Attestation

A UAE land department, court or bank will not rely on a foreign document simply because it was signed before a notary abroad. It must be attested, also called legalised, so that each authority confirms the signature of the one before it.

The Dubai Land Department sets out the chain for a foreign power of attorney, and the same pattern applies to other documents:

1. Notarisation in the country where the document is signed.
2. Authentication by that country's foreign ministry. In the UK this is the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which issues an apostille certificate.
3. Legalisation by the UAE embassy in that country.
4. Final attestation by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), which can be done after the document arrives in the UAE.

A certified legal translation into Arabic is then usually needed.

Buyers most often need this for a power of attorney, for the corporate documents of a foreign company buying property, and for marriage or birth certificates when sponsoring family on a property-linked visa.

The point UK buyers get wrong is assuming the apostille finishes the job. For use in the UAE, the embassy and MOFA steps are still required. Each stage has its own fee and processing time, and the whole chain commonly takes two to four weeks, less with an agency. Build that into any deadline in your SPA or sale contract.