the two sides disagree about the state of the property.
- On expiry the tenant hands the property back in the condition it was received
- Ordinary wear and tear is excepted — normal ageing cannot be charged to the tenant
- Damage from causes beyond the tenant's control is also excepted
- A dispute over the property's condition is decided by the Rental Disputes Centre on the evidence
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What Article 21 says, in one line
Article 21 of Dubai's tenancy law requires the tenant, when the tenancy ends, to hand the property back to the landlord in the same condition it was received in — except for ordinary wear and tear and for any damage caused by reasons beyond the tenant's control — and it gives the competent tribunal the job of deciding any dispute about that condition.
The relationship between landlords and tenants in Dubai is governed by Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008. Article 21 sits in the part of that law dealing with the obligations of each side, and it addresses the very end of the relationship: the day the tenant leaves and the keys go back. The article does two things. It fixes the standard the property must meet on the way out — the condition it was in on the way in — and it builds in fairness by excepting the deterioration that any normal use produces and any harm the tenant did not cause.
Almost every handover dispute is really an argument about where those exceptions stop. Article 21 does not tell the tenant to hand the property back brand new; it tells the tenant to hand it back as received, minus the fair marks of living in it. So the practical question is never "is there any change at all?" but "is this change ordinary ageing, something outside the tenant's control, or genuine tenant-caused damage?" That single distinction is what the whole article turns on, and it is also the exact point Article 21 links to the security deposit: a deduction under Article 20 is only lawful where the property fails the Article 21 standard.
What Article 21 actually provides
In plain terms, Article 21 provides that upon the expiry of the lease the tenant must return the property to the landlord in the same condition it was in when the tenant received it — save for ordinary wear and tear, and save for damage arising from causes not attributable to the tenant. Where the two parties disagree about the condition in which the property is returned, the matter is referred to the competent tribunal to decide. Three ideas are packed into that sentence: a duty (return as received), two exceptions (fair wear and tear; damage beyond the tenant's control), and a forum for disputes (the tribunal).
It is worth being precise about what the article does not say, because that is where landlords and tenants most often overreach. Article 21 does not require the property to be handed back in better condition than it was received, nor freshly renovated, repainted or upgraded. It does not make the tenant an insurer of the building against every event — storms, structural faults, a burst common pipe or a defect the landlord should have maintained are not the tenant's to answer for. And it does not let the landlord be the sole judge of whether the standard is met: when condition is disputed, the article routes the decision to the tribunal, not to whoever is holding the keys or the deposit.
What Article 21 means in practice
In practice, Article 21 makes the handover a comparison between two moments: how the property looked when the tenant moved in, and how it looks when the tenant moves out. Everything the article decides — whether a mark is chargeable, whether a repair is the tenant's or the landlord's, whether a deduction from the deposit is fair — is measured against that before-and-after gap. This is why the single most valuable thing a tenant or landlord can do has nothing to do with the law and everything to do with evidence: make a dated inventory with photographs at move-in, and repeat exactly the same at move-out.
The exceptions do real work here. "Ordinary wear and tear" covers the deterioration that time and normal living produce whatever tenant is in place: sun-faded paint, lightly worn flooring in walkways, small nail holes from hanging pictures, softening of fittings that have simply aged. "Damage from causes beyond the tenant's control" covers events the tenant neither caused nor could reasonably prevent — a structural leak, a fault in the building's systems, or an outside event. What falls outside both exceptions is tenant-caused damage: burns, deep stains, broken doors, holes beyond normal fixing, or alterations left unrestored. Only that last category can be charged, and only at its real cost.
The terms Article 21 turns on
- Received condition
- The state of the property when the tenant took possession. This is the benchmark Article 21 uses: the tenant must return the property to this state, not to a newer one. A dated move-in inventory with photographs is what proves it.
- Ordinary wear and tear
- The gradual deterioration that normal, careful use produces over time — faded paint, lightly worn floors, minor marks. Article 21 expressly excepts it, so it cannot be charged to the tenant or deducted from the deposit.
- Damage beyond the tenant's control
- Harm the tenant did not cause and could not reasonably prevent — a structural or common-system fault, or an outside event. Article 21 excepts it too, so the tenant is not responsible for restoring it on handover.
- Tenant-caused damage
- Harm beyond ordinary use that the tenant caused — burns, breakages, deep stains, unrestored alterations. This is the only category that falls outside Article 21's exceptions and may be charged, at its real, invoiced cost.
- Move-in / move-out record
- A dated, room-by-room inventory with photographs taken at the start and repeated at the end of the tenancy. It is the practical evidence that turns an Article 21 question from opinion into proof.
How Article 21 reads from each side
For the landlord
- You are entitled to receive the property back in the condition you handed it over in
- You may require the tenant to make good genuine, tenant-caused damage beyond ordinary use
- You cannot charge for fair wear and tear or for damage the tenant did not cause
- If condition is disputed, it is decided by the tribunal on the evidence, not by holding the deposit
For the tenant
- You must hand the property back as you received it, not renovated or upgraded
- Ordinary wear and tear is your right — normal ageing cannot be charged to you
- Damage from causes outside your control is not your responsibility to restore
- You can contest an unfair charge at the Rental Disputes Centre with your move-in record
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When Article 21 applies — worked examples
After two years the walls are lightly faded and the walkway carpet is a little worn.
What is usually neededThis is ordinary wear and tear under Article 21. Fading and light wear from normal living are exactly what the exception protects, so the landlord cannot charge the tenant for repainting or new carpet, and no deduction from the deposit is due on that basis.
The tenant burned the kitchen worktop and cracked a bathroom door during the term.
What is usually neededThis is tenant-caused damage beyond ordinary use, so it falls outside the Article 21 exceptions. The tenant must make it good, and the landlord may recover the real, invoiced cost of the two repairs — measured against the move-in record — and no more.
A ceiling stain appears from a leak in the flat above, and the landlord wants the tenant to pay.
What is usually neededA leak from another unit is damage from a cause beyond the tenant's control, which Article 21 expressly excepts. The tenant is not responsible for restoring it on handover, and it cannot lawfully be charged to the tenant or deducted from the deposit.
The tenant installed shelves and a feature wall and left them in place at move-out.
What is usually neededShelves and a feature wall fixed to the property are leasehold improvements, and Article 23 sets the default the other way round: unless the parties agreed otherwise, the tenant may not remove them on vacating, so they normally stay with the property. Article 21 still applies to the condition handed back — if the lease required reinstatement, or the work was unauthorised or left damage, the tenant makes that good, and only the real cost of doing so may be charged.
When the condition is disputed, who decides
Article 21 answers the "who decides" question itself: where the parties disagree about the condition in which the property is returned, the matter goes to the competent tribunal. In Dubai that tribunal is the Rental Disputes Centre, the specialised judicial body for tenancy cases, established by Decree No. 26 of 2013 and part of Dubai Land Department. Neither side's say-so settles it — not the landlord's insistence that a repaint is chargeable, nor the tenant's insistence that everything is fair wear and tear. The Centre weighs the evidence of the received and returned condition and decides what, if anything, is genuine tenant-caused damage.
This is why a condition dispute is won on documents, not on argument. The claim or defence is far stronger when it rests on a dated move-in inventory and photographs, the matching move-out record, the Ejari-registered contract, invoices for any repair the landlord treats as tenant-caused, and the final utility clearance. Because Article 21 is the standard behind an Article 20 deposit deduction, the same evidence usually resolves both questions at once: whether the property met the received-condition standard, and whether any deduction from the deposit was lawful.
The two exceptions do most of the work
Article 21 does not ask for a perfect property; it asks for the property as received, minus fair wear and tear and minus damage the tenant did not cause. Keep those two exceptions in view whenever a handover charge is raised. Sun-faded paint, lightly worn flooring and minor picture-hook marks are ordinary ageing and belong to the landlord's account. A structural leak, a fault in the building's systems or an outside event is beyond the tenant's control. What remains — deliberate or careless damage beyond normal use — is the tenant's to make good, and only at its real, evidenced cost. There is no fixed percentage or automatic "end-of-tenancy" charge in the article; anything of that kind quoted informally is not the law.
The documents an Article 21 handover relies on
- A dated move-in inventory and photographs, room by room
- The same inventory and photographs repeated at move-out
- The signed, Ejari-registered tenancy contract
- A signed handover note recording the state of the property and the keys returned
- Invoices for any repair the landlord treats as tenant-caused damage
- The final DEWA and district-cooling clearance
- Any landlord approval to keep, or requirement to remove, tenant additions (Article 23)
Common mistakes on both sides
The mistakeExpecting the property to be handed back like new.
The fixArticle 21 requires the received condition, not a renovated one; ordinary wear and tear is expressly excepted and cannot be charged.
The mistakeMoving in without recording the property's condition.
The fixThe whole Article 21 test is a before-and-after comparison; a dated move-in inventory and photographs are what fix the "before" you will be judged against.
The mistakeCharging the tenant for a leak or a structural fault.
The fixDamage from causes beyond the tenant's control is excepted by Article 21; the tenant is not responsible for restoring it on handover.
The mistakeLeaving tenant-installed alterations in place without agreement.
The fixArticle 23 sets the default the other way round: unless otherwise agreed, the tenant may not remove leasehold improvements, so they normally stay with the property; agree in writing what stays, what may be removed and what must be reinstated, and see Article 23 on fixed improvements.
The mistakeAccepting a handover charge with no itemised statement or invoice.
The fixAsk for a written, itemised account of each item with the supporting invoice; an unexplained charge is exactly what the Rental Disputes Centre will examine.
Article 21 — questions and answers
Article 21 requires the tenant, when the tenancy ends, to hand the property back in the condition it was received in — except for ordinary wear and tear and for damage caused by reasons beyond the tenant's control — and it gives the competent tribunal the job of deciding any dispute over that condition. It is part of Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008.
No. The standard is the received condition, not a new or renovated one. Article 21 requires the property back as it was handed over, and it expressly excepts ordinary wear and tear — faded paint, lightly worn floors and minor marks from normal living cannot be charged to the tenant.
Fair wear and tear is the gradual deterioration normal use produces over time — fading, light wear, small marks — and it cannot be charged. Chargeable damage is harm beyond ordinary use that the tenant caused, such as burns, breakages, deep stains or unrestored alterations, and it may be recovered at its real, invoiced cost. Damage from causes beyond the tenant's control, like a structural leak, is also excepted.
The competent tribunal decides it. Article 21 refers any dispute over the returned condition to the tribunal, which in Dubai is the Rental Disputes Centre — the specialised judicial body for tenancy cases, established by Decree No. 26 of 2013 and part of Dubai Land Department. It decides on the evidence of the received and returned condition, not on whoever holds the keys or the deposit.
Article 21 is the standard behind a deposit deduction. A landlord may only deduct from the deposit under Article 20 where the property fails the Article 21 test — that is, for real, tenant-caused damage beyond fair wear and tear. If the property is handed back in its received condition, allowing for ordinary ageing, there is nothing lawful to deduct and the deposit should be returned in full.
Generally no. Article 23 sets the default the other way round: unless the parties agreed otherwise, a tenant may not remove the leasehold improvements they made when vacating, so fixed additions normally stay with the property. Article 21 still governs the condition you hand back — damage left by an alteration, an unauthorised change, or work the lease requires you to reinstate remains yours to make good, and only the real cost of doing so may be charged. Check the lease for a removal or reinstatement clause and agree in writing what stays and what goes.
Where MANJAZ fits in
MANJAZ is a publisher and service provider, not a court and not a law firm, and it never guarantees a particular result. What we do is practical: review the handover and any charges against the Article 21 standard, help you assemble the move-in and move-out evidence into a clear, ordered bundle, prepare and organise the documents needed to contest an unfair charge or to file at the Rental Disputes Centre, and arrange certified and legal translation where the file must move between Arabic and other languages.
Whether you are a tenant facing a charge you believe is really fair wear and tear, or a landlord who wants to raise a genuine, defensible claim for tenant-caused damage, the value is in getting the details right early: a documented received condition, a matching handover record, and any charge limited to a real, invoiced cost. Most handover questions are settled by the quality of that paperwork long before anyone reaches the Centre.
Official sources
- Dubai Legislation — Law No. 26 of 2007 (landlord & tenant) — original text; Arts 2, 3, 4, 9, 13, 14, 15, 25, 26, 29, 36 amended by Law 33/2008
- Dubai Legislation — Law No. 33 of 2008 amending Law 26/2007
- Dubai Legislation — Decree No. 26 of 2013 (Rental Disputes Centre)
- Rental Disputes Centre — About the Centre
This content is for general information and awareness. It is based on the legislation and official sources available at the time of the last review, and procedures may differ according to the facts of each case and updates issued by the competent authorities. It is not legal advice, and MANJAZ is the publisher of this explanation, not the authority that issued the legislation.
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