Article 27 of Dubai Tenancy Law: Does the Lease End When a Landlord or Tenant Dies?
Article 27 answers a difficult question that many families face without warning: what happens to a Dubai tenancy when the landlord or the tenant dies. The short answer is that the lease does not die with the person — it does not expire on death, and the contract continues with the heirs of whoever passed away. The one exception is a protective option for the tenant's family. This page explains the article in plain terms: what the text actually says, what it means when a landlord dies and when a tenant dies, how the tenant's heirs may end the contract, and where the Rental Disputes Centre fits in when the two sides disagree.
- Under Article 27 a lease does not expire on death — it continues with the heirs of the deceased landlord or tenant
- If the landlord dies, the tenancy continues unchanged; the landlord's heirs step in as the new landlords for the remaining term
- If the tenant dies, the tenant's heirs may continue — or terminate, effective no less than 30 days after notifying the landlord, or at expiry if sooner
- Death is not an eviction ground; a dispute over the contract after a death is decided by the Rental Disputes Centre
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What Article 27 provides
Under Article 27 of Dubai's tenancy law, the death of a landlord or a tenant does not end the lease: the contract does not expire on death, and the contractual relationship continues with the heirs — with one exception, that the tenant's heirs may choose to end it, effective no less than thirty days after they notify the landlord, or on the contract's expiry date, whichever comes first.
The relationship between landlords and tenants in Dubai is governed by Law No. 26 of 2007, within the framework as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008. Article 27 deals with a single, human event: one of the two parties to the lease passing away. Its message is that a tenancy is a continuing relationship that does not collapse when a person dies. Instead, the deceased party's place in the contract passes to their heirs, and the lease carries on for the rest of its term.
The rule is symmetrical on one point and asymmetrical on another. It is symmetrical because a death — whether of the landlord or of the tenant — never automatically terminates the lease; the heirs of the deceased simply step into that party's position. It is asymmetrical because only one side is given a way out: the tenant's heirs, who may not need the property, are allowed to terminate the contract on notice. The landlord's heirs are given no equivalent right to cut the lease short.
This page explains the article without straying into inheritance law itself. Who the heirs are, and how an estate is settled, are questions for the applicable succession rules and the estate process — not for the tenancy law. Article 27 only tells us one thing: that once those heirs are established, the lease continues with them, on the same terms, until it ends or is lawfully terminated.
Article 27: what the text actually provides
In substance, Article 27 provides that the lease contract does not expire upon the death of the landlord or the tenant, and that the contractual relationship continues with the heirs. It then adds a single exception: unless the tenant's heirs wish to end that relationship, in which case the termination takes effect no less than thirty days from the date they notify the landlord of that intention, or on the expiry date of the contract, whichever comes first.
Two features of the wording matter in practice. First, the thirty days is a floor, not a fixed date: the termination cannot take effect sooner than thirty days after the landlord is notified, which gives the landlord a minimum window to arrange the handover. Second, the phrase "whichever comes first" caps that window at the contract's natural expiry — so if the lease is due to end in less than thirty days anyway, it simply runs to expiry. For the tenancy to be recognised and protected in this way it should be a written contract registered with RERA through Ejari; the Centre asks for a copy of the registered lease when a case is filed.
Two situations: a landlord dies, or a tenant dies
When the landlord dies, the tenancy simply continues to the landlord's heirs. In this respect Article 27 works much like a sale under Article 28: the lease is attached to the property and the relationship, not to the person, so it passes to those who inherit the property and they become the new landlords for the remaining term. The tenant keeps the same rent, the same term and the same deposit position. Crucially, the landlord's death creates no new right to evict the tenant, to raise the rent mid-term, or to reopen the contract — the heirs inherit the landlord's obligations, not just the rent.
When the tenant dies, the lease again does not end — it continues to the tenant's heirs, who may keep occupying for the rest of the term on the same conditions. But here the law recognises that a family may not want, or be able, to carry a property the deceased had rented. So it gives the tenant's heirs a distinct right: to terminate the contract by notifying the landlord, with the termination taking effect no less than thirty days later, or at expiry if that is sooner. Until it takes effect, the tenancy remains live and the rent remains due.
The practical takeaway is the same on both sides: nobody has to move out simply because a party died, and nothing about the contract changes on its own except the name of the party. What changes is administrative — the identity of the landlord or tenant, who receives or pays the rent, and the Ejari and payment details, which are updated to the heirs after the position passes. The rent, the term and the agreed conditions carry over unchanged.
Article 27 from each side
If the landlord dies
- The lease does not end; it continues to the landlord's heirs, who become the new landlords for the rest of the term
- The heirs inherit the property together with the running contract, the rent and the landlord's duties
- The tenant stays on the same rent and terms — the death gives no right to evict or to raise the rent
- The landlord's heirs have no special option to terminate the lease early because of the death
- To recover the property they must use the ordinary routes: renewal changes (90-day notice) or an on-expiry ground under Article 25
If the tenant dies
- The lease does not end; it continues to the tenant's heirs, who may keep occupying for the rest of the term
- The heirs step into the tenancy with the same rent, term and deposit position
- Uniquely, the tenant's heirs may choose to terminate the lease if they do not need the property
- A termination takes effect no less than 30 days after they notify the landlord, or at expiry, whichever comes first
- The landlord cannot treat the tenant's death as automatic termination or as a ground to seize the property
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How the tenant's heirs may end the contract
A death occurs during the term
The lease keeps running by force of Article 27. Nobody has to vacate on the death itself, and rent continues to fall due while the property is occupied.
The tenant's heirs decide
The heirs may simply continue the tenancy for the remaining term, or — if they no longer need the property — exercise their right to terminate. The landlord's heirs have no equivalent early-exit right.
Notice to the landlord
If the heirs choose to end the contract, they notify the landlord of that intention in writing, keeping proof of the date and how it was delivered.
The 30-day minimum runs
The termination cannot take effect sooner than thirty days after the landlord is notified — a floor that gives the landlord time to arrange the handover.
Termination takes effect
The contract ends on the earlier of that 30-day point or the contract's natural expiry date. Rent is due up to the effective date, and the deposit balance is settled under Article 20.
A death is not a ground to evict or to seize the property
The grounds to end a tenancy against the occupier's will are set out in Article 25 — the breach-based grounds that apply during the term, and the four grounds (owner's personal use, sale, demolition or reconstruction, and comprehensive maintenance) that apply on expiry with a twelve-month notarised or registered notice. The death of a landlord or a tenant is not on either list. So a landlord's heirs cannot demand the property back merely because the owner died, and a landlord cannot treat a tenant's death as an automatic end of the lease. The only special step Article 27 allows is the tenant's heirs' own option to terminate on at least thirty days' notice. Everything else continues as before, and any disagreement is decided by the Rental Disputes Centre — not by either family acting alone.
How Article 27 works in real situations
The landlord dies and a relative tells the tenant to leave because "the owner has passed away".
What is usually neededA landlord's death does not end the lease. Under Article 27 the tenancy continues to the landlord's heirs, who become the new landlords for the remaining term on the same rent and terms. The tenant keeps occupying; any later recovery of the property must follow the ordinary Article 25 routes, and cannot rely on the death itself.
A tenant dies mid-term and the family no longer needs the apartment.
What is usually neededThe tenant's heirs may terminate under Article 27. They notify the landlord in writing, and the contract ends no less than thirty days later, or at expiry if that is sooner. Rent is owed up to the effective date, and the deposit balance is refundable at the end under Article 20; keeping the notice and its proof of delivery avoids a later dispute.
A tenant dies and the family wishes to stay in the home for the rest of the term.
What is usually neededThey may. The lease continues to the tenant's heirs, who keep occupying on the same rent, term and conditions. The landlord cannot use the death to evict them or to raise the rent mid-term; the tenancy simply carries on with the heirs standing in the deceased's place until the term ends.
After a death, one side stops paying rent, arguing the contract "died with the person".
What is usually neededRent continues to fall due. The contract does not lapse on death, so the party in occupation must keep paying until the lease ends or a valid termination takes effect. A disagreement over the death's effect, the notice, or the sums owed is decided by the Rental Disputes Centre, not by either family acting alone.
Documents that help when a landlord or tenant dies
- The written tenancy contract, registered with RERA through Ejari and kept current
- The death certificate of the landlord or tenant
- Proof of the heirs — the succession or estate determination establishing who now stands in the contract
- Emirates ID of the heirs who now stand as landlord or tenant
- Proof of the rent paid and the security deposit, with dates and receipts
- If the tenant's heirs terminate: the written notice to the landlord, its date and how it was delivered
- Updated Ejari and payment details in the new party's name after the position passes
Questions and answers
No. Under Article 27 the lease does not expire on the landlord's death; the contract continues to the landlord's heirs, who become your new landlords for the rest of the term. You keep occupying on the same rent and terms, and the death gives them no right to evict you or raise the rent mid-term. What changes is administrative — who now receives the rent and the Ejari details.
Yes. The lease continues to the tenant's heirs, who may keep occupying for the remaining term on the same rent, term and conditions. Alternatively, if they do not need the property, they may terminate it — a right the law gives specifically to the tenant's heirs. Either way, the landlord cannot treat the death as an automatic end of the contract.
They notify the landlord of their intention to terminate, and the termination takes effect no less than thirty days after that notice, or on the contract's expiry date, whichever comes first. In practice this means giving the landlord at least thirty days' notice; if the contract is due to expire sooner, it simply runs to expiry. Keep proof of the notice and its date to avoid a dispute over the effective end.
No. Death is not one of the eviction grounds in Article 25. The landlord's heirs inherit the running lease and are bound by it. To recover the property they must use the ordinary routes — changing terms at renewal with the 90-day notice, or an on-expiry ground under Article 25(2) with a twelve-month notarised or registered notice — none of which is triggered by the death itself.
No. Article 27 gives the early-termination option only to the tenant's heirs. The landlord's heirs step into the contract as landlords and must honour it for the remaining term; they cannot end it early simply because ownership passed to them by inheritance. Their remedies to recover the property are the same ones any landlord has under Article 25.
Yes. The contract does not lapse on death, so rent continues to fall due while the property is occupied — payable to or by the heirs who now stand in the tenancy, once the Ejari and payment details are updated. If the tenant's heirs terminate, rent is owed up to the effective termination date, and the deposit balance is returned at the end under Article 20.
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: read the tenancy file against Article 27 and Article 25 of the tenancy law, help heirs, a surviving family, or a landlord organise the documents a change of party calls for — the contract, the death certificate, the proof of heirs, the notice — arrange certified and legal translation where the estate papers must move between Arabic and other languages, and follow up procedures at the Rental Disputes Centre.
A death is a hard time to be handling paperwork, and small errors made then — a missing notice, an unclear proof of heirs, rent that stopped when it should have continued — are what most often decide a dispute later. The value is in getting the details right early: the correct effect of Article 27, the correct route if either side wants the tenancy to end, the correct notice for the tenant's heirs, and a clean, translated record that the Rental Disputes Centre can act on if it comes to that.
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. 43 of 2013 (rent increase)
- 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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