(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Published: Sun, Jul 21, 2024 7:43 am

Ask : I recently moved into a villa I bought in a popular area of ​​Dubai. I need to add a room to the villa by dividing the living room. This would require some minor construction work. Do I need approval from the supervisor for this?

Answer : The Building and Government Housing Department of Dubai Municipality is the ‘competent department’ that issues approvals for construction and repair works on a building. This is in accordance with the ‘Definitions’ mentioned in Article 3 of the Local Ordinance No. 3 of 1999 regulating construction works in the Emirate of Dubai.

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No individual shall carry out any permanent or temporary work on any building or property without a permit issued by the competent department of Dubai Municipality. This is under Section 4 of Dubai Local Order No. 3 of 1999, which states: “No natural person or public or private legal entity shall carry out any construction work involving the permanent or temporary alteration, in whole or in part, of the characteristics of any piece of land or immovable property without first obtaining the relevant permit from the competent department.”

An individual or his or her representative (engineers or contractors) must submit an application to the Department regarding construction work to be carried out in a building. This is in accordance with Article 5 of the Dubai Local Order No. 3 of 1999, which states: “A permit application signed by the applicant shall be submitted to the competent department in the form prescribed for this purpose, together with the relevant required documents. The implementing regulation of this order stipulates the required documents in this regard.”

Furthermore, all construction works, including temporary structures, shall be carried out in accordance with approved plans and drawings and technical requirements as approved by the competent department of Dubai Municipality. This falls under Article 14 of Dubai Local Order No. 3 of 1999, which states: “Construction works shall be carried out in accordance with the approved plans and drawings, the conditions under which the permit is issued and the technical engineering standards adopted in this regard. No changes or alterations shall be made to these documents without the relevant approval of the competent department.”

Furthermore, Articles 19 to 26 of the Dubai Local Order No. 3 of 1999 state the obligations of the relevant parties carrying out construction work, such as contractors and engineers. The said clauses also state the safety conditions that must be observed while carrying out construction work on a building or a property.

Furthermore, Appendix No. 1 of Local By-law No. 3 of 1999 specifies the application fees of Dubai Municipality for technical verification of plans and Appendix No. 6 of the said by-law specifies the fees of Dubai Municipality for amendments and additions to the approved plans.

Based on the above mentioned provisions of the Dubai Local Authority, you can appoint a licensed contractor or engineer who can help you in obtaining various permits from the Dubai Municipality to carry out renovation works in your villa. You may need to obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the master developer or community management to ensure that the changes or modifications are in accordance with the guidelines set by the master developer or community management, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Development Authority (DDA) and any other relevant authority as applicable.

Ashish Mehta is the Founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practice law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm are at: Readers may email their queries to: … or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.

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