The threshold for the property-investment Golden Visa is reported at AED 2 million (roughly USD 545,000) for completed units. Off-plan purchases require at least 50% of the price already paid. The point that produces most errors concerns mortgages: the requirement is measured on the equity actually contributed by the buyer, not on the headline purchase price.
What happened
Accounts published by the UAE business press, reporting the criteria applied by the ICP (the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security) and the GDRFA (the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai), set the threshold for the property-investment Golden Visa at AED 2 million (roughly USD 545,000) for completed units. For off-plan purchases — units bought before delivery — at least 50% of the price must already have been paid. Where the property is bought with a mortgage, the requirement is measured on equity, meaning the portion of the price funded by the buyer's own resources: AED 2 million must actually have been contributed. Additional eligibility categories have been introduced for artificial-intelligence specialists, climate-technology founders and cultural-sector professionals. Children of a holder retain dependant status to the age of 25 where enrolled in full-time study.
What changes in practice
It changes how the purchase price should be read. Acquiring a property at AED 2 million with a mortgage covering half of it does not support the visa, because the equity contributed is half the threshold. This is an error that surfaces after completion, when the funding structure can no longer be altered. The same logic applies to off-plan units bought on an extended payment plan: until cumulative payments pass the halfway mark, the condition is not yet met, whatever the contract value states. The document that matters is the payment schedule, not the sale and purchase agreement headline.
Who it applies to
Buyers acquiring, or having recently acquired, Dubai property where residency is part of the intended outcome of the transaction. It is equally relevant to those who have signed a preliminary agreement but have not yet fixed the financing structure, and to those holding several smaller units and assuming the values aggregate. Advisers structuring a client's UAE property position should treat the visa outcome as a separate test to be documented, not as a consequence that follows from the purchase.
The exposure
The exposure is having made a property investment that remains only a property investment, without the residency status that was its purpose. The requirement is frequently taken as satisfied on the strength of the selling agency's assurance — a party with a direct interest in closing the sale and no responsibility for the outcome of the visa application. Because the criteria here are reported by the press rather than drawn from a published regulatory text, they should be treated as indicative until confirmed.
What to do now
Before signing the sale and purchase agreement, set out in writing how much will be funded from the buyer's own resources and how much from finance, and compare the first figure against the threshold. Where a transaction is already under way, reconstruct the payments made to date and establish where the position stands against the 50% off-plan test or the equity test. Since these criteria are press-reported rather than published in a regulatory instrument, confirm the position through the official ICP and GDRFA channels before treating the visa as secured, and avoid committing to a completion date on the assumption that it is.
Sources
- https://icp.gov.ae/en/
- https://gulfnews.com/living-in-uae/visa-immigration/dubai-residency-by-investment-guide-1.500523250
Published 18 August 2026 on the basis of public sources and official United Arab Emirates instruments. This is not legal or tax advice. Verify your position with a qualified professional before acting.