An off-plan or mortgaged Dubai property reportedly no longer has to be half paid before it can support the ten-year Golden Visa. Gulf News reported that a federal circular in February 2026 removed the up-front condition (50 per cent of the price or AED 1 million, per CEOWORLD), leaving recorded value of at least AED 2 million as the test.
In brief
- What happened
- An off-plan or mortgaged Dubai property reportedly no longer has to be half paid before it can support the ten-year Golden Visa.
- What it means
- The change, as reported, moves the visa question from your bank balance to your contract.
- What to do
- Before you rely on an Oqood, ask the application centre which certificate it will accept for one.
Two cautions belong beside that sentence. The change has been reported by the press and by advisers; we could not find a publication of it by the Dubai Land Department (DLD) or the GDRFA, and none of the sources gives an official effective date. What is official is GDRFA Dubai’s own service page for the investor Golden Residence, read on 19 October 2026: it asks for AED 2 million of property certified by the DLD, accepts mortgaged property, and names no minimum amount paid.
- The bar: one property or a group of properties worth at least AED 2 million in total — GDRFA Dubai, read 19 October 2026.
- The payment stage: the up-front payment condition was removed by a federal policy circular in February 2026, as reported — Gulf News, 29 April 2026; CEOWORLD, 24 April 2026. Not a DLD publication.
- Off-plan: as reported, the value recorded on the title deed or the Oqood contract counts — Gulf News, 29 April 2026.
- Mortgaged: acceptable, with a lien placed on the property for the life of the residency — GDRFA Dubai, read 19 October 2026.
- Joint owners: each owner’s share must itself be worth at least AED 2 million — GDRFA Dubai, read 19 October 2026.
What exactly changed in the Golden Visa payment rule, and when?
According to CEOWORLD and the developer Grovy (June 2026), the old rule required a buyer paying by instalments or with a mortgage to have paid at least half the price, or AED 1 million, before applying. Khaleej Times had already reported a relaxation of it in 2024, set out below. For an off-plan buyer, the rule as described meant waiting until enough instalments had gone in.
Gulf News reported on 29 April 2026 that a federal policy circular issued in February 2026 removed the up-front payment requirement, so investors qualify on the total property value recorded in the title deed or Oqood contract. CEOWORLD put it more broadly: the payment schedule, the financing and off-plan status no longer disqualify an applicant. Polaris, on 5 May 2026, reports the same February change.
The history is less tidy than “new in 2026”. In January 2024, Khaleej Times reported, quoting industry advisers, that the Dh1 million minimum payment was no longer required for property worth over Dh2 million bought on a payment plan or mortgage, with off-plan considered case by case. As reported, the February 2026 circular goes further: it names the Oqood value as the measure, which puts off-plan on the same footing. None of these sources is a DLD publication, and none gives an official effective date.
Does an off-plan property qualify before handover?
On the reporting, yes. An off-plan unit has no title deed until handover; until then, the DLD registration of your purchase is the Oqood, which our guide to buying off-plan, end to end walks through. Gulf News reports that the value on the Oqood now counts, and its April 2026 guide lists ready, off-plan and mortgaged property as eligible, subject to conditions.
The official wording is more general. GDRFA Dubai’s page speaks of “a property or a group of properties” and “all types of properties”, with the value certified by a DLD property status statement — or by a valuation certificate from an office the DLD licenses. It does not mention off-plan by name. Before you rely on an Oqood, ask the application centre which certificate it will accept for one.
Can a mortgaged property get you the Golden Visa?
Yes, on the official wording: GDRFA Dubai states that mortgaged property is acceptable. The same page requires a lien on the property “to ensure the continuity of ownership throughout the validity of the Golden Residency”, under the Land Department’s procedures.
What the bank must provide is less settled in public sources. Developer guides from Grovy and Ellington, both published in June 2026, report that a no-objection certificate from the lending UAE bank is required. That is trade reporting, not a DLD publication. Ask your bank for the letter early, and confirm its wording with the application centre. For the cost of the loan itself, see what the 3.9% base rate changes for Dubai mortgages.
What does the AED 2 million measure — the price, or a certified value?
Sources describe it two ways. Gulf News speaks of the value recorded in the title deed or Oqood; GDRFA Dubai, of the value certified by the DLD’s property status statement or by a licensed valuation. For most purchases these are the same number. For a unit priced close to AED 2 million, find out which one will be read.
Two further points follow from the official page. Value can be built across a group of properties, so one unit does not have to clear the bar alone. In joint ownership, though, each owner’s share must itself reach AED 2 million.
The visa that results is ten years and renewable, has no minimum-stay requirement, and lets the holder sponsor a spouse, children and up to three domestic staff, per Gulf News. If your budget sits well below the bar, the separate two-year route — with no minimum value for a sole owner since April 2026 — is set out in our two-year visa guide. The ten-year route as a whole is in The AED 2 million rule.
What does this mean for structuring an off-plan purchase? Our read
The change, as reported, moves the visa question from your bank balance to your contract. Before, the question was when: how many instalments until you could file. Now it is how much: the value the DLD will certify on the day you apply. That brings the decision forward to reservation, because the Oqood records what you sign.
The first point is headroom. On a unit priced just above AED 2 million — say AED 2.05 million, as an illustration — a negotiated discount, or an incentive taken as a lower price, can take the recorded figure under the bar and the route with it. Decide which matters more, the saving or the visa, before you negotiate. For where prices stand, see Dubai property prices in 2026. If both matter, the answer is a unit with margin, or a second property to complete the total.
The second is the names on the contract. Two people buying an AED 3 million apartment in equal shares hold AED 1.5 million each; on GDRFA’s wording, neither share qualifies on its own. Decide how the contract is held before you reserve, ask the developer what changing a name later involves, and take legal advice on what else that choice changes.
The third is the plan itself. On the reported rule, the visa can now rest on a property you have not finished paying for, under a lien for the life of the residency. If the instalments stop, the basis for the visa is in question too. So compare payment plans on what you will owe, and when, against your budget, alongside growth potential, location and value; the visa should not be what picks the payment plan.
The visa does not vet the developer either. The delivery risk of off-plan is unchanged by this rule, and the five questions that tell you whether a project is real still come first.
What should you check before you sign?
- The value the Oqood will record, and whether it still clears AED 2 million after any discount.
- How the contract is held: one name, or shares of at least AED 2 million each.
- For a mortgage: the bank’s no-objection letter, and how the residency lien sits beside the bank’s own charge.
- Which certificate the application centre accepts for an off-plan unit: the DLD property status statement or a licensed valuation.
- The channel on the day you file: on 11 April 2026 the GDRFA and the DLD agreed to move the Golden Residency service into the GDRFA’s system.
Confirm the current rule with the authority or your adviser before acting.
If you are weighing off-plan payment plans with residency in mind, ask Anahita Chavoshi which of the plans in front of you would reach AED 2 million on the value the DLD will certify, and which would not. Arrange a consultation.
This is general information, not financial or legal advice; check every figure with your adviser before you act.
Do I need to pay 50% of an off-plan property to get a Dubai Golden Visa?
Not any more, as reported. Gulf News (29 April 2026) says a February 2026 federal policy circular removed the up-front payment requirement, so an off-plan buyer qualifies on the value recorded in the Oqood contract, which must reach AED 2 million. We could not find a DLD or GDRFA publication of the circular; check with the application centre first.
Can I get a Golden Visa with a mortgaged property in Dubai?
Yes. GDRFA Dubai's service page, read on 19 October 2026, states that mortgaged property is acceptable, provided the property or properties are worth at least AED 2 million, certified by the DLD. A lien is placed on the property for the life of the residency. Developer guides also report that the lending bank must issue a no-objection certificate.
Has the AED 2 million Golden Visa property threshold changed in 2026?
No. The change Gulf News and CEOWORLD reported in April 2026 concerns the payment condition, not the threshold. The property route still requires one property or a group of properties worth at least AED 2 million in total, according to GDRFA Dubai's service page read on 19 October 2026 and Gulf News's 29 April 2026 residency guide.
Can two co-owners of one Dubai property both get a Golden Visa?
Only if each share is worth AED 2 million. GDRFA Dubai's page, read on 19 October 2026, says a share in a joint property must itself be worth at least AED 2 million. Two equal owners of an AED 3 million home, for example, hold AED 1.5 million each, so neither qualifies through it alone.
When was the Golden Visa 50% payment rule removed?
None of the sources gives an official effective date. Gulf News and CEOWORLD, in April 2026, attribute the change to a federal policy circular issued in February 2026. Earlier, in January 2024, Khaleej Times quoted industry advisers saying the Dh1 million minimum payment was no longer required, with off-plan then considered case by case.
Sources
