Questions: I have lived in an apartment in Sharjah for five years, and my landlord has been increasing rent yearly. I just learned that landlords in Sharjah can increase rent only after three years. Please explain the law and whether a landlord can raise rent for five years on a trot.
Answer: In Sharjah, landlords may not increase rent until the completion of the first three years of a tenancy contract unless both parties mutually agree to increase rent. If a tenant agrees to a rent increase during these three years, the landlord cannot raise the rent again for an additional two years. This is by Article 16 of Law No. 5 of 2024 regarding Real Estate Leasing in the Emirate of Sharjah.
“1- The landlord may not increase the agreed rent value before the expiry of 3 years from the date of the start of the rental relationship, unless the parties to the lease agreement agree otherwise. If the tenant agrees to increase the rent value before the expiry of 3 years, the landlord may not increase it again until two years have passed from the date of the increase.
2- The increase in the rent value after the expiry of the periods referred to in Clause 1 of this Article shall be at the value of the fair rent, and the executive regulations of this law shall determine the controls for the fair rent and how to calculate it.
3- The Council (Executive Council of the Emirate of Sharjah) may, by a decision thereof, amend the periods specified in Clause 1 of this Article.”
Based on the provision above, your landlord may not increase the rent until three years from the time of the tenancy contract unless both parties mutually agree to a different arrangement.
Given that you have been subject to annual increases in rent each year during the last five years, you may address this issue with your landlord directly. If necessary, you may approach the Sharjah Municipality, which handles disputes between landlords and tenants. However, recently, the Ruler of Sharjah has issued Law No. 6 of 2024 on the establishment and organisation of the Rental Disputes Centre in the Emirate of Sharjah wherein in future, all disputes between a landlord and a tenant in the emirate of Sharjah shall be decided.
Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. Readers may e-mail their questions to: [email protected] or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.