When you hear "overseas real estate," your biggest worry may be "will I get cheated on the contract or paperwork?" On that front, Dubai is a reassuring place. Property registration and ownership records are digitalized and built on blockchain within the government's system (the DLD = Dubai Land Department), with the transparency that anyone can verify the same facts. It's a structure where "he-said, she-said" disputes are unlikely to arise. Even so, that doesn't mean you can prepare nothing. Knowing what documents arise at each stage, and what you should confirm and keep yourself, is ultimately the best defense. This article organizes the key points of contracts and "records (evidence)" along the flow of a purchase.
1. The flow of an off-plan purchase, and the documents at each stage
Pre-completion (off-plan) properties proceed in the following order.
① EOI (reservation)
For popular properties, you apply by paying an EOI = reservation deposit before the launch of sales. You pay a small amount to show your intent to buy and secure a unit at this stage.
② Unit confirmed → 20% down payment + SPA signing
Once you're told "the unit has been secured," you pay roughly 20% as a down payment and sign the SPA (Sale and Purchase Agreement) here. At this point it is common to also pay the 4% DLD registration fee together.
- The down payment goes into an escrow account (a protected account managed by a third party), not the developer's account.
- The 4% DLD registration fee is first paid to the developer, who then remits it to the DLD on your behalf.
③ Oqood registration
After the SPA, the Oqood is registered. This corresponds to a pre-completion "interim title deed," officially recording that you are the buyer of that property.
④ Completion / handover → Title Deed issued
Once the property is completed and handover is done, the official deed of ownership, the Title Deed, is issued in your name.
2. Oqood and the Title Deed — the core of the record trail
These two are the most important records that prove your ownership.
Oqood (pre-completion): The Oqood is issued once the developer completes registration with the DLD. The important point is that without an Oqood, you cannot resell before completion. To avoid a situation of "I supposedly bought it but it isn't registered," always confirm whether registration is complete (how to check is in the next section).
Title Deed (post-completion): The official deed issued after completion and handover. It is the same for a secondary (resale) purchase — once the purchase is complete, a Title Deed is issued in the new owner's name. Whether primary (new) or secondary, the documents for transferring rights do not change.
3. Blockchain transparency that "anyone can verify"
This is one of Dubai's great strengths. Both the Oqood and the Title Deed are recorded on the DLD's blockchain foundation. On a per-property basis, the transaction history of sales and rentals and the registration status are recorded clearly, in a system that the relevant parties can verify.
- What is made public is property-level information (whether registered, transaction history, status, etc.). Personal information such as the owner's name is not disclosed — it is purely a record of the property.
- Once registration is complete, it is reflected on the site/app at that point.
Where you can check it yourself
- The Dubai REST app
- The DLD (Dubai Land Department) official website
Here you can check the registration status of your own property. Moreover, for off-plan you can also check the construction progress (construction rate): the DLD, as a third party, publishes a progress report for each project roughly once every few months. In other words, you can verify it with official records rather than relying on the seller's words alone.
4. Records you should still keep yourself
Even though the records are transparent, always keep your own evidence of payments. This is where it matters most in practice.
- Keep evidence each time you pay. If you pay by card, save a screenshot of the payment-complete screen; if you send by bank transfer or Wise, keep the remittance receipt (proof) so you don't lose it.
- Do exchanges in writing/email, not verbally. It's important to keep things in a form you can confirm later.
The reason we stress this is that it actually happens that the developer says "your payment hasn't been reflected." In that moment, as long as you have proof of payment in hand, you can respond. (Even with evidence shown, it can sometimes be hard to get them to understand, but with a record it ultimately moves toward resolution. In such situations, we provide solid support on our side too.)
5. Checks before signing the SPA (Sale and Purchase Agreement)
What you should cross-check before signing is, in a word, "everything." In particular, always confirm the following:
- The spelling of your name (it really does get wrong sometimes)
- Personal information such as address and phone number
- The property/unit number and area
- The payment schedule (construction-linked or time-based)
- The terms of the guarantee in case of construction delay
- The treatment of the service charge (management fee)
Even a single misspelled character can cause problems in later procedures. However tedious, check one by one whether what was explained matches what is written in the contract.
6. Secondary (resale) contracts and their cautions
The procedure is completed digitally. The Form F (MOU = agreement between seller and buyer) used for a secondary contract is done online, and paper documents are basically unnecessary. Dubai's paperwork is highly digitalized, so paper exchanges hardly ever occur.
On top of that, there are cautions specific to secondary: whether the seller (the previous owner) has unpaid service charges, or is hiding any material facts. To avoid this:
- State clearly in the contract (Form F) that the seller will clear the service charge by handover.
- Write down in advance the penalty (response) in case it has not been settled.
By building "how to respond if a problem arises later" into the contract like this, you can protect yourself.
Summary: a checklist for contracts and records
Flow and documents: Do you understand the order — EOI (reservation) → 20% down payment + SPA + 4% DLD → Oqood registration → Title Deed after completion? Is it a contract where the down payment goes into an escrow account? Is the Oqood registered (essential for pre-completion resale)?
Verification (back it up with official records): Did you check your registration status on the Dubai REST app / DLD official site? For off-plan, are you checking progress via the construction rate and the DLD's progress report?
Records you keep yourself: Are you keeping a screenshot of the completion screen and the remittance receipt each time you pay? Are important exchanges kept in writing/email rather than verbally?
Checking the contract: Did you cross-check the SPA's name spelling, property number, area, payments, delay guarantee and service charge? (Secondary) Did you state the seller's service-charge settlement and the penalty clearly in the contract?
Dubai is a highly transparent market where ownership and transaction records are publicly digitalized and on blockchain. If you understand the system and keep your own payment records properly, there is no need to be more afraid than necessary. If you're unsure where to check in a contract, or want us to look over a contract you're currently working on, please feel free to check it together with us in an individual consultation. The decision is yours, but we can help with an on-the-ground perspective.
This article summarizes facts and views based on Suzuki Shunto's hands-on experience in Dubai / the UAE. It does not guarantee or promise investment results or future prices and yields. Please make final decisions on real estate, tax and legal matters after confirming with yourself and the relevant experts. The content is as of June 2026.