Almost nobody buys a first Dubai property for AED 2,000,000 in cash on a completed title. Many buyers finance part of the purchase, and a large share buy before the building exists. That raises two questions constantly: does a mortgage disqualify a property from the 10-year Golden Visa, and does an off-plan unit count at all. These are the two least-documented corners of the program, and the federal portal and the Dubai bodies that actually process applications do not describe the rules identically. This guide sets out what each source says in writing, where they conflict, and how to plan around the gaps.
The AED 2,000,000 threshold
The baseline itself has not moved. The federal government portal groups real estate under its investor category with a "minimum capital of AED 2 million" (u.ae, Golden Visa). Dubai Land Department's own Golden Visa service for investors states the requirement more precisely: "the value of the property is 2 million AED, wholly owned by the investor (one or more properties)" (Dubai Land Department). GDRFA Dubai's parallel investor service confirms the same figure and states the residence permit is "valid for 10 years and can be extended if the same conditions are met" (GDRFA Dubai).
What counts toward the threshold is the registered value of the property, not what it costs you to acquire it. On a secondary-market purchase, DLD's registration fee totals 4% of the sale value (Dubai Land Department, Property Sale Registration); in practice, contracts commonly have the buyer cover the full amount, and either way it sits outside the AED 2,000,000 test entirely. Budget for AED 2,000,000 plus that fee, not exactly AED 2,000,000 all-in.
Mortgaged property: two Dubai bodies say yes, the federal wording says no
This is where the sources stop agreeing.
DLD's own investor service addresses financed purchases directly. It asks for "a bank letter indicating 2 million AED paid amount as a proof," and where a mortgage is still active, for "a no-objection bank letter... indicating that the bank does not object to issuing a residence permit on the property, indicating the paid amount and the balance" (Dubai Land Department). That is a test on equity paid in, not on the full contract price. A mortgaged apartment worth AED 3,000,000 with AED 1,700,000 paid down does not clear it; the same apartment with AED 2,000,000 paid down does.
GDRFA Dubai's own investor page describes mortgaged property as acceptable more broadly, across all property types, with a lien placed on the title for the full 10-year term (GDRFA Dubai). A separate, lower-value GDRFA residency service echoes the same paid-in principle: "if at least 2 million dirhams of the value of the property are paid, the owner is entitled to obtain golden residency," bank-financed or not (GDRFA Dubai).
ICP, the federal authority that issues the Golden Residency nationwide, describes it differently. Its own category table for real estate investors lists the requirement as a letter proving ownership of property "valued at AED 2 million or more, without loans" (ICP, Golden Residency), excluding mortgaged property outright.
Neither side explains the gap. Applicants buying in Dubai register title with DLD and apply through DLD and GDRFA Dubai, both of which accommodate a mortgage in writing; ICP's role is largely to issue the federal residency once the Land Department's paperwork is in order, suggesting the paid-amount mechanism is what actually applies. That is a reasonable read, not a confirmed one. If your property is mortgaged, do not rely on either page alone; get the exact required letters confirmed in writing before you count on the visa.
Off-plan property: the silence that matters
None of the three official pages for the Golden Visa itself states whether off-plan property qualifies. That silence deserves to be taken seriously, not filled in with a guess.
DLD's document list for the investor service asks for "an e-Certificate of Title / Title deed" (Dubai Land Department). An off-plan unit before handover has no title deed, only an Oqood-registered sale contract, and the page does not mention Oqood as an alternative. A related but separate GDRFA property-residency service, not the Golden Visa itself, is explicit that "the property must be fully constructed; landowners of undeveloped plots are not included," and that it must also be "habitable" (GDRFA Dubai). That page covers a different, lower-value category, but it signals the department's general posture toward unfinished construction; it would be a mistake to assume the Golden Visa route is automatically more lenient just because its own page stays quiet.
Since DLD's mortgage mechanism already runs on a paid-in amount rather than a completed contract value, an off-plan buyer who has paid in AED 2,000,000 or more arguably has a case worth making. Nothing confirms that in writing, so raise it with a DLD service center before committing further installments on that assumption.
Combining properties to reach the threshold
This part is confirmed, twice over. DLD's own wording allows "one or more properties" to add up to AED 2,000,000 (Dubai Land Department), and GDRFA Dubai's investor service describes the same combined approach (GDRFA Dubai). Two apartments worth AED 1,100,000 and AED 950,000, both wholly owned by the same investor, clear the bar together.
Keep this separate from joint ownership of a single property. GDRFA's wording on shared title is stricter: each individual's own share must independently be worth AED 2,000,000, not the property as a whole. Two people cannot each hold a 50% stake in a AED 3,000,000 apartment and both apply; a AED 1,500,000 share falls short even though the property together clears the number.
Where one unit clears the bar, and where you need to combine
Our DLD-derived ready-resale data, median AED per square metre by master_project_en from dld_transactions (DLD Open Data), as of July 2026, shows how differently the threshold lands depending on where you buy.
At Palm Jumeirah's median of AED 29,036/sqm (5.4% yield), roughly 69 sqm already clears AED 2,000,000, close to a compact one-bedroom. Downtown Dubai (AED 26,478/sqm) needs about 76 sqm, and Dubai Hills (AED 25,022/sqm, 6.1% yield) about 80 sqm. Arabian Ranches villas, median AED 6.65 million at a 4.4% yield, clear the threshold on one unit with room to spare, a relevant option for buyers wanting a family villa community rather than an apartment.
Further down the ladder a single unit stretches much further. JVC (AED 13,697/sqm, 6.9% yield) needs roughly 146 sqm, and Dubai Sports City (AED 10,117/sqm, 8.7% yield) close to 198 sqm. Yet typical unit prices there run far below AED 2,000,000: JVC studios around AED 610,000, Dubai Sports City around AED 660,000. For a buyer targeting these areas for yield, combining two or three properties is more realistic than stretching for one oversized unit, and this is where the off-plan silence bites hardest: off-plan share of transactions runs to 93% in Meydan and 76% in Dubai South, against 32% in Downtown and 39% in Palm Jumeirah. The affordable, high-yield areas that make combining attractive are the same areas where most stock is sold off-plan, exactly the segment the Golden Visa pages leave unaddressed.
One caveat: the registered value used for the test is fixed at the time of purchase, not whatever the area median does afterward. Our figures show ready-resale prices up 6.9% year on year in Business Bay but down 3.3% in Downtown, what the data suggests about direction, not a guarantee.
Even ICP disagrees with itself on the visa term
One more gap is worth flagging rather than smoothing over. GDRFA Dubai and DLD both describe the real estate investor Golden Visa as a 10-year permit. ICP's general Golden Residency category table, however, lists "5 years" against the same real estate investment line (ICP, Golden Residency), while a separate ICP page dedicated to the entry permit for real estate investors states the visa runs "for a period of 10 years" (ICP, Entry Permit for Real Estate Investor Residency). That is not just ICP against GDRFA; it is one ICP page against another. Three of the four pages agree on 10 years, the figure to plan around, but the outlier comes from the same federal authority that issues the visa, a reminder not to take any single online source, including this one, as final without checking the specific service page.
Checklist before you buy for the Golden Visa
- Confirm your target property, or combination of properties, is wholly owned by you, individually, at AED 2,000,000 or more.
- If financing, ask your bank in advance for the exact paid-amount letter and no-objection certificate DLD requires, not a standard mortgage statement.
- If buying off-plan, do not assume Oqood registration alone will be accepted; ask DLD's Golden Visa service before committing further installments.
- If co-owning a single property, check that your own share, not the total price, reaches AED 2,000,000.
- Add DLD's 4% transfer fee (commonly paid by the buyer in practice) to your cash budget; it sits outside the AED 2,000,000 test but is due at closing on a resale purchase.
FAQ
Can I get a Golden Visa on a mortgaged apartment, and how much must be paid off? Usually yes for a Dubai purchase. DLD accepts mortgaged property if a bank letter confirms AED 2,000,000 paid in, regardless of the total contract price, plus a no-objection letter (Dubai Land Department), and GDRFA Dubai accepts mortgaged property more broadly, with a lien on the title for the visa term (GDRFA Dubai). ICP's category table, by contrast, requires property "without loans" (ICP, Golden Residency). Confirm with DLD before assuming either version applies to you.
Does off-plan property count toward AED 2,000,000? No official page confirms it either way. DLD asks for a title deed, which off-plan units do not yet have (Dubai Land Department), and a separate GDRFA property-residency service excludes unfinished construction outright (GDRFA Dubai). Confirm directly with DLD before relying on an off-plan unit.
Can I combine properties, and does co-ownership count the same way? You can combine wholly owned properties: DLD covers "one or more properties" (Dubai Land Department), echoed by GDRFA Dubai (GDRFA Dubai). Co-ownership of one property is different: each individual's share must independently reach AED 2,000,000, not the combined value.
Is the real estate Golden Visa 10 years or 5 years? GDRFA Dubai and DLD both state 10 years, as does ICP's own entry-permit page for real estate investors (ICP, Entry Permit for Real Estate Investor Residency). ICP's general category table lists 5 years for the same line (ICP, Golden Residency). Plan around 10 years, but verify given the inconsistency.
Does DLD's transfer fee count toward the AED 2,000,000? No. DLD's registration fee on a secondary-market sale totals 4% of the sale value (Dubai Land Department, Property Sale Registration); in practice, contracts commonly have the buyer cover the full amount, and either way it sits outside the threshold test. Budget for AED 2,000,000 plus that fee.
Sources
- UAE Government Portal. Golden Visa. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/visa-and-emirates-id/residence-visas/golden-visa
- Dubai Land Department. Golden Visa application, Investor. https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/request-for-golden-visa-investor/
- Dubai Land Department. Property Sale Registration. https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/property-sale-registration/
- Dubai Land Department. Open Data, Real Estate Data. https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/open-data/real-estate-data/
- GDRFA Dubai. Issuing a golden residence permit (investors). https://gdrfad.gov.ae/en/services/8ea80da4-f43e-11eb-0320-0050569629e8
- GDRFA Dubai. Issuing a visa to a foreigner who owns property. https://gdrfad.gov.ae/en/services/d551ce81-52e8-11ea-0320-0050569629e8
- GDRFA Dubai. Issuance of a residence permit for the owner of a property. https://gdrfad.gov.ae/en/services/f52024e6-b812-11ed-5210-4cd98f768936
- UAE ICP, Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security. Golden Residency. https://icp.gov.ae/en/services/golden-residency/
- UAE ICP, Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security. Entry Permit for Real Estate Investor Residency. https://icp.gov.ae/en/services-details/?serviceid=68e34eea5ae59b00117383d5
