Dubai property inheritance for non Muslim owners (2026): wills, companies and foundations

Dubai property inheritance for a non Muslim foreign owner has been governed since 1 February 2023 by Federal Decree Law No. 41 of 2022, which gives half of the estate to the surviving spouse and half to the children in equal shares where there is no will, according to the Ministry of Justice text. A will registered with the DIFC Courts, the Dubai Courts or the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department replaces that default, and the Dubai Land Department then registers the property to the heirs for AED 1,000 per property, on a service page updated on 3 November 2026.

This guide explains what happens to Dubai property when the owner dies, and what an owner can do now to decide the answer. It is written for non Muslim individuals and family offices from the Americas, Europe and Asia who hold one or several UAE properties. It covers the federal default, the conflict of law rules, the three will registries, joint owners, mortgages and bank accounts, ownership through a company or foundation, and the steps heirs take. It is general information, not legal or tax advice, and each point should be confirmed with a UAE lawyer and the court or authority concerned.

How does Dubai property inheritance work for a non Muslim who dies without a will?

The UAE government portal states that Sharia governs the family matters of Muslims, so this guide concerns non Muslim owners. For them, the starting point is Federal Decree Law No. 41 of 2022 on civil personal status, issued on 3 October 2022. Article 1 applies it to non Muslim UAE citizens and to non Muslim foreigners residing in the State, "unless one of them adheres to the application of their law", and it covers inheritance and wills.

Article 11 sets the result. Under Article 11(1), a testator may leave a will covering the entire amount they own in the State. Under Article 11(2), where there is no will, half of the estate goes to the husband or wife and the other half is divided equally among the children, without any difference between male and female. The same article sets an order for parents and then siblings where there are no children. Article 12 leaves the detailed inheritance procedures to guidelines from the Council of Ministers, and Article 13 provides for wills to be recorded in a register.

The default can surprise a family: a surviving spouse does not take the whole estate, and adult children take their half outright.

The other federal family law changed in 2025. Federal Law No. 28 of 2005, the personal status law that applied mainly to Muslims, was replaced by Federal Decree Law No. 41 of 2024, in force from 15 April 2025, according to an academic commentary published on the Conflict of Laws site in April 2025. For non Muslims, the 2022 decree law remains the governing text.

Can a foreigner's own national law apply instead?

Sometimes, but rarely for UAE real estate. Article 11(3) of the 2022 decree law lets any heir of a foreigner ask for the law that the Civil Transactions Law applies to the estate, unless a registered will provides otherwise.

That law was Federal Law No. 5 of 1985. Article 17, as replaced by Federal Decree Law No. 30 of 2020 dated 27 September 2020 and published on the Ministry of Justice portal, says inheritance is governed by the law of the deceased's state at death, that the substance of a will is governed by the law the testator chooses in it, and otherwise by the law of the testator's nationality. It adds a proviso: UAE law applies to wills made by foreigners disposing of their real estate located in the State. In plain terms, a foreign owner can choose a home law for much of the estate, but not for the UAE property itself.

Dubai has its own statute on the point. Law No. 15 of 2017, issued on 18 October 2017, applies to all wills and estates of non Muslims in the emirate, including the DIFC. Article 4 applies foreign law under the normal conflict rules but applies Dubai legislation where the estate or will relates to real property in Dubai, where the testator chose UAE law, or where the foreign law conflicts with public order.

The 1985 code has since been replaced by Federal Decree Law No. 25 of 2025. Gulf News reported, in an article updated on 14 May 2026, that the new Civil Transactions Law takes effect on 1 June 2026, and Squire Patton Boggs wrote in January 2026 that it was issued on 30 December 2025. A commentary by Béligh Elbalti on 12 January 2026 gave 1 January 2026 as the effective date, said the existing conflict rules were largely maintained, and noted that the new code removes the 2020 rule that kept succession outside the public policy exception. The sources do not agree on the dates, and we did not find an official English text of the new succession article, so the governing article number should be confirmed with counsel.

What does a DIFC will cover, and what does it cost?

The DIFC Courts Wills Service is a joint initiative of the Government of Dubai and the DIFC Courts, according to the Courts' release of 31 July 2019. That release said that from 1 July 2019 registered wills could cover assets anywhere in the UAE and outside it, not only in Dubai.

The service offers six types: a Full Will, a Property Will, a Financial Assets Will, a Business Owners Will, a Digital Assets Will and a Guardianship Will. The DIFC Courts Wills FAQ, accessed on 7 November 2026, sets the scope of the main types.

1. Full Will. All movable and immovable property in the stated jurisdiction, including assets acquired later, and it can extend outside the UAE, though enforcement abroad depends on local law.
2. Property Will. Up to five UAE real estate properties, including in free zones, or shares in them. Off plan property qualifies where an Oqood certificate is available.
3. Business Owners Will. Up to five shareholdings in UAE free zone or onshore companies.
4. Financial Assets Will. Up to ten bank or brokerage accounts held at a UAE branch.

According to the FAQ, the testator must be non Muslim, never have been Muslim, be at least 18 and own UAE assets or have minor children living in the UAE. Residency is not required, and registration can be done online. Only a Full Will or a Guardianship Will can appoint guardians, and guardianship provisions apply only if the child lives in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah at probate.

On fees, the FAQ refers to the Courts' fee schedule and does not print the amounts. The most recent schedule we found, Practice Direction No. 4 of 2017 dated 12 May 2017, sets AED 10,000 for a single will and AED 15,000 for two mirror wills by spouses on the first form, and lower amounts on the other forms. The FAQ, current at the date of access, sets a will modification fee of AED 550 and a Grant of Probate fee of USD 1,500, and says probate fees "are fixed and do not change with the value of the estate". Confirm the registration fee at booking, because the published schedule is nine years old.

What about a Dubai Courts will?

Dubai Courts keep their own register. Article 6 of Law No. 15 of 2017 requires both the Dubai Courts and the DIFC Courts to keep a register of non Muslim wills, and Article 8 sets the conditions: the testator is non Muslim, names an executor, states how the property is disposed of and signs before two witnesses. Under Article 11, a registered will takes priority over other wills, and where several are registered the first registered prevails. A registered will is implemented on a written court order under Article 18; an unregistered one needs a court judgment.

The Government of Dubai Media Office announced on 10 July 2023 that Dubai Courts had set up the first division for non Muslim inheritance and the execution of wills. It opens a file where estate papers exist, where a will was issued by Dubai Courts or another UAE court other than the DIFC Courts, where a court ruling must first confirm the death and the heirs, or where a foreign will must be executed by lawsuit with a certified copy of the applicable law.

Gulf News wrote on 23 June 2021 that a bilingual will notarised before a Dubai Courts notary cost about AED 2,000. We found no current official fee for this route, so ask the court.

How do Abu Dhabi non Muslim wills and the ADGM Courts service work?

Abu Dhabi has its own civil family law for non Muslims, Law No. 14 of 2021. The UAE government portal says it covers inheritance and will registration for non Muslims and a foreigner's right to leave all their property to anyone they choose.

Wills are registered through the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, and the ADGM Courts Notary Public notarises non Muslim wills in partnership with it. The ADGM Courts page, accessed on 7 November 2026, says the office can notarise wills disposing of an estate, appointing guardians for minor children, or both, for assets in Abu Dhabi, elsewhere in the UAE and outside the UAE, with proof of ownership translated into Arabic. It lists a Judicial Department fee of AED 950 and an ADGM Courts fee of USD 155. The ADGM fee schedule effective 12 May 2023 listed the ADGM fee at USD 100, so the current page should be taken as the figure. Gulf News reported on 5 November 2018 that the Judicial Department had cut its fee to AED 950 from December 2018.

Two cautions from the same page. ADGM Courts do not provide probate; applications go to the Judicial Department's Wills and Probate Office. And the office is closed to new submissions until 20 November 2026, reopening on 23 November 2026, with appointments up to four weeks after approval.

What happens to joint owners, mortgages and bank accounts on death?

Joint owners. A share in a Dubai title deed belongs to its registered owner. When one joint owner dies, the Land Department's inheritance service transfers that owner's property on an inheritance certificate or court decision, and the share passes under the will or the default rules. We found no UAE rule that passes it to the surviving joint owner automatically, as survivorship does in some common law countries. A couple holding jointly should each register a will, often as mirror wills.

Mortgaged property. The Land Department's inheritance service requires a no objection certificate from the bank or financing entity before a mortgaged property is registered to heirs. Law No. 15 of 2017 lists the order of payment from a Dubai estate as funeral expenses, administration costs, the executor's or administrator's remuneration and then debts, before the heirs take. Whether a life policy pays off the loan depends on the loan and policy terms, so check them with the lender now.

Bank accounts. Gulf News reported on 22 November 2025, quoting a partner at BSA Law, that it is standard practice for UAE banks to freeze an individual's accounts when told of the death, including joint accounts, until a court order releases the funds. A family that depends on one UAE account should keep money accessible elsewhere. A DIFC Financial Assets Will can name who takes up to ten UAE accounts, but release still follows probate.

How does holding title through a company or foundation change succession?

When a company owns the property, the owner leaves shares, not a title deed. The Land Department's inheritance page says that for company owned property, or shares in a property owning company, the competent court must first be consulted and an approved decision or letter addressed to the Department obtained, and that transferring the deceased's shares does not automatically transfer property ownership. The will, often a DIFC Business Owners Will, and the company's articles should both say who takes the shares and who can act for the company in the meantime.

A foundation removes the owner from the title altogether. Article 10 of the DIFC Foundations Law, DIFC Law No. 3 of 2018 in its March 2024 consolidation, says a foundation is "a body corporate with a legal personality separate from that of its Founder(s)". Article 22 requires a council of at least two members to administer its property, so the council keeps acting when a founder dies. Article 14 says a transfer into a foundation is not set aside because it defeats rights conferred by a foreign law, including heirship rights.

The trade off is cost and administration, and Land Department charges can apply when founders or holding shareholders change. Our guides to holding UAE property personally, through a company or a foundation and to family offices, DIFC and ADGM foundations set out the vehicles, the Land Department's entity rules and the tax position.

What do heirs do, step by step?

1. Register the death and gather documents. Foreign documents must be attested, including by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the relevant embassy, and translated into Arabic by a certified translator, according to the Land Department's inheritance page.
2. Open the estate in the right court. With a DIFC will, the executor writes to the DIFC Courts with the death certificate and applies for a Grant of Probate; the DIFC Courts FAQ says a straightforward grant normally issues within a few weeks, and that probate orders are executed at the Dubai Courts. With a Dubai Courts will, or no will, the file goes to the Dubai Courts non Muslim inheritance division. Abu Dhabi wills go to the Judicial Department's Wills and Probate Office.
3. Appoint the representative. Law No. 15 of 2017 says that, apart from funeral costs and necessary family expenses, nothing in the estate may be disposed of before the court appoints an administrator, who must file an inventory within six months.
4. Settle debts. Mortgages, service charges and other debts are paid in the statutory order before distribution.
5. Obtain the inheritance certificate or court decision naming the heirs and their shares.
6. Register at the Land Department. The inheritance service requires the certificate, heirs' Emirates IDs or passports, a bank no objection certificate for mortgaged property and a developer no objection certificate for off plan property. Its fees are AED 1,000 per property, a title deed fee of AED 250, a map fee of AED 100 to AED 250, AED 20 for knowledge and innovation and a service partner fee of AED 130 plus VAT. Where a will or exit from inheritance applies, it adds 0.125 per cent of the value under a will or 1 per cent for an exit. The page gives 8 working hours for completion.
7. Keep, let or sell. Once registered, heirs deal with the property as any owner would.

What it means for investors

The default rules are workable but blunt. A couple with adult children who die without wills will see half of each estate pass to the children outright, through a court process that freezes bank accounts and needs an inheritance certificate before the Land Department acts. A registered will turns that into an executor's job on a court order, and for Dubai real estate the will matters more than any home country document, because UAE and Dubai law govern the property.

For owners with several properties, minor children or heirs in several countries, the vehicle matters as much as the will. Property in a company passes as shares, with a court decision before the Land Department registers anything. Property in a DIFC foundation does not pass at all; the council carries on, at a higher running cost.

For owners from the Americas, Europe and Asia, the UAE process is only half of the work. The Internal Revenue Service describes the estate tax as "a tax on your right to transfer property at your death", and its Form 706 instructions, revised in July 2026, say the gross estate of a US citizen or resident includes property outside the United States. The IRS lists a 2026 filing threshold of USD 15,000,000 on a page reviewed on 23 October 2026. For the United Kingdom, HMRC guidance published on 6 April 2025 says a long term UK resident, broadly someone UK tax resident for 10 of the previous 20 tax years, may have overseas assets subject to Inheritance Tax, and that long term residence can continue for up to 10 tax years after leaving. Canadian, Latin American, European and Asian owners face their own rules on death. None of this is tax advice; confirm the home country position with an adviser in that country, and see our US investors page for the American side of a UAE purchase.

What we recommend

1. Register a will that covers your UAE property now. For most Dubai owners that is a DIFC Property Will or Full Will, or a Dubai Courts will; for Abu Dhabi property, a Judicial Department will through the ADGM Courts notary. Joint owners should each have one.
2. Make sure the home country will and the UAE will do not revoke or contradict each other, and name the same executor where possible.
3. If you have minor children, appoint guardians in a Full Will or Guardianship Will, and check the DIFC condition that the child lives in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah at probate.
4. Keep the lender's no objection requirement in mind: ask now what your mortgage and any life policy do on death.
5. For a portfolio, a company holding or heirs in several countries, compare a will with a DIFC or ADGM foundation before the next purchase.
6. Take advice on US estate tax, UK Inheritance Tax or your own country's rules before choosing the structure.
7. Confirm the current position with the authority before relying on it. Court fees, the new Civil Transactions Law and Land Department requirements change by decision and practice.

Castilion Estates maps these options at the point of purchase and coordinates the lawyers and corporate service providers who prepare wills and structures, through its asset protection and structuring service. To discuss a family's UAE holdings in confidence, contact the team.