Dubai real estate owners can now create online property will

Real estate owners in Dubai can now protect their assets by creating an online property will.

Dubai’s DIFC Wills & Probate Registry (W&PR) has launched an online facility for eligible resident and non-resident property owners to pass on their assets.

Property owners can now complete a template will online that is specifically limited to real estate.

The formalities of registration remain the same as for all other forms of will that are registrable at W&PR.

The registration cost of a single property will is Dhs7,500 and that of two mirror property wills is Dhs10,000.

The new facility is available on the registry’s website.

It has been developed to address the concerns of both residents and investors in relation to inheritance matters, particularly where the sole or major asset is real estate property, a statement said.

Sean Hird, director of DIFC Wills & Probate Registry said: “The number of Dubai property transactions by non-Muslims is likely to reach 13,000 this year and we want to make it as easy as possible to protect those properties through the registration of a will.

“We have sought to provide an innovative solution that gives both residents and overseas property investor’s peace of mind – knowing that they can create a compliant will that will ensure their property is passed to their chosen beneficiaries.”

Previously, the W&PR rules only set out specific mandatory statements that must be included in a will for it to be registrable. However, the new property will template “can be easily completed”, the statement said.

“To date we have registered more than 1,500 wills at W&PR. The new property will is part of our broader strategy to make registering a will accessible to more people and already this year we have taken significant steps towards this,” said Hird.

“We secured major new partnerships with Emirates NBD, NBAD, Citibank, and RAKBANK – to offer easy zero per cent payment plans to their cardholders over periods of up to 12 months.”

The DIFC Wills & Probate Registry is the first jurisdiction in the MENA region where a person can register an English language will under internationally-recognised common law.