UAE Non-Resident Mortgages: What the Rules Actually Say

Giles Dean

Mar 26

8 min read

Updated: 5 days ago

Non-resident mortgages in the UAE: what the rules say. Dean Property

Updated 4 November 2026. A new section, Can you get a mortgage on an off-plan home in RAK?, covers the off-plan financing RAKBANK and RAK Properties announced in September 2026, and how it compares with Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Updated 23 October 2026. First published in March 2026. This version corrects how the UAE Central Bank's limits apply to buyers who live abroad, adds its 50% limit on off-plan loans, and uses Ras Al Khaimah's fees, not Dubai's. Rates are as of October 2026.

The 20% deposit quoted across the UAE property market is for one buyer only: an expatriate who lives in the UAE and is buying a first home to live in. If you live abroad, the numbers are different. A bank will usually lend you less, charge you more and accept fewer schemes. This note sets out the rules as they stand, what they mean in Ras Al Khaimah, and what to check before you sign.

Who counts as a non-resident

For a UAE bank, a non-resident is a buyer without a UAE residence visa. UAE nationals, and expatriates with a UAE residence visa, are residents. Everyone else is a non-resident borrower, including most European buyers of freehold homes in RAK. Who can buy, and where, is on our page on buying as a foreigner →.

How much a bank can lend

The UAE Central Bank sets the most a bank may lend against a home, as a share of its value (the loan-to-value, or LTV). Its rules split buyers into UAE nationals and expatriates, first homes and second homes, finished homes and off-plan. They have no separate category for non-residents. What a non-resident can borrow is each bank's own policy, inside those limits.

UAE Central Bank mortgage limits: 80% for an expatriate's first home under AED 5m, 70% above, 60% for a second home, 50% off-plan; banks set their own limits for buyers who live abroad

Two points matter most if you live abroad. Banks that lend to non-residents usually lend about 50% to 60% on a finished home, sometimes more for a strong application. And on an off-plan home the Central Bank's limit is 50% for every buyer, whatever the price.

The LTV is worked out on the bank's own valuation, not on the price you agreed. If the valuation comes in lower, the loan is smaller and your deposit larger.

The cash you need on a finished home

On a finished home bought with a mortgage, the deposit is only part of the cash you need. Since February 2025, UAE banks no longer lend for the transfer fee or a broker's fee: both are paid in cash.

In Ras Al Khaimah, the transfer fee on a finished home is 4%, paid to RAK Municipality. Its fee list puts 2% on the buyer and 2% on the seller; who actually pays is agreed in the sale. Every cost is on our Costs and yields → page.

Cash needed for an AED 2 million finished home in RAK: about AED 840,400 if the bank lends 60%, AED 1,040,400 if it lends 50%, before bank costs

On an AED 2 million home, a non-resident borrowing 60% needs about AED 840,000 in cash before the keys, or 42% of the price. Borrowing 50%, the figure is about AED 1.04 million, or 52%. Add the bank's own fees and the valuation, and a broker's fee if you use one. Ask for each in writing before you start.

Off-plan: the handover payment

Off-plan, you pay the developer in stages, then the rest at handover. There is no transfer fee to finance later: the 4% is paid when the developer registers your purchase, unless the developer covers some of it.

Most RAK developers sell on plans that split the price between the building years and handover, for example 40/60, 30/70 or 20/80. If you plan to pay the handover share with a mortgage, the question is simple: will the loan cover it?

Off-plan at handover: with a 50% loan, a 40/60 plan leaves 10% in cash, 30/70 leaves 20%, 20/80 leaves 30%

At handover the home is finished, so the bank lends on a finished home. At 50%, a 40/60 plan leaves 10% of the price to find in cash, a 30/70 plan 20% and a 20/80 plan 30%. At 60%, those gaps fall to nothing, 10% and 20%. How our off-plan purchases work, step by step, is on Buying off-plan →.

Can you get a mortgage on an off-plan home in RAK?

Yes, though so far only at twelve RAK Properties projects, and it is not yet clear whether buyers who live abroad qualify. On 8 September 2026 RAK Properties and RAKBANK announced a financing product for off-plan buyers at Skai, Quattro Del Mar, Solera, NURA, Anantara Residences, Anantara Villas, ENTA, Lunara on The Strand, Mirasol 1, Mirasol 2, Beach Villas and Edge. Their release says a buyer makes a low first payment and can then use the financing at different stages, from construction to handover, subject to eligibility.

The release does not give the loan-to-value, the rate, the term, or whether buyers who live abroad qualify, and we have found no RAKBANK product page that does (4 November 2026). The release says the product "will be rolled out" to the projects; Fintech News UAE reported on 10 September 2026 that it is available now. Ask RAKBANK for every term in writing before you rely on it.

Off-plan mortgages in the UAE: in RAK one bank's product with one developer, in Abu Dhabi a regulator's framework after 50% is paid, in Dubai deals between Dubai Holding Real Estate and banks

Abu Dhabi has a framework set by its regulator

Under the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre's framework, a buyer who has paid 50% of the price of an eligible off-plan home can mortgage the rest during construction. The bank's mortgage is recorded in the Initial Real Estate Register, and the bank is named on the mortgage registration certificate before handover. Aldar and ADCB completed the first one (WAM, 4 September 2026), and any participating institution that meets the Centre's requirements can offer it.

50%: the share of the price an Abu Dhabi buyer must have paid before mortgaging the rest during construction

Aldar says the 50% threshold follows the UAE Central Bank's rule, described above, that a bank may lend at most 50% on an off-plan home.

Dubai has deals between developers and banks

Dubai Holding Real Estate, which owns Nakheel, Meraas and Dubai Properties, agreed with Emirates NBD in April 2026 that buyers of its off-plan homes can get mortgage pre-approval at the off-plan stage, open to residents and non-residents subject to approval (Gulf Business, 20 April 2026). In June 2026 it launched a programme with Commercial Bank of Dubai for UAE nationals and residents buying its off-plan and finished homes (WAM, 10 June 2026).

Our view: in RAK, borrowing during construction is so far one bank's product on one developer's homes, with its terms unpublished; in Abu Dhabi it is a regulator's framework any qualifying bank can use

What RAK's law already allows

RAK's Law No. 10 of 2026 already lets a buyer mortgage an off-plan home that is recorded in the initial real estate register, with the developer's consent (Article 21). The developer may not charge a fee for it beyond actual costs RERA RAK approves. The law also lets a developer mortgage the project land to finance completion, with the loan paid into the project's escrow account (Article 30). The conditions are left to the Executive Regulation, which has not been issued as far as we can find (4 November 2026). Our summary of the law: RAK's new off-plan law →

RAK Law No. 10 of 2026: Article 21 lets a buyer mortgage a registered off-plan home with the developer's consent; Article 30 lets a developer mortgage project land, with the loan paid into escrow; the Executive Regulation is not yet issued

Four questions to ask the bank

If you are offered finance on a RAK off-plan home, ask these before you sign the reservation deed.

Four questions for the bank: who holds the mortgage if the project stalls, how the loan sits with escrow, how it fits with Article 20, and what happens at handover

Who holds the mortgage if the project stalls. Ask what the bank's security is before handover. If a project is cancelled, the Judicial Committee for Stalled and Cancelled Projects decides the order in which buyers and others are repaid, and the law sets no date by which that happens. Ask what you owe the bank in the meantime. If the developer has also mortgaged the project land under Article 30, ask how that bank's claim ranks against yours.
How the loan sits with escrow. The bank's money should be paid into your home's escrow sub-account, like your own payments, and never to the developer's own account. How escrow works: Off-plan escrow in RAK →
How it fits with Article 20. If you fall behind, the developer may end the contract and keep up to 40%, 25% or 20% of the price, depending on how far the building has got, and never more than you have paid. Ask whether the bank's payments count as yours for that cap, and what the bank can claim from you if the contract ends.
What happens at handover. Ask whether the loan becomes an ordinary mortgage on your title deed, at what rate, and what happens if the bank's valuation at handover comes in below the price.

Rates and terms

Buyers who live abroad pay more than residents. In September 2026 the lowest three-year fixed rate on an off-plan home was 4.24% (Huspy). Brokers quote fixed rates for non-residents of about 4.2% to 5.5% (Huspy, Westgate, 2026). Variable rates follow EIBOR, the rate UAE banks lend to each other.

Mortgage rates 2026: 4.24% lowest three-year fixed on off-plan; 4.2% to 5.5% fixed for buyers who live abroad

The longest term is 25 years, for residents and non-residents alike. Banks usually want the loan repaid by 65 for employees and 70 for the self-employed, though each bank decides. All your monthly debt repayments together may not exceed half your monthly income, and banks test that at a rate 2 to 4 points above today's.

Approved schemes

UAE banks do not lend against every scheme. Each bank keeps its own list of approved developers, and sometimes of approved projects. You can qualify for a loan and still find that your bank will not lend on the home you have chosen.

This is bank policy, not regulation, and it differs from bank to bank. If you plan to borrow, at purchase or at handover, ask your bank to confirm the scheme is on its list before you sign the sale contract. What developers tend to say when you ask is in Five things developers say →.

Three checks before you sign if you will borrow: the bank lends on the scheme, the loan covers the handover payment, you have the cash for the gap

The papers a bank asks for

A non-resident application needs more papers than a resident's. Expect to provide most of these.

Papers a UAE bank asks a buyer who lives abroad for: passport, proof of address, bank statements, proof of income, credit report, sale contract, valuation

Not every UAE bank lends to non-residents. Those that do publish the countries they accept, and buyers from some countries will find one or two banks at most.

The Golden Visa

A home worth AED 2 million or more may bring a UAE Golden Visa. Each emirate sets the detail, and the rules on mortgaged and off-plan homes differ, so check them for your purchase. The routes to living here are on Moving to RAK →.

A visa makes you a resident for the bank. It does not, on its own, bring the 80% limit. That is for an expatriate's first home that they live in. A home you let out, or a second home, stays at 60%. The bank still checks your income, your debts and its list of approved schemes.

Two other ways to pay

Borrow at home

A loan against a home you already own, in the country where you live, gives you cash to use in the UAE without a UAE mortgage. The non-resident limits then do not apply.

A resident co-borrower

Some banks will treat an application as a resident's if a spouse or business partner with a UAE residence visa borrows with you. Ask the bank how it treats a joint loan.

Developer payment plans

Many buyers from abroad use the developer's payment plan instead of a bank. A plan is a contract between you and the developer. The Central Bank's limits do not apply, no bank has to approve it, and no approved list stands in the way. Plans carry no interest.

Check two things. First, the handover payment: if you will need a mortgage for it, everything above applies. Second, the price: a plan priced well above the cash price for the same home is not free. The cost of paying later sits in the price instead of in an interest rate. Compare it with what similar homes sold for in cash.

Thinking of buying here? Start here: Buying off-plan →

This article is published for information only and is not legal, financial or investment advice. Mortgage rules, limits, approved lists and fees change: check each with a licensed UAE mortgage broker or your bank before you decide. Translations of RAK Law No. 10 of 2026 are ours and unofficial.