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To cancel an Ejari, you submit a cancellation request through one of three official channels: the Dubai REST app, the DLD website, or a Real Estate Services Trustee Centre.
Most tenants never cancel, and as long as they have moved out it rarely causes them any problem. This guide covers how to cancel step by step, who actually does it, what it costs, and the two situations that change the process: an expired contract, and an early termination.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- An Ejari does not cancel itself: the expired record stays on the unit until someone cancels it.
- Cancelling is free on the Dubai REST app; a trustee centre charges AED 40 plus VAT.
- By law cancellation is the landlord’s job; in practice the landlord or the next tenant arranges it.
How to cancel your Ejari
You have three official channels. What you pay and how long it takes depend on which one you use.
Cancel online (Dubai REST app or DLD website)
- Log in to the Dubai REST app, or the Ejari system on the DLD website, using UAE Pass or your Emirates ID.
- Open the RERA / Ejari services and select “Cancel Ejari Contract”, then choose the contract to cancel.
- Enter the details and upload the documents: the final DEWA bill, and the owner’s cancellation letter if the contract is still active.
- Submit the request. Online cancellation is free.
- The request is reviewed; you get an email or SMS confirmation once it is approved.
Full steps and the official requirements are on the DLD’s Cancel Tenancy Contract service page.
Cancel at a trustee centre
- Visit a Real Estate Services Trustee Centre with your documents.
- The staff check the documents for completeness.
- They enter and audit the cancellation in the system and approve it.
- Pay the AED 40 plus VAT fee and collect your receipt.
Processing takes about seven minutes at the counter, so the real cost is the trip and the queue. If a real estate company manages the property, or the owner has Ejari system access, the cancellation goes through the system rather than a walk-in centre.
Who cancels, and why it usually isn’t you
By law, registering and cancelling Ejari is the landlord’s responsibility. It becomes the tenant’s job only if the tenancy contract says so (Law No. 26 of 2007, Article 7).
By law, cancelling Ejari is the landlord’s responsibility; in practice the landlord or the next tenant clears it, not the tenant who is leaving.
The expired Ejari stays on the unit until then, and it is cleared when the next tenancy on that property is registered. So once you have moved out, an Ejari that was never cancelled is usually the landlord’s concern or the new tenant’s, not yours.
One related case: if the property is sold while you are still living there, nothing needs cancelling: the new owner inherits your tenancy and you stay on the same contract (Law No. 26 of 2007, Article 28).
The two situations: expired contract vs early termination
Expired contract (the common case)
If the contract has expired and you have moved out, cancellation is straightforward and needs no letter from the landlord. Bring:
- The original tenancy contract, or the Ejari certificate.
- Your Emirates ID.
- A Power of Attorney, if someone is acting for you.
- The final DEWA bill, with the meter in your name and the unit number and address matching the contract.
Early termination (before the contract expires)
Ending the contract before it expires needs the owner’s agreement. A valid tenancy cannot be cancelled by one side alone while it is running; it ends only by mutual agreement or through the courts (Law No. 26 of 2007, Article 7). So along with the documents above, you add a signed letter from the owner agreeing to cancel.
Common problems
The previous tenant never cancelled. If the unit still shows an active Ejari from an earlier tenant, your new tenancy cannot be registered until that old one is cancelled and its final DEWA bill is cleared. The landlord or the incoming tenant usually handles it while setting up the new contract. When you register Ejari online through Habi, the previous tenant’s expired Ejari on the unit is cancelled as part of that registration, so you do not make a separate trip to clear it.
The landlord won’t sign the cancellation letter. Because an active contract can only end by agreement, a landlord who refuses cannot be bypassed. If you cannot agree, the route is the Rental Disputes Centre, which handles landlord and tenant disputes.
No DEWA was set up. If utilities were never connected in your name, there is no final bill to close. This is common where the contract makes utilities the landlord’s responsibility. Note it when you submit the cancellation.
Cancelling from abroad, or through someone else
If you have already left the country, you do not need to return. Cancellation can be done online, and because it is the landlord’s responsibility, the landlord can complete it through the app or the Ejari system. You can also appoint someone in Dubai with a Power of Attorney: if the POA was issued in Dubai, its number is enough; if it was issued in another emirate, you attach the document.
Sources
- Dubai Land Department. Cancel Tenancy Contract [e-service].
URL: https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/cancel-tenancy-contract/.
Accessed: 04.06.2026. - Dubai Government. Dubai Real Estate Legislation: Law No. 26 of 2007 (as amended by Law 33 of 2008), Articles 7 and 28 [PDF].
URL: https://rdc.dubailand.gov.ae/Assets/img/Real_Estate_Legislation_en.pdf.
Accessed: 04.06.2026. - Rental Disputes Centre (Decree No. 26 of 2013) [PDF].
URL: https://dlp.dubai.gov.ae/Legislation%20Reference/2013/Decree%2026%20of%202013.pdf. Accessed: 04.06.2026.
