Completion certificate
A building completion certificate is the authority's confirmation that a building has been finished in line with its permit and is fit to be occupied.
What Completion certificate means for a buyer
The building completion certificate (BCC) is issued when the construction authority has inspected a finished building and found it compliant with the approved plans and with safety requirements. In most of Dubai that authority is Dubai Municipality; in certain zones another body holds planning control and issues it instead. In Abu Dhabi it comes from the municipality under the Department of Municipalities and Transport.
It is the legal hinge of an off-plan purchase. Until it exists the developer cannot validly hand over. Once it is issued:
- the developer can serve a handover notice and call for the final instalment
- the developer must register the completed project with the land department, in Dubai within 60 days, so that title deeds can be issued to buyers who have paid in full
- the ten-year structural defects liability period begins
- the escrow agent retains 5% of the escrow account pending the post-completion period
- utilities can be permanently connected
Do not confuse the certificate with other measures of progress. A construction percentage shown on Dubai REST, a developer's announcement that a tower has "topped out", or an invitation to view a show unit are not completion. Nor does the certificate confirm quality inside your unit; that is what snagging is for.
If you receive a handover notice, ask for a copy of the certificate before paying the balance.
Guides that use this term
Where Completion certificate comes up in practice, with the costs, rules and steps around it.
Questions about the buying process?
An adviser can explain how this applies to the property you're considering.
- Current price list and availability, direct from the developer
- No fee to you on off-plan purchases: the developer pays us
- One salaried adviser, not on commission, from first call to handover
