The Dubai holiday home permit, explained for owners

Can you list on Airbnb in Dubai?

Yes, and it is fully legal. Dubai has regulated short-term letting since 2013 through its own category, the holiday home: a furnished home let to visitors by the night or week. The condition is that each home has its permit before it is listed, on Airbnb, Booking or any other site, and that the permit number appears in the listing.

It makes no difference whether it is a studio or a villa. Without a permit, the home cannot be advertised for short stays. With one, it is registered as a holiday home and follows rules similar to those of a small guest accommodation.

For an owner, the real question is usually not whether you can, but whether it beats a long-term let and who will run the day-to-day. That is what this guide covers.

What the holiday home permit is, formerly the DTCM permit

It is the approval that turns a furnished home into a holiday home. It is issued by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, DET. It used to be called the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, DTCM, which is why many people still call it the DTCM permit. It is the same thing.

The basics:

• It is per home. Each flat or villa has its own permit and number.
• It lasts one year. It does not renew itself: renewal has to be requested before it expires.
• It has a category. Each holiday home is classed as standard or upper category, based on its size and fittings. The category sets what guests pay per night.
• Eligible homes are flats in residential buildings, houses and villas within a community, and independent villas. A flat’s title deed must be for residential use.
• Not eligible are hotel rooms and hotel apartments, and homes whose purchase contract expressly bans holiday letting.

Developers and owners’ associations must allow the activity in homes that hold a permit. What can prevent it is a clause in your SPA, so if you are buying with holiday letting in mind, check it before signing. We help you do that.

Who can apply: you or a management company

There are two ways to run a holiday let in Dubai.

• As an individual. The owner registers on the DET system with a licence in their name and applies for a permit for each home. An individual can hold up to eight permits at a time. Beyond that, the rules require a company or handing the homes to a licensed company.
• Through a management company. You sign a management contract with a company licensed to operate holiday homes, and the company handles the permit and the activity. This is the usual route when the owner does not live in Dubai.

The contract between the owner and the management company lasts up to one year and can be renewed. It sets out how income is shared, who pays each cost and when you can use the home yourself, because while the contract runs the owner only uses it on the agreed dates.

We work like any holiday let management company: we manage everything for you and coordinate trusted providers for services such as cleaning and maintenance. You do not need to be in Dubai or deal with DET yourself.

What it means for the owner

A home with a holiday home permit is closer to running a small guest accommodation than to having a tenant. These are the main obligations, in general terms:

• Fittings. The home must be furnished and equipped for its category: beds and mattresses of minimum sizes, wifi, a washer-dryer, kitchenware, a first aid kit, a fire extinguisher and emergency instructions in Arabic and English, among other things.
• Smart lock. The front door has a smart lock approved by Dubai’s security regulator.
• Insurance. A policy covering damage guests may suffer is required.
• Guest registration. Each guest is checked in on the DET system within three hours of arrival, with their documents.
• 24-hour contact. There must be a contact and emergency phone line available at any time.
• House rules. There are limits on occupancy per bedroom, on visitors and on quiet hours, and parties are not allowed.
• Inspections. DET can inspect the home unannounced, and a QR code on the door lets guests and neighbours send complaints.
• Power and water. They are included: they cannot be charged to the guest separately.

It looks like a lot, but it is the daily work of a management company. When you hand us the rental, we prepare the home for its category, welcome and register every guest, answer the phone and coordinate cleaning between stays. You receive the income and the accounts.

What the permit costs and what the Tourism Dirham is

The permit carries a yearly fee per bedroom, capped per home. Since May 2026, the Government of Dubai has temporarily waived holiday home permit and licence fees as part of its tourism support package. The requirement to hold a permit is unchanged.

Then there is the Tourism Dirham, a nightly tourism fee paid by the guest, as in hotels. It does not come out of your pocket, but the permit holder charges it, shows it as a separate line on the invoice and pays it to DET by the 15th of the following month. It works like this:

• AED 10 per bedroom per night in a standard holiday home, about €2.40 or $2.70.
• AED 15 per bedroom per night in the upper category, about €3.60 or $4.10.
• It is charged per bedroom, not per person, and a maid’s room counts as a bedroom.
• For long stays, it is only charged on the first 30 consecutive nights.

Approximate figures, for illustration only.

Other costs depend on the home: furnishing and equipping it, cleaning and laundry, power, water, internet, restocking, platform commissions and management. So before deciding, run the numbers on your actual home, which is the first thing we do with you.

Holiday let or long-term let: which suits you

There is no single answer. It depends on the area, the type of home, whether you want to use it yourself and how much income variation you accept.

A long-term let is steadier. The contract is usually for a year, it is registered on Ejari and you collect a fixed rent. At renewal, increases are capped in line with the RERA rental index. And when the contract ends, you can only take the home back for specific reasons, such as selling it or using it yourself or for a close relative, with twelve months’ notice through a notary or by registered post.

A holiday let is more flexible. It can earn more in high season, you can keep some weeks for yourself and there is no fixed tenant. In return, it has higher costs and more work, and income changes from month to month.

A simple way to compare them is to see how many nights you need to let to match the long-term rent. A 1-bedroom flat in JVC lets long-term for about AED 70,000 a year, about €17,000 or $19,100. If, after commissions, cleaning and costs, you keep between AED 300 and 400 per night, this is how many nights you would need:

Approximate figures, for illustration only.

See what a home like yours lets for long-term in the rent estimator, which already has this example filled in, and compare areas in the guide to rental yields by area. On a long-term let we find you a tenant and as a holiday let we manage it for you, so we help you choose the one that best fits your home before you start.

What happens if you let without a permit

Short-term letting without a permit carries fines set by the Government of Dubai. Some of the main ones:

• Carrying on the activity without a licence: AED 5,000, about €1,200 or $1,360.
• Letting a holiday home without DET’s prior approval: AED 2,000, about €485 or $545.
• Not collecting the Tourism Dirham or paying it late: 10% of the amount due, with a minimum of AED 1,000.

If the same breach is repeated within a year, the fine doubles, up to a maximum of AED 100,000. DET can also suspend the activity for up to six months, revoke the licence or close the home as a holiday home. And as every listing must show the permit number, a home without one is easy to spot.

With the permit in order and the rental well run, none of this affects you. That is exactly what we take care of.

Buying off-plan with a holiday let in mind

Many people buy off-plan in Dubai planning to let by the night. It is a sensible plan, as long as you keep the order of things in mind:

1. Before signing, check that the purchase contract does not ban holiday letting.
2. At handover, receive the home and the title deed, because the permit is applied for with the title deed.
3. Furnish and equip the home for the category you want.
4. Permit and listing, and then the first guests.

A home cannot be let while it is under construction, so income starts after handover. Also budget for the building’s service charge, which you pay however you let the home. We break it down by area in the guide to service charges.

We help you choose a home that works well as a rental, go through the contract terms with you and, when handover comes, we manage it for you.

Holiday letting in Dubai from the UK or the US

In Dubai, a holiday let works the same wherever you live. What changes is how you receive the money, how you sign if you do not travel and what you declare at home. You can sign the management contract remotely. If you need a power of attorney for a step with the DLD, as the UAE is not part of the Apostille Convention, it is legalised in a chain: notary, your foreign ministry, the UAE embassy and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dubai is on UTC+4 all year.

In Dubai, rent from a home in your own name carries no income tax. If the activity needs a licence in your name, it can count as a business, and above AED 1,000,000 of turnover a year it falls within Corporate Tax. We cover it in the guide to Dubai property tax.

Running a Dubai holiday let from the UK

Income can be paid into a UAE account or your UK bank, in dirhams or pounds. UK residents normally pay UK tax on foreign income, so rent from a Dubai holiday let goes on your Self Assessment return. Dubai is 4 hours ahead of the UK in winter and 3 in summer.

Running a Dubai holiday let from the US

Being paid in dollars carries no currency risk, as the dirham is pegged to the dollar. US citizens and residents report worldwide income to the IRS, including Dubai rent, after expenses and depreciation. If you also use the home for some days each year, IRS rules limit the expenses you can deduct. If you open a UAE account and your foreign accounts exceed $10,000, you file an FBAR. New York and Miami are 9 hours behind Dubai in winter and 8 in summer.

From anywhere else

Management in Dubai is the same. At home, check with a tax adviser how your country treats rent from abroad.

Wherever you live, we manage it for you in Dubai and send you clear accounts for your adviser.

Things to keep in mind

• Every home needs its own holiday home permit before it is listed.
• The permit lasts a year and must be renewed before it expires.
• If you buy for a holiday let, check the purchase contract does not ban it.
• Budget for furnishing and equipping the home for its category.
• The guest pays the Tourism Dirham, but it has to be collected and paid over every month.
• Always compare with what the same home would earn long-term.
• Declare the income where you are tax resident.

If you already own a home in Dubai or are about to buy one, as a holiday let we manage it for you and take care of the permit, the guests, the cleaning and the accounts. If you prefer a long-term let, we find you a tenant. You decide how.

Frequently asked questions

Keep reading

Dubai rental yields by areaDubai property tax for UK and US residentsHandover and snagging: what to check when you get the keys

See all guides