My Landlord Won't Return My Security Deposit

Start with the paperwork before you write to anyone: the tenancy contract and any addendum, the receipt or bank record for the deposit, and anything you signed or photographed at move-in. The lease is the first source for what the deposit covers, whether it can be applied to unpaid bills, what happens if you leave early and what condition you must hand back. Dubai law adds the baseline: the deposit exists to secure maintenance of the property (Article 20), and you must return the unit as received, except for ordinary wear and tear (Article 21).

The move-in record matters as much as the move-out one. Dated photos, a signed inspection report or early emails reporting defects show what was already wrong when you arrived, and Article 17 makes the landlord responsible for wear and tear not caused by your fault. If you have nothing from move-in, gather what you can: listing photos, messages with the agent and maintenance requests made during the tenancy.

Ask for a joint inspection and record it: photograph and video every room, note meter readings, and ask the landlord or agent to sign a handover or key-receipt form. The RDC's own guidance says it is essential for a tenant to obtain proof of the property's return to the owner. Settle final utility and cooling bills and keep the final statements, because unpaid bills are a common reason given for holding a deposit.

Deal with Ejari cancellation. DLD's Cancel Tenancy Contract service is built for an expired contract on a vacated property: a tenant, or a representative with a power of attorney, can apply through the Dubai REST app, the DLD website or a Real Estate Services Trustee centre, and a still-active contract needs a letter from the owner requesting cancellation. Where a management company runs the unit, cancellation goes through it or DLD's other channels. The RDC does not require an Ejari cancellation statement to register a claim, so a landlord's refusal to cooperate on cancellation does not prevent you from filing.

If the deposit has not come back, or has come back short without explanation, put your demand in writing. State the property, the lease dates, the handover date and the deposit amount; attach the handover evidence; ask for the full refund, or an itemised list of deductions with invoices or quotes; and set a short, reasonable deadline. Send it to the landlord named in the lease and copy any agent or property manager who dealt with the tenancy. Keep it measured: the RDC may read it later.

Think ahead about how you serve it. For an informal demand, email or a messaging channel the landlord already uses is fine, and the RDC accepts WhatsApp messages and emails as evidence where the parties acknowledge them in the case record. But the RDC's Payment Writ route requires the other party to be notified through a notary public or by registered mail, followed by five days — so if you may use it, a formal notice served that way does double duty.

Damage versus wear and tear. The law gives two anchors and no list. The deposit secures maintenance of the property (Article 20), and the unit must come back as received except for ordinary wear and tear or damage from causes beyond your control (Article 21). A landlord deducting for damage should be able to show what was damaged, that it was not already so at move-in, and what the repair actually cost; ordinary deterioration from use is, under Article 17, the landlord's responsibility.

Cleaning and repainting. The Dubai law mentions neither. Whether they can be charged depends on the lease and on the unit’s condition at move-in and at handover. A blanket charge that is not in the lease and not linked to anything beyond normal use is worth challenging; one expressly agreed in the lease is harder to resist.

Unpaid bills and fines. Article 20 frames the deposit around maintenance of the property and does not address utility, cooling or service charges, or fines. Whether a landlord may apply the deposit to them depends on the contract, and settled final bills are your best answer.

Leaving early. A valid Dubai lease cannot be ended unilaterally during its term (Article 7); early exit depends on an agreed clause or the landlord's consent, and the law sets no early-termination penalty. Any charge, and whether it can come out of the deposit, depends on what you signed — a lawyer can check the amount against the clause.

If the deadline passes, a Dubai deposit claim goes to the Rental Disputes Center through its website or a Real Estate Services Trustee centre. The checklist asks for the latest Ejari lease, your Emirates ID, a bank letter or statement showing your IBAN and supporting documents such as correspondence, all in Arabic or legally translated. The case starts at conciliation, which the decree directs to seek a settlement within 15 days of the parties' appearance; if it settles there, half the fee is refunded.

Small amounts and the fee. A deposit claim is a monetary claim: at the time of writing (September 2026) the fee is 3.5% of the amount claimed, minimum AED 500 and maximum AED 15,000, plus small service charges — check the current schedule. The minimum makes the fee a meaningful share of a small deposit, so weigh it before filing. The RDC also offers a Payment Writ, asking its Summary Actions Judge to order payment of a due amount, and says a tenant can use it to secure the return of a deposit.

If your tenancy was never registered in Ejari. Registration is a legal requirement and the standard checklist asks for the Ejari lease, but the RDC's own guidance says a claim can still be registered without a rental contract if you add a request to prove the leasehold relationship (AED 500 at the time of writing, September 2026 — check the current schedule). Bring whatever proves the tenancy: the signed contract, rent transfers, cheques, messages and the deposit receipt.

Abu Dhabi and the DIFC. For an Abu Dhabi mainland tenancy, file with the ADJD's Rental Dispute Settlement Committees, relying on the deposit terms of your Tawtheeq-registered contract. DIFC tenants seek release through the DIFC Registrar on a joint application or, failing agreement, through the DIFC Courts once they have vacated.

An RDC judgment does not pay itself. Final judgments of the Centre's First Instance and Appellate Divisions are enforced by its Judgment Enforcement Directorate, which can call on the Dubai Courts' Execution Department. According to the RDC, an execution file can be opened 15 days after the day following a judgment given in the parties' presence, or 15 days after the defendant was notified, and there is no fee for executing financial claims (at the time of writing, September 2026). Its published execution processes include instalment, travel-ban and arrest-warrant requests; which, if any, fits your case is for a lawyer to assess.

Most deposit claims are below AED 100,000, and RDC judgments below that value are final except for limited defects listed in Decree No. 26 of 2013, such as jurisdiction or service problems. Where a money judgment can be appealed, the decree requires the losing party to deposit half the judgment amount with the Centre while the appeal is decided, unless the chairman allows otherwise.

Agent or property manager. Article 20 places the refund obligation on the landlord, so the landlord named in the lease is the obvious respondent. Whether an agent or property manager who collected the deposit can also be named was not confirmed for this page; a lawyer can advise. See our guide on enforcing a judgment for how execution works more generally.