How to Transfer Property from an Individual to a Company in the UAE

When it comes time to transfer property from an individual to a company in the UAE, there are a few things that you need to take into account. In this blog post by GCG Structuring, we will go over the process step-by-step and explain what you need to do in order to ‘gift’ (transfer) your property to a company in the UAE.

So, whether you are an individual who is looking to transfer their property to a company or you are a start-up aiming to specialize in managing your clients’ properties; this blog post is for you!

How to Transfer Property from an Individual to a Company in the UAE

You might be familiar with the concept of a ‘Hiba Transfer’ if you have been in an Islamic country. A Hiba transfer is simply a gift that is given from an individual to mainly a 1st-degree relative.
However, if you want, you can also make that same gift to a corporate entity (and vice versa). The reason you would want to give a property to a corporate entity would be for inheritance planning or property management in general so that future generations can benefit from the assets.
Property inheritance is a fairly difficult process and more so if you are not familiar with the UAE’s Sharia Law.
towfiqu barbhuiya

Corporate Structures Allowed to Hold Companies

Not all corporate structures are eligible to hold properties within the UAE. The most common corporate structures that can hold properties are the JAFZA Offshore as well as the companies present in the DIFC and DMCC jurisdictions.
The shareholders of the aforementioned corporate structures can be either individuals or corporate entities.

Important Points to Account For

Transferring a property from an individual to a company requires attention to various intricate details.
Keep in mind that the percentage of the property being transferred has to align with the percentage of ownership of the shareholders.
Attested and translated company documents have to be presented with specific approvals from your relevant jurisdiction and the Dubai Land Department.
The title transfer of real estate requires you to pay a 4% stamp duty. In a Hiba transfer, you only have to pay 0.125%.
To complete a successful Hiba transfer, the points above have to be accounted for but that’s easier said than done. The entirety of the process can easily be handled with the help of a Power of Attorney specialist, especially if the parties aren’t present in the UAE at the time of the deal.
The process can get more complicated if there are multiple transfers involved in order to achieve the desired result.

Required Documents

To get started, you’re going to need the following documents.

For an Individual

For a Company

Service Procedure

The process involves the following steps:
This was a blog post by GCG Structuring on how to transfer property from an individual to a company in the UAE. We hope that this has helped shed some light on the process and what needs to be taken into account. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us and we would be more than happy to assist you.