Guaranteed Residence Visas in Dubai removed

The Master Developers in Dubai have removed the clause that guarantees a residence visa for property buyers from contracts they enter into with sub-developers

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“There was a clause in our previous contracts that assured us that master developers will guarantee residence visa. The clause has now been removed,” a developer. Emaar Properties, the master developer of Burj Dubai and Dubai Marina, has sent a notice to sub-developers to hold processing of residency visas until further notice.

However, master developers  made it clear that they were just “facilitators” and the granting of residency visa was always in the hands of the Department of Naturalisation and Residency. One thing bearing in mind when understanding this is - all master developers in Dubai are government-owned, so this is clearly a case of deliberately misleading buyers.

“We do not assure property buyers residence visas. For freehold property buyers across Dubai, the grant of residence visas is subject to the rules, requirements and procedures of the Department of Naturalisation and Residency, not the developer,” Union Properties said in a statement.

A Nakheel spokesperson stressed: “Upon the purchase of a Nakheel property, we will provide customers the basis for sponsorship, although the grant of a residence visa is still subject to the rules, requirements and procedures of the Department of Naturalisation and Residency.”

According to Dubai Properties Group Chief Executive Officer Mohamed Binbrek, his company “never assured any visa and was just acting as a facilitator”.

In the past, many developers in Dubai have advertised freehold property with a guaranteed residence visa. These ads have now been removed. Master developers in Ajman have given a written assurance to sub-developers that they will grant a residency visa, which will be valid for one year and will have to be renewed annually.

A new law has also been introduced making it necessary to officially register all off-plan sales, which we feel is a pre-cursor to an introduction of a short term capital gains tax in Dubai.

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