Article 24: Subletting, Assignment and the Landlord's Consent
A Dubai tenant does not have a free hand to bring in a sub-tenant or to pass the tenancy to someone else. Article 24 of the tenancy law draws a clear line: the property is leased to the tenant, and the tenant may not sublet it or assign it — all of it or only part of it — unless the landlord has agreed in writing. That single requirement, written consent, decides most subletting disputes before they start, because an arrangement the landlord never approved in writing is an unauthorised one, and the law treats it as a breach. This explainer sets out what Article 24 actually says, the difference between subletting and assignment, what a proper written consent looks like, and what happens if the rule is ignored.
- A tenant may not sublet or assign the property, in whole or part, without the landlord's written consent (Article 24)
- Written consent is the whole test — a verbal "yes" or a landlord's silence is not consent
- Subletting or assigning without approval is a ground to evict during the term (Article 25(1))
- A landlord-approved sub-tenant has protection the law spells out (Articles 8 and 30)
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Can a tenant sublet or hand over the property in Dubai?
No — not on their own. Under Article 24 of Law No. 26 of 2007 a tenant may not assign the use of the leased property, or sublet it, whether the whole property or only part of it, unless the landlord's written consent has first been obtained.
The relationship between landlords and tenants in Dubai is governed by Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008. The lease is a personal arrangement between one landlord and one tenant, and the property was let to that tenant on terms the landlord agreed to. Article 24 protects that basic bargain: the tenant cannot quietly put someone else in the property, or replace themselves with a new tenant, and then present the landlord with a stranger already in occupation. The one thing that turns any such arrangement from unlawful into lawful is the landlord's consent, given in writing.
Two different acts fall under the same rule. One is assignment — stepping out of the tenancy and letting a new person take it over. The other is subletting — staying the tenant yourself while letting the property, or a part of it, to a sub-tenant underneath you. Article 24 catches both, and it catches partial arrangements just as firmly as full ones: letting out one room, sharing a villa with another family for rent, or putting a business inside your leased shop are all within its reach. In every case the question is the same — did the landlord agree in writing before it happened.
The reason this matters so much is the consequence. An arrangement the landlord never approved in writing is unauthorised, and unauthorised subletting or assignment is one of the specified grounds on which a landlord can ask the Rental Disputes Centre to evict the tenant during the term. So Article 24 is not a technicality to be sorted out later; it is the difference between a secure tenancy and a tenancy the landlord can move to end.
What Article 24 actually says
In plain terms, Article 24 states that the tenant may not assign the use of the leased property, or sublet it in whole or in part, without first obtaining the landlord's written consent. The provision is short, and every word in it does work. "Assign the use" and "sublet" cover the two ways a tenant might hand the property to another. "In whole or in part" closes the gap that would otherwise let a tenant argue that letting a single room is too small to count. And "the landlord's written consent" fixes both who must agree — the landlord, not an agent guessing, not a neighbour, not silence — and how they must agree: in writing.
It is worth noticing what the article does not say. It does not say the landlord must give reasons for refusing, and it does not promise the tenant a right to sublet that the landlord is obliged to grant. The default position is simply that the tenant cannot do it alone; consent is the exception the landlord chooses to make. Equally, the article does not ban subletting outright — a landlord is free to agree to it, and many do, particularly for company tenancies and shared homes. The law is about permission and proof, not prohibition.
Article 24 also sits inside a larger scheme, and it reads best alongside its neighbours. Article 4 requires the lease itself to be written and registered with RERA through Ejari, so the whole relationship is meant to run on documents. Article 25(1) makes unauthorised subletting or assignment a ground for eviction during the term. Article 8 provides that a sub-lease ends when the head lease ends. And Article 30 protects a sub-tenant the landlord did approve, allowing them to stay for the remaining sub-lease period even if the main lease is terminated. Read together, these articles reward the tenant who obtains consent properly and expose the tenant who does not.
Subletting and assignment are not the same thing
Although Article 24 treats them the same way, subletting and assignment are legally distinct, and knowing which one you are doing matters. In an assignment the original tenant steps out of the picture: the tenancy is transferred so that a new tenant takes over the same contract and deals directly with the landlord. In a sub-lease the original tenant stays fully in place as the landlord's tenant, and creates a second, lower contract by letting the property — or a part of it — to a sub-tenant. There are now two tenancies stacked one under the other, and the original tenant remains answerable to the landlord for the whole of it.
The practical upshot of that difference is about who bears the risk. A tenant who assigns and walks away may still find that liabilities do not simply vanish, because a landlord who never consented can treat the whole arrangement as unauthorised. A tenant who sublets stays on the hook to the landlord for rent and for the property's condition, whatever the sub-tenant does. Either way, the safe route is the same one Article 24 points to: get the landlord's written consent first, and record exactly what was agreed.
The terms that decide a subletting question
- Subletting (sub-lease)
- The tenant remains the landlord's tenant but lets the property, or part of it, to a sub-tenant under a second contract. Article 24 requires the landlord's written consent for it.
- Assignment
- The tenant transfers the tenancy so that a new tenant takes over the contract in their place. It too needs the landlord's written consent under Article 24.
- Sub-tenant
- The person who occupies under a sub-lease. If the landlord approved them, Articles 8 and 30 shape their position when the head lease ends.
- Head lease
- The main tenancy between the landlord and the original tenant. Any sub-lease sits beneath it and, under Article 8, cannot outlast it.
- Ejari registration
- The official registration of a tenancy contract with RERA (Article 4). The Centre asks for a copy of the registered contract when a case is filed, which matters for any approved sub-lease too.
What Article 24 means in practice
In everyday terms, Article 24 means that before anyone other than the named tenant starts paying to occupy the property, the landlord should have said yes in writing. This bites in more situations than people expect. Taking in a paying flatmate, sharing a villa with another family who contribute rent, letting a spare room, placing a second business inside a leased commercial unit, or listing the apartment for short stays are all forms of putting someone else in the property for money — and all of them are the kind of arrangement the article is about.
A proper written consent is specific, not a throwaway line. It should name the arrangement (a sub-lease or an assignment), identify the property or the part being sublet, and say who is being brought in. A landlord has a legitimate interest in that detail: who will occupy the home, how many people, what it will be used for, how it affects the building's service charges and insurance, and the condition it will be handed back in. A one-word "fine" in a chat message is far weaker than a signed letter, and where the arrangement is itself a new tenancy it is stronger still to register it through Ejari so it is recognised if a dispute arises.
Short-term and holiday letting deserves a special word, because it is where good-faith tenants most often trip. Advertising a leased home night by night on a booking platform is subletting in substance, and in Dubai it also engages a separate licensing regime for holiday homes. A tenant who wants to do it lawfully needs both the landlord's written consent under Article 24 and the relevant holiday-home permit — not one or the other. Doing it without consent turns the tenant's own tenancy into one the landlord can move to end.
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What the article means for each side
For the landlord
- You control who occupies the property — no sub-tenant or new tenant without your written consent
- Unauthorised subletting or assignment is a ground to seek eviction during the term (Article 25(1))
- You may agree to it on your terms — and put those terms in the written consent
- If you do approve a sub-tenant, Articles 8 and 30 then govern their position
- Consent given must be evidenced in writing, so decide and record deliberately
For the tenant
- You cannot sublet or assign — in whole or in part — without the landlord's written consent first
- A verbal "yes", or the landlord not objecting, will not protect you if it is later disputed
- If you sublet, you stay liable to the landlord for the rent and the property's condition
- Get the consent in writing and, where it is a new tenancy, register it through Ejari
- For short-term letting you also need the relevant holiday-home permit, not just consent
How Article 24 plays out in real situations
A tenant wants to take in a paying flatmate to share the two-bedroom apartment.
What is usually neededThis is partial subletting, so Article 24 applies even though only part of the home is involved. Ask the landlord for written consent before the flatmate moves in and pays; a signed approval that names the arrangement protects the tenancy, while an informal agreement leaves it exposed.
A tenant leaving Dubai mid-term wants to hand the flat and its contract to a friend.
What is usually neededThat is an assignment — a new tenant taking over the contract — and Article 24 requires the landlord's written consent. Do not simply "hand over the keys": arrange a documented assignment the landlord approves in writing, so both the outgoing and incoming tenant know where liability sits.
A company leases a unit and wants to house rotating staff or sublet part of it.
What is usually neededA company tenant is still bound by Article 24. Rotating occupants or subletting space is not automatically permitted just because the tenant is a business; the lease should spell out what is allowed, and any subletting still needs the landlord's written consent recorded in the contract or a separate letter.
A tenant lists the apartment on a short-stay platform while their own lease runs.
What is usually neededShort-stay letting is subletting in substance and also needs the relevant holiday-home permit. Without the landlord's written consent under Article 24 it is unauthorised, which can put the tenant's own tenancy at risk of eviction. Secure both the consent and the permit before advertising, or do not do it.
The consequence of skipping consent — and the protection consent gives
Subletting or assigning without the landlord's written consent is listed in Article 25(1) as a ground on which the landlord may ask the Rental Disputes Centre to evict the tenant during the term. The exposure is not only to the sub-tenant's position but to the tenant's own tenancy. By contrast, doing it properly brings the law's protection into play: under Article 8 a sub-lease ends when the head lease ends, and under Article 30 a sub-tenant the landlord approved may remain for the rest of the sub-lease period even if the main lease is terminated. Consent is what separates a secure arrangement from one that endangers everyone in it.
What a proper subletting or assignment file contains
- The signed, Ejari-registered head-lease contract between landlord and tenant
- The landlord's written consent, naming the arrangement and who is being brought in
- The sub-lease or assignment agreement itself, in writing and signed
- Identification for the incoming tenant or sub-tenant (Emirates ID / trade licence)
- Ejari registration of the new arrangement where it is a fresh tenancy
- Any permit the use requires — for example a holiday-home permit for short-term letting
How to obtain consent the right way
Read your own lease first
Check whether the head lease already says anything about subletting or assignment. Some contracts permit it on conditions; others prohibit it outright, which tightens what Article 24 already requires.
Put the request to the landlord in writing
Ask for consent before anything happens, describing the arrangement clearly: sub-lease or assignment, the whole property or a part, who will occupy, and for how long.
Obtain the consent in writing
Get a signed approval — not a verbal nod — that identifies the property or part, the arrangement, and the person coming in, along with any conditions the landlord sets.
Document the sub-lease or assignment
Put the arrangement itself into a written, signed agreement so the rights and obligations between the parties are clear, not left to memory.
Register and permit where required
Where the arrangement is a new tenancy, register it through Ejari, and obtain any use permit — such as a holiday-home permit — that the intended use needs.
Keep the whole file together
Store the head lease, the written consent, the sub-lease or assignment and any permit in one place, so the arrangement can be proved instantly if it is ever questioned.
Common mistakes on both sides
The mistakeRelying on a verbal "yes" or the landlord's silence as consent.
The fixArticle 24 requires written consent; a signed approval that names the arrangement is what actually protects the tenancy if it is later disputed.
The mistakeAssuming letting out one room is too small to need permission.
The fixThe article covers subletting "in whole or in part", so a single room, a shared villa or a corner of a shop is caught just the same and still needs written consent.
The mistakeListing a leased home for short stays without consent or a permit.
The fixShort-stay letting is subletting and also needs the relevant holiday-home permit; doing it without both can put the tenant's own tenancy at risk of eviction.
The mistakeA sub-tenant assuming their contract binds the landlord.
The fixWhere the sub-lease was not approved, the sub-tenant's recourse is against the tenant who let to them, not the landlord; approval under Article 30 is what gives a sub-tenant real protection.
The mistakeAssigning the lease and assuming all liability instantly disappears.
The fixWithout the landlord's written consent the assignment is unauthorised; document the transfer and get consent so it is clear who is answerable to the landlord after the handover.
Questions and answers
Only with the landlord's written consent. Article 24 of Law No. 26 of 2007 says a tenant may not sublet the property — in whole or in part — or assign the tenancy, unless the landlord has first agreed in writing. Without that written consent the arrangement is unauthorised, and unauthorised subletting is a ground for eviction during the term.
In subletting you stay the landlord's tenant and let the property, or part of it, to a sub-tenant beneath you. In assignment you step out entirely and a new tenant takes over the contract. Article 24 requires the landlord's written consent for both, but in a sub-lease you remain liable to the landlord for the rent and the property's condition.
It is treated as an unauthorised arrangement and a breach of the tenancy. Under Article 25(1) the landlord may ask the Rental Disputes Centre to evict you during the term for subletting or assigning without written approval. The risk falls on your own tenancy, not only on the person you brought in.
Yes, and more. Short-term or holiday letting of a leased home is subletting in substance, so it needs the landlord's written consent under Article 24, and in Dubai it also needs the relevant holiday-home permit. You need both the consent and the permit — having one without the other does not make it lawful.
An approved sub-tenant has protection the law spells out. Article 8 provides that a sub-lease ends when the head lease ends, but Article 30 allows a sub-tenant the landlord approved to continue occupying for the remaining sub-lease period even if the main lease is terminated. That protection depends on the landlord having approved the sub-tenant.
Yes. Article 24 requires the landlord's written consent specifically, so a verbal agreement or a landlord who simply did not object is not enough if the matter is later disputed. Get a signed consent that names the property or the part, the arrangement and who is being brought in, and keep it with the tenancy file.
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 tenancy file against the Article 24 requirement, help a tenant frame a clear written request for consent and a landlord draft a consent that sets out its terms, organise the sub-lease or assignment paperwork so the arrangement is properly documented, and arrange certified and legal translation where the file must move between Arabic and other languages.
Whether you are a tenant who wants to sublet or assign lawfully, or a landlord deciding whether and how to consent, the value is in getting the details right before anyone moves in: a written consent that names the arrangement, a documented sub-lease or assignment, and, where needed, Ejari registration and the right permit. Most subletting disputes are decided by whether that consent exists in writing, long before anyone reaches the Rental Disputes 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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