Off-plan payment plans in Dubai, explained

Off-plan homes in Dubai are sold with a payment plan: you pay part of the price when you book, part while the building goes up, and the rest when you get the keys. Plans are written as three numbers, such as 10/40/50. This guide explains what the numbers mean, how common each split is, and how to compare two plans by the cash you need and when.

This is general information, not financial advice.

What 10/40/50 means

The three numbers are percentages of the price, and they add up to 100.

Number	When you pay it	On an AED 1,000,000 home
10	On booking	AED 100,000
40	During construction, in instalments	AED 400,000
50	On handover, when you get the keys	AED 500,000

So 20/40/40 means 20% on booking, 40% during construction and 40% at handover. A plan with two numbers, such as 20/80, usually means 20% now and 80% at handover. A plan with a fourth number, or a label like "60/40 post-handover", means part of the price is paid after you get the keys.

The plan does not include fees. You also pay the 4% Dubai Land Department (DLD) fee near the start, usually with the booking amount. See the costs on top of the price.

The main types of plan

• Construction-linked. Each instalment is due when the building reaches a stage, for example 20% or 50% complete. If the work slows down, your payments slow down too. This is the safer type for you.
• Time-based. Instalments are due on fixed dates, for example every three or six months. You keep paying on schedule even if the building is behind.
• Monthly 1% plans. Some developers ask for about 1% of the price each month. These are easy to budget for, but over a long build they can add up to most of the price before handover.
• Post-handover plans. You pay part of the price, in plans listed on the big portals often 30% to 60%, over one to several years after you get the keys. You can live in the home or rent it out while you pay. See post-handover payment plans for how these work and what to check.

The three-number label on a project does not tell you which type it is. Your sale agreement (SPA) does. Ask for the full schedule with dates or milestones before you book.

How common each split is

We looked at the plans on the 991 off-plan projects on our site in November 2026. 912 show a three-part plan, 41 a two-part plan, and 38 had no plan published.

Plan	Projects
20/40/40	109
10/40/50	106
10/50/40	87
20/50/30	78
10/70/20	73
20/30/50	70
10/30/60	37
10/80/10	37

• On booking: the median is 10% of the price. 487 projects ask for 10% or less, and 401 ask for 20% or more.
• At handover: the median is 40%. 387 projects leave 50% or more for handover, and 162 leave 60% or more. 146 leave 20% or less.

Plans that leave a lot for handover ask less of you now. Plans that leave little for handover, like 10/70/20, ask you to pay most of the price before the building is finished.

An example schedule with real dates

Creek Views 4 by Azizi in Al Jaddaf is listed from AED 1,125,000 on our site in November 2026, with a 10/40/50 plan and handover in December 2028.

Say you book on 10 November 2026. We spread the 40% construction share evenly every six months until handover. These instalment dates are illustrative. The SPA sets the real dates or milestones.

Date	What	AED
10 Nov 2026	Booking, 10%	112,500
10 Nov 2026	DLD fee, 4% of the price	45,000
10 Nov 2026	Oqood admin fees (DLD-listed AED 1,000 developer fee + AED 20)	1,020
	First payment	158,520
10 May 2027	Instalment, 10%	112,500
10 Nov 2027	Instalment, 10%	112,500
10 May 2028	Instalment, 10%	112,500
10 Nov 2028	Instalment, 10%	112,500
Dec 2028	Handover, 50%	562,500
Dec 2028	Title deed and map fees	520
	Total	1,171,540

The DLD lists the 4% fee as 2% for the seller and 2% for the buyer, but developers usually pass all of it to the buyer, and every project on our site lists 4% for you to pay (DLD). Some developers charge their own admin fee for Oqood registration on top, so ask for the exact amount. At handover, also plan for service charges and utility deposits.

How to compare two plans

Put both plans on the same price and look at three numbers: the cash you need in the first 12 months, the cash you need before handover, and the amount due at handover.

On an AED 1,000,000 home booked on 10 November 2026 with handover in December 2028, with instalments every six months as above and the 4% DLD fee and AED 1,020 of admin fees paid at booking:

	10/40/50	20/40/40	10/70/20
First payment	141,020	241,020	141,020
Paid in the first 12 months (to 10 Nov 2027)	341,020	441,020	491,020
Paid before handover	541,020	641,020	841,020
Due at handover	500,000	400,000	200,000

10/40/50 and 10/70/20 look the same at booking. By the end of the first year, 10/70/20 has cost you AED 150,000 more. Ask yourself:

• Can you pay the instalments from income or savings? If an instalment is missed, the developer can start the process to cancel the sale. See buying off-plan step by step.
• Where will the handover payment come from? Cash, a mortgage, or the sale of another asset. If it is a mortgage, read the next section.
• What if the building is late? With time-based dates, you may have paid most of the price for a building that is not finished. Check the developer's record in do Dubai developers hand over on time?
• Do you plan to sell before handover? Many developers allow resale only after you have paid a set share of the price, which your SPA states. See selling off-plan before handover.

A plan with more at handover is not cheaper. It moves the cost later. Compare the price as well: the same unit can be offered at different prices with different plans.

Paying the handover amount with a mortgage

Most buyers who use a mortgage take it at handover, when the home is finished. The UAE Central Bank sets the maximum loan-to-value (LTV), the share of the property's value a bank can lend (CBUAE Rulebook, as amended in 2019 and 2020):

Buyer	First home, AED 5 million or less	First home, over AED 5 million	Second home or investment
Expatriate	80%	70%	60%
UAE national	85%	75%	65%
Any buyer, home bought off-plan	50%	50%	50%

The 50% limit applies to loans on homes still being built. The value is the bank's valuation, which can be lower than your price. The down payment must come from your own money, not a personal loan or a credit card.

The Central Bank does not set a separate limit for non-residents. Banks set their own, and they usually lend less to people who live abroad. Ask two or three banks before you book.

In the Creek Views 4 example, the AED 562,500 due at handover is 50% of the price. An expatriate buying a first home could in principle borrow up to 80%, but the bank pays the developer only the balance still due. So you would borrow at most the 50%, if the bank values the home at the price. With a 10/70/20 plan you would need to borrow only 20%, but you will have paid 80% in cash first. Mortgage costs are listed in the costs on top of the price.

Before you choose

• Ask for the full schedule, with dates or milestones, in writing.
• Add the 4% DLD fee and admin fees to the first payment.
• Work out what you need in the first 12 months, before handover and at handover.
• If you need a mortgage, ask a bank early what it would lend you.

Browse plans side by side in search, or see homes under AED 1 million.

Sources

• Central Bank of the UAE, Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans (Circular 31/2013), as amended by Resolutions 96/2019 and 31/2/2020, consolidated 8 April 2020, checked 5 November 2026: rulebook.centralbank.ae
• Dubai Land Department, request to register the initial sale (Oqood), site updated 3 November 2026: dubailand.gov.ae
• Dubai Land Department, request to complete the initial procedures data (title deed), site updated 3 November 2026: dubailand.gov.ae
• Our analysis of the payment plans on the 991 off-plan projects published on this site, November 2026