The Rental Disputes Centre (RDC): how a Dubai rent dispute actually works
When a rent, eviction or deposit disagreement can’t be settled between landlord and tenant, the RDC is the venue. Here’s how it works and what it costs.
What the RDC is
The Rental Disputes Centre (RDC) is the judicial body attached to the Dubai Land Department that hears disputes between landlords and tenants for properties in Dubai. It is the correct forum for rent-increase disagreements, eviction cases, unpaid rent, deposit deductions, and maintenance disputes — not the ordinary civil courts.
Before you file
A case is far stronger when the paperwork is in order. In practice you will generally need:
- A registered Ejari tenancy contract
- Copies of the notices you served (rent-increase or 12-month eviction notice) with proof of the service date
- Evidence of the claim — rent ledger, cheque records, receipts, photos, or correspondence
- Emirates ID / trade licence and the title deed or ownership proof
The fees
For a rental dispute, the RDC filing fee is 3.5% of the annual rent, subject to a minimum of AED 500 and a maximum of AED 20,000. Small additional service fees (process service, knowledge and innovation fees) usually apply on top. If the parties reach an amicable settlement, a portion of the basic fee — commonly around 50% — is refunded.
Fee structures and caps differ for pure monetary claims and for combined eviction-plus-money cases, so confirm the current schedule on the RDC portal for your specific case type before filing.
How a case moves
Cases are typically filed online through the DLD / RDC channels. Many disputes first go to an amicable-settlement (reconciliation) stage, where a conciliator tries to broker an agreement within a short window. If that fails, the matter proceeds to a judgment by the first-instance committee, with a route to appeal above a value threshold. Judgments are enforceable through the DLD’s execution process.
Pillar OS does not file cases for you, but it keeps the evidence a case rests on — the lease, the served notices, cheque and receipt records — organised per unit, so if a dispute does arise you are not scrambling to reconstruct dates.