Golden Visa via property: the AED 2M rules, explained for 2026

The five rules that matter in 2026

1. The threshold is purchase value, not equity

A property bought at AED 2M with a 50% mortgage still qualifies, the registered purchase value is what counts. Since the 2023 rule change, no minimum down-payment applies to visa eligibility (bank LTV rules still apply separately).

2. Off-plan qualifies from Oqood registration

You don’t need to wait for handover. An off-plan unit registered at AED 2M+ qualifies once Oqood (Dubai) or the ADREC equivalent (Abu Dhabi) registration is complete, with a payment plan in progress.

3. Multiple properties can be combined

Two AED 1M apartments qualify together. All must be registered in the applicant’s name; jointly-owned property counts your share only, unless spouses combine shares in one property.

4. Dubai and Abu Dhabi apply the threshold differently

Dubai (DLD/GDRFA, Cube centre) qualifies you on registered purchase value, a mortgaged AED 2M purchase counts in full. Abu Dhabi (ADREC/ICP) in practice requires AED 2 million to have actually been paid: unpaid mortgage balances and future instalments don’t count towards the threshold. Same federal visa, different arithmetic, check which side of the line your structure falls on before you apply.

5. Selling below the threshold ends eligibility

The visa remains valid while you hold qualifying property. Sell down below AED 2M and the visa isn’t renewed, plan exits around your renewal cycle.

Costs, 2026

Application fees run AED 9,500–13,500 including medicals and Emirates ID, per applicant. Add the standard property costs (4% DLD transfer fee in Dubai; 2% in Abu Dhabi per the current ADREC schedule).

The paperwork in each emirate

In Dubai the property route is filed through the Dubai Land Department’s golden visa service. DLD asks for property worth at least AED 2 million held in the applicant’s name, and the applicant must be inside the UAE when the application is made. If the property is mortgaged, the bank issues a no-objection letter stating the amount paid and the outstanding balance. In Abu Dhabi the file runs through ICP with a purchase agreement registered with the Department of Municipalities and Transport or, for off-plan, an agreement with an approved developer and proof that at least AED 2 million has been paid to it. Mortgaged Abu Dhabi files also need a unit value certificate and a search certificate showing the property is not under judicial seizure. Both emirates expect a valid passport, a photo and health insurance for the investor and for every family member on the file. We pull the property documents together before the application goes in, because a missing bank letter or a name that does not match the deed can hold a file up.

Abu Dhabi’s rule, worked through

Abu Dhabi counts the investor’s own capital, not the purchase price. Its official guidance gives the example of a property worth AED 5 million: the outstanding mortgage principal cannot exceed AED 3 million, which leaves AED 2 million of the buyer’s own money in the asset. Mortgages through national banks are accepted for properties worth more than AED 2 million, and an off-plan purchase counts once AED 2 million has actually been paid to the developer. The table runs the same arithmetic on three common structures. It covers Abu Dhabi only: for a mortgaged Dubai file we confirm the position with DLD each time, because its service page asks for the bank’s letter on the amount paid. If your structure sits near the line in either emirate, pay down the balance or add a second property before you apply, not after.

Who the visa covers once it is issued

The visa is a family document as much as an investor one. Under ICP’s golden residency rules a holder can sponsor a spouse and children regardless of their age, as well as parents, and can sponsor domestic workers under the usual regulations. The UAE government portal confirms holders can stay outside the country for longer than the six months that would end an ordinary residence visa. If the sponsoring holder dies, family members can stay for the remaining validity of their own permits. Each dependant adds medical, Emirates ID and visa costs to the application, and every family member needs health insurance, so price the whole household, not just the investor, when you compare the golden visa with a standard two-year permit.