Law No. 4 of 2026 regulates shared housing in Dubai, which it defines as homes where individuals or families each have their own space and share facilities such as the kitchen, dining room and bathrooms. The Ruler of Dubai issued the law on 27 February 2026, and the Official Gazette published it in issue 764 on 12 March 2026. Article 40 brings it into force 180 days after publication. Dubai Municipality Circular No. (1-3-1) of 2026, dated 7 September 2026, gives that date as 8 September 2026. The law covers the whole emirate, including free zones, but not collective labour accommodation.

Whole buildings and villas only

The law defines a shared-housing property broadly, as a building, any unit in a building, a house or another property. The Municipality's circular is narrower. Its item 9 requires the entire residential building or villa to be allocated to shared housing and states that allocating only part of it is not permitted.

For an investor who owns one apartment in an ordinary residential tower, this is the deciding rule. On the circular's wording, one apartment cannot be put into shared use while the rest of the building is not. Neither text explains how a tower with many separate owners could allocate the whole building.

The one-year window

Article 37 gives owners who allocated their properties to shared housing before the law took effect, and operators already running the business, one year from that date to comply. The Director General of the Municipality may extend the period once. The circular applies the window to buildings and villas currently in shared use and counts it from 8 September 2026, so by our count it runs to September 2027 unless extended, although neither text prints an end date. The circular adds that the window does not cover building violations or unauthorised changes of use, which must be removed to protect lives and property.

Permits, approved areas and categories

No person or company may allocate a property to shared housing without a permit (Article 8). A permit lasts one year and can be renewed. The authority may grant two years at the owner's request, and renewal must be requested at least 30 days before expiry (Article 10). The circular sends applications through the Dubai Building Platform, filed by the owner's engineering consultant, from 8 September 2026. Only the owner or a licensed operator may let a shared-housing property, and occupants may not sublet (Article 11).

Shared housing is allowed only in areas permitted by the Municipality and the other competent authorities (circular, item 8). The technical guide attached to the circular says these areas are set by a planning map that the Municipality issues. Each building or villa may house one category only, either individuals or families, and the two may not be mixed (item 10).

Family-only roads

The guide excludes individual shared housing on land along major roads of a tourist and commercial character, "including" Bani Yas Street, Sheikh Zayed Road, Jumeirah Street and Al Wasl Street. Shared housing there is limited to families. The word "including" suggests the four roads are examples, not a full list.

Space and bathrooms

The guide sets the following minimum standards.

RequirementMinimum or limit
Bedroom space per occupant5 square metres
Kitchen space per occupant of the unit1 square metre
Full bathroom (basin, toilet and shower), individuals and families1 for every 4 occupants at most
Separate toilets, individuals only1 for every 4 occupants at most
Separate showers, individuals only1 for every 6 occupants at most

In the family category, several families may share one apartment if each family has its own bedroom with a private bathroom. In the individual category, a bedroom may hold more than one occupant up to the approved maximum.

Penalties and enforcement

The Municipality is the authority that regulates shared housing (Article 5). Permits, inspections, complaints and penalties sit with the competent authority, meaning the Municipality and the authorities that supervise special development zones and free zones (Article 6). The Dubai Land Department keeps the Shared Housing Register, where leases must be recorded (Articles 7 and 17).

Fines run from AED 500 to AED 500,000, and they double when the same violation is repeated within a year, up to AED 1,000,000 (Article 29). The Chairman of the Executive Council is to list the violations and their fines by resolution. Realtopedia could not find that resolution on the Dubai Legislation Portal or in the Official Gazette up to the issue of 6 October 2026, as of 7 October 2026. Executive Council Resolution No. (44) of 2026, published in the Gazette on 19 September, only sets up the Shared Housing Supervision Committee. The Land Department and the competent authority may also suspend an operator for up to six months, cancel the permit, cut public services to the property and, on a decision of the execution judge, have a property that breaches its permit vacated. The Rental Disputes Centre hears all disputes under the law (Article 36).

Realtopedia's correspondents are AI. Reviewed by a human editor on . Sources are listed at the end of each article. How we work: About.

Sources

Sources read 7 October 2026 (SGT). The law, circular and guide were read in Arabic, and no official English text was found, so all translations are Realtopedia's.