Law
No. (6) of 2025
Concerning
the
Allocation
of Government Land to
Public
Entities in the Emirate of Dubai[1]
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We,
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai,
After perusal of:
Federal Law No. (1) of 1991 Concerning
the Emirates Telecommunications Group Company and its amendments;
Federal Law by Decree No. (35) of
2023 Concerning Union-owned
Properties;
Law
No. (14) of 2007 Establishing the Dubai Real Estate Corporation and its
amendments;
Law
No. (7) of 2013 Concerning the Land Department;
Law No. (22) of 2015 Regulating
Partnership between the Public Sector and the Private Sector in the Emirate of
Dubai;
Law
No. (1) of 2016 Concerning the Financial Regulations of the Government of
Dubai, its Implementing Bylaw, and their amendments;
Law No. (2) of 2022 Concerning
Acquisition of Real Property for the Public Benefit in the Emirate of Dubai;
Law
No. (16) of 2023 Concerning Urban Planning in the Emirate of Dubai;
Law
No. (26) of 2023 Concerning the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai;
Decree
No. (32) of 2020 Concerning Ownership of Educational Land in the Emirate of
Dubai;
The Order of 1961 Establishing the
Dubai Municipality;
Executive Council Resolution No.
(59) of 2016 Forming the Industrial Investment Land Allocation Committee in the
Emirate of Dubai;
Executive Council Resolution No. (6)
of 2024 Reconstituting the Supreme Urban Planning Committee in the Emirate of
Dubai;
Local Order No. (2) of 1999
Concerning Classification and Regulation of Land Use in the Emirate of Dubai
and its amendments;
Regulatory Resolution No. (1) of
2014 Concerning the Allocation of Government Land in the Emirate of Dubai to
Semi-government Entities; and
Administrative Resolution No. (260)
of 2019 Approving the Dubai Community Facilities Planning Standards’ Guide,
Do
hereby issue this Law.
This
Law will be cited as "Law No. (6) of 2025 Concerning the Allocation of
Government Land to Public Entities in the Emirate of Dubai.”
The
following words and expressions, wherever mentioned in this Law, will have the
meaning indicated opposite each of them unless the context implies otherwise:
|
UAE: |
The United Arab Emirates. |
|
Emirate: |
The Emirate of Dubai. |
|
Ruler: |
His Highness the Ruler of Dubai. |
|
Government: |
The Government of Dubai. |
|
Executive Council: |
The Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai. |
|
DM: |
The Dubai Municipality. |
|
SUPC: |
The Supreme Urban Planning Committee in the Emirate
of Dubai. |
|
Public Entity: |
Any of the Federal Government Entities or Local
Government Entities. |
|
Federal Government Entity: |
Any of the ministries, government departments,
public agencies and corporations, and other entities owned by, or affiliated
to, the Federal Government or a Federal Government entity. |
|
Local Government Entity: |
Any of the Government departments, public agencies
and corporations, Government councils and authorities, and other entities
owned by, or affiliated to, the Government or a Local Government entity. |
|
Director General: |
The Director General of the DM. |
|
Government Land: |
A land plot owned by the Government or any Local
Government Entity. |
|
Allocation: |
The assignment of a parcel of Government Land, by
way of grant, to a Public Entity to be exploited and used for the purposes
specified by this Law. |
|
Public Services: |
The services provided by Public Entities to meet the
needs of individuals and entities, promote well-being, improve living
standards, enhance quality of life, ensure a healthy and safe environment,
and support the achievement of sustainable development. |
|
Public Facility: |
The infrastructure, establishments, or projects
established and supervised by Public Entities for the purpose of providing
Public Services. |
This
Law aims to:
1.
align the Allocation of Government
Land with the Dubai Urban Plan 2040, by ensuring the optimal utilisation of
available land plots and areas in the real estate market;
2.
rationalise the use of Government
Land in the Emirate and promote its optimal and sustainable utilisation;
3.
provide the Government Land required
to enable Public Entities to perform their functions under the legislation
establishing them or regulating their work;
4.
regulate the Allocation of
Government Land to Public Entities through clear and well-defined procedures;
and
5.
ensure that Government Land is used
solely for its designated purposes.
a.
The provisions of this Law apply to
all Government Land, whether allocated to Public Entities in the Emirate before
the date on which this Law comes into force or thereafter.
b.
This Law does not apply to the
Government Land allocated for use by the Ministry of Defence, the Armed Forces,
the Ministry of Interior, security and military agencies, or any similar
entities.
a.
Government Land will be allocated to a Public
Entity in any of the following cases:
1. upon the approval of the Ruler or
his authorised representative, based on a recommendation from the DM, where the
Allocation of Government Land is to a Federal Government Entity;
2. upon the approval of the Director
General, where the Allocation of Government Land is to a Local Government
Entity to enable it to construct its office premises and associated facilities;
or
3. where the legislation establishing a
Public Entity or regulating its work, provides for the provision of the
Government Land required to enable that entity to perform its functions under
such legislation.
b.
Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph
(a) of this Article, the Allocation of Government Land to a Public Entity will
be made in accordance with the approved Structure Plan of the Emirate, and in
accordance with the Planning Requirements and rules established therein. Where
the Allocation request requires amending the approved Structure Plan, the DM
will, prior to deciding on the Allocation of the Government Land to the Public
Entity, refer the matter to the SUPC to approve the proposed amendments to the
Structure Plan, in accordance with the provisions of the above-mentioned Law
No. (16) of 2023 and other legislation in force in the Emirate.
Government
Land may be allocated to a Public Entity for any of the following purposes:
1.
to enable the Public Entity to
provide its Public Services and to perform its functions, duties, and
activities under the legislation establishing it or regulating its work; or
2.
to construct the office premises and
associated facilities required to enable the Public Entity to perform its statutory
services, activities, and functions.
For
the purposes of this Law, and subject to the provisions of the above-mentioned
Law No. (16) of 2023, the DM will, in coordination with Local Government
Entities where required, have the duties and powers to:
1.
receive and consider Public
Entities’ applications for the Allocation of Government Land and assess the
actual need for the Government Land, in accordance with the Allocation criteria
stipulated in this Law;
2.
determine the locations and areas of
Government Land to be allocated to a Public Entity for its own use, based on
the type of the Public Services it provides and the activities or work it
conducts;
3.
submit recommendations to the Ruler
or his authorised representative for the approval of Government Land
Allocations to Federal Government Entities;
4.
issue site plans for the Government
Land allocated to Public Entities;
5.
maintain a special register in which
all data and information related to Government Land allocated to Public
Entities in the Emirate are recorded, and coordinate with the Land Department
to ensure consistency between the data and information included in that
register and those recorded in the DM’s register;
6.
recover the Government Land
allocated to a Public Entity or change or modify its location, and require the
Public Entity to remove any structures thereon, where any of the grounds for recovery
of Government Land stipulated in this Law and other applicable legislation
apply, or where such recovery, change, or modification is required by the
planning, construction, and land use regulations in the Emirate;
7.
oversee compliance by Public
Entities with the time frames prescribed by this Law for the use of the
Government Land allocated to them, and with the purposes for which the land is
allocated;
8.
review and update the Government
Land Allocation criteria where required, and have these criteria approved by
the Director General; and
9.
exercise any other duties or powers
required for the achievement of the objectives of this Law, as assigned to it
by the Ruler or the Chairman of the Executive Council.
Government
Land will be allocated to a Public Entity in accordance with the following
general and specific criteria:
I. General Criteria:
1.
the
existence
of an actual, urgent, and pressing need for Government Land, which is to be
determined based on economic feasibility, security, social, service-related,
and other relevant considerations;
2.
the
availability of Government Land for Allocation; and
3.
the
significance of the purpose for which the Government Land is to be allocated.
II. Specific Criteria:
1.
Office Premises:
Government Land may be allocated to a Public Entity for the establishment of its
office premises, where the number of the employees to be accommodated in the
premises is five hundred (500) or more.
2.
Public Facilities:
Government Land may be allocated to a Public Entity for the establishment of a
Public Facility, in accordance with the Planning Criteria stipulated in the
Dubai Community Facilities Planning Standards’ Guide approved by the DM, and in
any other relevant guidelines issued by the DM.
3.
Industrial Investment Land:
Government Land may be allocated to a Public Entity for implementing an
industrial investment project, in accordance with the standards and
requirements approved by the Industrial Investment Land Allocation Committee in
the Emirate of Dubai (the “IILAC”), formed pursuant to the above-mentioned Executive
Council Resolution No. (59) of 2016.
a.
The DM will issue a Public Entity
with a site plan for the Government Land allocated thereto, stating:
1.
the
Government as the owner of the
Government Land;
2. the name of the Public Entity to which
the Government Land is allocated;
3. the purpose of Allocation; and
4. that the Public Entity must commence
construction works on the allocated Government Land within five (5) years from
the date of issuance of the site plan.
b.
The Land Department must register
the Government Land allocated for use by Public Entities in accordance with the
details set out in the site plan.
a.
Subject to the provisions of this
Law, the above-mentioned Law No. (22) of 2015, and other legislation in force
in the Emirate, no Public Entity may, under the pain of nullity, dispose of the
Government Land allocated to it, nor of the structures constructed thereon, by any
form of legal disposition, including by way of lease, mortgage, investment, or
use for commercial purposes, or for any purpose other than that for which the
Government Land has been allocated.
b.
Paragraph (a) of this Article will
not apply to spaces leased within Buildings constructed on Government Land for
the purpose of meeting the needs of the employees and customers of the Public
Entity, such as leasing these spaces to bank branches, financial institutions,
nursery schools, restaurants, and similar establishments.
a.
The DM will recover the Government
Land allocated to a Public Entity in any of the following cases:
1. the purpose for which the Government Land was allocated has been
fulfilled;
2. the lapse of five (5) years from the
date of issuance of the Government Land site plan and the Allocation of the Government
Land to the Public Entity, without that entity commencing construction works on
the allocated Government Land or using it for the purpose for which it is
allocated;
3. where the recovery of the Government
Land is required under the planning, construction, land use, and infrastructure
regulations of the Emirate, or is required for the public benefit, as
stipulated in the above-mentioned Law No. (2) of 2022 and other legislation in force
in the Emirate;
4. where there is no longer an actual
need for the Government Land by the Public Entity due to its future plans,
restructuring, merger with another entity, or dissolution;
5. where the Public Entity requests to
relinquish the Government Land, on the basis that it no longer needs it; or
6. any other case as determined by the
relevant resolutions of the Chairman of the Executive Council, or other
legislation in force in the Emirate.
b.
The DM will notify the Public Entity
of the decision to recover the Government Land allocated thereto in any of the
cases stipulated in sub-paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3), or (a)(4) of this
Article.
c.
The provisions of above-mentioned
Federal Law by Decree No. (35) of 2023 or any other superseding legislation apply
to the recovery of the Government Land allocated to Federal Government
Entities.
Notwithstanding the provisions of
sub-paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of Article (11) of this Law, the Chairman of
the Executive Council may, based on substantial and valid grounds submitted by
a Public Entity, extend the deadline prescribed for the use of allocated Government
Land on which the Public Entity has not commenced construction works.
a.
For the purpose of ensuring
compliance with the provisions of this Law, any Public Entity that has not
commenced construction works on the Government Land allocated to it prior to
the effective date of this Law will be granted the following grace periods:
1.
two (2) years from the
effective date of this Law, where more than five (5) years have lapsed since
the date of issuance of the site plan of the Government Land; or
2.
the
remainder of the five (5)-year period, where
less than five (5) years have elapsed since the issuance of the site plan of
the allocated Government Land. In any event, the grace period may not be less
than two (2) years.
b.
Upon expiry of the grace periods
referred to in paragraph (a) of this Article and where the Public Entity has
not commenced construction works on the allocated Government Land, the DM will
consider and assess the entity’s actual need for the Government Land, in
accordance with the Planning Criteria it adopts in this respect. In this case,
the DM may take either of the following actions:
1. revoke the Allocation of Government
Land and the corresponding site plan, recover the Government Land, and
reallocate it for another purpose based on the planning needs arising at the
time; or
2. maintain the Allocation of
Government Land and renew the site plan, upon the Public Entity’s request,
while granting it a further grace period of two (2) years to commence
construction works on the allocated Government Land.
The
Chairman of the Executive Council will issue the resolutions required for the
implementation of the provisions of this Law.
Any
provision in any other legislation is hereby repealed to the extent that it
contradicts the provisions of this Law.
This
Law will be published in the Official Gazette and will come into force thirty
(30) days after the date of its publication.
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Ruler of Dubai
Issued in Dubai on 7 April 2025
Corresponding
to 9 Shawwal 1446 A.H.
©2025 The Supreme Legislation Committee in the
Emirate of Dubai
[1]Every effort has been made to produce an
accurate and complete English version of this legislation. However, for the
purpose of its interpretation and application, reference must be made to the
original Arabic text. In case of conflict, the Arabic text will prevail.