---
title: "Holiday home permit (DET)"
canonical: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/holiday-home-permit
markdown: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/md/glossary/holiday-home-permit.md
type: glossary-term
description: "A holiday home permit is the licence from Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism that a property must hold before it can be let to short-stay guests."
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."
---

# Holiday home permit (DET)

> A holiday home permit is the licence from Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism that a property must hold before it can be let to short-stay guests.

Also known as: Holiday home licence, DET permit, DTCM permit, Short-term rental permit, Vacation home permit.

## What Holiday home permit (DET) means for a buyer

Letting a Dubai home by the night or week is regulated as tourism accommodation. The regulator is the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), still widely referred to by its former name, DTCM. Each unit offered for [short-term rental](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/short-term-rental) must have its own holiday home permit, and the permit number is displayed on the listing.

There are two routes. An owner can apply for a permit in their own name, or appoint a licensed holiday home operator, which holds a trade licence for the activity and registers each unit it manages. Most overseas owners take the second route. In either case the application needs proof of ownership, the unit must meet DET's furnishing and safety standards, and it is classified as standard or deluxe.

Once a unit is operating, ongoing obligations apply:

- every guest's identity details are registered with DET for each stay
- a tourism fee per occupied night is collected from guests and passed to DET
- the permit is renewed periodically, and fees are payable per unit

Fees and conditions are revised from time to time, so confirm current figures with DET or your operator.

A permit does not override private rules. A building's regulations or a developer's terms may restrict holiday lets, and a unit under a holiday home permit cannot simultaneously have an [Ejari](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/ejari) tenancy registered against it. Settle both points before buying for this purpose.

The permit is Dubai-specific. Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah license holiday homes through their own tourism authorities.

## Related terms

- [Short-term rental](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/short-term-rental): A short-term rental is a furnished home let to visitors by the night or week under a tourism licence, in place of a standard annual tenancy.
- [Ejari](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/ejari): Ejari is Dubai's mandatory online register of tenancy contracts, run by the Dubai Land Department; a lease is not fully enforceable until it is recorded there.
- [Vacancy](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/vacancy): Vacancy is the time a rental property stands empty and earns nothing, expressed as weeks per year or as a percentage of potential rent.
- [Branded residence](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/branded-residence): A branded residence is a home in a development that carries the name, design standards and services of a hotel, fashion or other consumer brand under licence.
- [Tourism Dirham](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/tourism-dirham): The Tourism Dirham is a per-night fee collected from guests in Dubai hotels and holiday homes and paid over to the Department of Economy and Tourism.

## In depth

- [Dubai rental yields by area and property type: gross, net and what 2026 changed](https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/guides/dubai-rental-yields)


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Source page: https://www.uaepropertyagents.com/glossary/holiday-home-permit. 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.