Maintenance Obligations in UAE Property Leasing

Maintaining the condition and habitability of a property is a shared responsibility between landlords and tenants in the United Arab Emirates. While baseline laws exist, the specifics are heavily reliant on the customized clauses attached to an Ejari or Tawtheeq contract, governed by the updated regulatory frameworks of the Dubai Land Department and the Abu Dhabi Department of Municipalities and Transport.

The Default Legal Standard

• The Landlord is fundamentally responsible for the property's general maintenance and the repair of any defects or faults that affect the tenant's intended use of the property (Article 16 of Law No. 26 of 2007, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008).
• The Tenant is obliged to keep the property in good condition, as a reasonable person would keep their own property, and return it at the end of the lease in the same condition (minus normal wear and tear).

Therefore, by default (and without an addendum stating otherwise), the landlord in the UAE is on the hook for major structural and functional repairs.

The Standard "Maintenance Threshold" Addendum

Because the legal default puts a heavy burden on the landlord for every minor issue, the UAE real estate market utilizes "Maintenance Thresholds" in lease addendums. These thresholds are contractual terms governed by the principle of freedom of contract under the Civil Code, provided they do not contravene mandatory habitability standards.

A standard clause looks like this:

“The Tenant is responsible for minor, day-to-day maintenance and repairs costing under 500 AED (or 1,000 AED) per incident. The Landlord is responsible for major maintenance and repairs costing over this threshold, provided the damage was not caused by the Tenant's negligence.”

Landlord Responsibilities (Major)

Typically, if a repair exceeds the threshold (e.g., 500 AED) and was not caused by intentional tenant neglect, the landlord handles:

• Failure of the central Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems (compressors, major leaks).
• Major plumbing failures (internal pipe bursts, broken water heaters).

• Structural integrity issues (roof leaks, severe wall cracks).

Tenant Responsibilities (Minor)

The tenant handles general upkeep falling under the threshold:

• Replacing lightbulbs and AC filters.
• Unblocking minor sink or toilet clogs.
• Replacing small cabinet hinges or showerheads.
• Annual or semi-annual AC servicing or duct cleaning (often explicitly placed on the tenant in premium leases).

Urgent Repairs (Abu Dhabi)

Under Abu Dhabi Law No. 20 of 2006 and the subsequent regulatory framework (including Law No. 3 of 2015 and Tawtheeq requirements), landlords are specifically obligated to perform "urgent repairs" within 24 hours of notification if the defect affects the habitability or safety of the premises (e.g., total power failure, major pipe burst, or AC failure during summer).

Resolving Urgent Refusals

If a landlord refuses to fix a critical issue that makes the apartment uninhabitable (like a broken AC unit in the middle of a Dubai summer) and the cost clearly exceeds the tenant's threshold:

1. Attempt Notification: The tenant must formally notify the landlord in writing requesting the repair.
2. RDSC Intervention: In Dubai, the tenant cannot simply fix it themselves and deduct the cost from the rent (a practice common in the US/UK) unless they get explicit, written permission from the landlord or a judge. Attempting a "repair-and-deduct" without authorization can result in the landlord suing the tenant for failing to pay full rent.
3. Emergency Orders: The tenant must open an urgent case with the Rental Dispute Settlement Centre (RDSC), which can issue an order compelling the landlord to fix the issue or permitting the tenant to undertake the repairs and legally offset the cost against future rent cheques.

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