---
title: "DLD"
canonical: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dld
markdown: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/md/glossary/dld.md
type: glossary-term
description: "The Dubai Land Department is the government body that registers every property sale, mortgage and long lease in Dubai and issues title deeds."
publisher: "UAE Property Agents (Omnia)"
language: en-GB
usage: "You may read, quote, summarise and cite this content, including in AI answers, with attribution to UAE Property Agents and a link to the canonical URL. Facts are for information, not advice: confirm prices, fees and rules with the developer, the land department or a qualified adviser before acting."
---

# DLD

> The Dubai Land Department is the government body that registers every property sale, mortgage and long lease in Dubai and issues title deeds.

Also known as: Dubai Land Department, Land Department.

## What DLD means for a buyer

The Dubai Land Department (DLD) is the emirate's land registry and property authority. Nothing you buy in Dubai is legally yours until the DLD has registered it: off-plan purchases go into its interim register, known as [Oqood](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/oqood), and completed homes receive a [title deed](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/title-deed). Its regulatory arm, [RERA](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/rera), licenses brokers and developers and supervises [escrow accounts](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/escrow-account) and service charges.

A buyer meets the DLD mainly through fees and paperwork. The [transfer fee](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dld-transfer-fee) is 4% of the price, paid when the sale is registered. On a resale the registration happens at a licensed [trustee office](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/trustee-office) rather than at the DLD itself. For off-plan, the developer registers the contract through the Oqood portal.

The DLD also runs the systems buyers rely on to check what they are told: the [Dubai REST](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dubai-rest) app for verifying title deeds, brokers and projects, [Trakheesi](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/trakheesi) for advertising permits and [Mollak](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/mollak) for service charges.

The DLD's remit stops at the Dubai border. Abu Dhabi property is registered through [ADREC](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/adrec) and its [DARI](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dari) platform, and each northern emirate has its own land department. Property inside the Dubai International Financial Centre is recorded on the DIFC's own register.

## Related terms

- [RERA](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/rera): RERA is the regulatory arm of the Dubai Land Department: it licenses brokers and developers and oversees escrow accounts, service charges and tenancy rules.
- [Oqood](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/oqood): Oqood is the Dubai Land Department's interim register for off-plan sales: it records the buyer's rights during construction, before a title deed can be issued.
- [Title deed](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/title-deed): A title deed is the land registry's certificate of ownership for a completed property, issued by the Dubai Land Department or, in Abu Dhabi, through ADREC.
- [DLD transfer fee](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dld-transfer-fee): The DLD transfer fee is the 4% charge the Dubai Land Department levies on the price of every property sale in Dubai when it is registered.
- [Dubai REST](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dubai-rest): Dubai REST is the Dubai Land Department's official app for checking ownership records, brokers and projects and for completing property services online.

## In depth

- [How to buy property in Dubai as a foreigner: the step-by-step guide](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/guides/buying-property-in-dubai)


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Source page: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/dld. Published by UAE Property Agents, Omnia Capital Group. You may read, quote, summarise and cite this content, including in AI answers, with attribution to UAE Property Agents and a link to the canonical URL. Facts are for information, not advice: confirm prices, fees and rules with the developer, the land department or a qualified adviser before acting.