Buying Property in Dubai from India: LRS, TCS, Tax

The short answer

Indian citizens can own freehold property in Dubai’s designated areas.³ If you live in India, you pay for it through the RBI’s Liberalised Remittance Scheme, which allows up to USD 250,000 per person per financial year.⁴ For a property payment your bank collects 20% TCS on everything above ₹10 lakh a year, which counts as a tax credit.⁶ The UAE does not tax your rent as long as the letting is neither run through a licence nor needs one, but India expects most residents to report the property and its income.⁶¹¹ Off-plan payment plans fit this well, because they spread the payments over several financial years.

Why so many Indian buyers are looking at Dubai

Between June and August 2026, India led international online search interest in buying Dubai property, ahead of the United States and the United Kingdom, according to an analysis by the platform DXBinteract reported by Emirates 24|7. Searches are not purchases, but they show where attention comes from.¹ The Dubai Land Department is courting that demand directly. In a statement on 25 September 2026 it reported its visit to the Dubai RE connect event in Bengaluru, which followed earlier editions in New Delhi and Mumbai.² For the wider picture of prices and sales this year, read our Dubai property market update.

USD 250KLRS limit per resident individual per financial year⁴

20%TCS on LRS remittances above ₹10 lakh a year for property⁶

4%Dubai Land Department registration fee on the price⁸

AED 2MProperty value for a 10 year Golden Residence in Dubai¹⁰

First question: are you resident in India or an NRI?

The rules in this guide apply to resident individuals, the people the Liberalised Remittance Scheme is written for.⁴ If you already live and earn abroad, other rules apply to money you hold outside India, so ask your bank before you pay. Under Section 6(4) of FEMA, a person who bought property abroad while living outside India may keep it after moving back.⁵ Confirm your residential status under FEMA when you make each remittance, and your income tax residential status separately, because the two follow different rules.

How much you can send: the LRS limit

Under the RBI’s Master Direction, banks may freely allow a resident individual to remit up to USD 250,000 per financial year, which runs from April to March. Buying immovable property abroad is one of the permitted purposes.⁴⁵ Three details matter in practice:

One limit for everything. The USD 250,000 also covers what you send that year for travel, studies, gifts or family maintenance abroad. A child’s university fees reduce what is left for the property.⁴
Clubbing only for co-owners. Family members may combine their limits, but for a capital transaction such as a property only if each of them is a co-owner.⁴ A spouse on the title can add their own USD 250,000, as long as they have not used it elsewhere that year. A parent who is not on the title adds nothing.
Paperwork at the bank. Each remittance goes through an authorised dealer bank with Form A2, and the bank checks the purpose against the documents you give it.⁴

The dirham has been pegged to the US dollar at 3.6725 since 1997, so the dollar value of a dirham price is predictable.⁷ The rupee rate moves, and your bank adds its own margin and fees.

How off-plan payment schedules fit the LRS

A ready home is usually paid in one go, so if you fund it entirely with new remittances from India, the whole price has to fit inside the buyers’ remaining limits for that year. An off-plan unit is paid over the construction period. Take an apartment at AED 1.5 million on a 30/70 plan, worked out at the reference rate of 3.6725:⁷

Payment	AED	About USD	Fits one person’s LRS year?
30% during construction	450,000	122,500	Yes, if enough of your yearly limit is left
70% on handover	1,050,000	285,900	No, above USD 250,000 in one year
Whole price	1,500,000	408,400	No, but possibly for two family co-owners

The handover payment is where the limit bites. Two family co-owners with enough unused allowance can cover it together, and a plan with smaller instalments spread across the years helps too. Our guide to off-plan payment plans compares 50/50, 30/70 and post-handover plans from real launches.

TCS: what the bank collects when you send money

From 1 April 2026 the rule sits in Section 394(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, which replaced Section 206C(1G) of the old Act. When your total LRS remittances in a tax year exceed ₹10 lakh, the bank generally collects TCS of 20% on the amount above ₹10 lakh for purposes such as investment and property. Lower rates apply only to education, medical treatment and overseas tour packages.⁶

An example: you send ₹50 lakh for a Dubai payment in one year and nothing else under the LRS. The first ₹10 lakh is free of TCS, and 20% of the remaining ₹40 lakh is ₹8 lakh. That money is not lost. The bank deposits it with the government and issues a certificate in Form No. 133, and you claim it as a credit against your income tax, with any excess refunded.⁶ Until then it is cash you have paid upfront, so plan for it in the year of your largest instalment.

Taxes in Dubai and in India

In Dubai, registering an off-plan sale costs 4% of the price at the Land Department, split 2% for the seller and 2% for the buyer in its fee schedule, plus smaller service fees. Your contract decides who actually pays which part.⁸ After that, the UAE does not tax individuals on rent from property held as a personal investment. Under the federal corporate tax rules, real estate investment by a natural person falls outside corporate tax when it is neither conducted through a licence nor requires one.¹¹ There are annual service charges, which our article on off-plan risks explains.

In India, if you are resident and ordinarily resident, you report foreign assets and foreign income in your return: the property in Schedule FA, the foreign rent in Schedule FSI as well as under the income head that applies, and any foreign tax relief in Schedule TR. Schedules FA, FSI and TR do not apply to non-residents or to residents who are not ordinarily resident.⁶ Missing a foreign asset can lead to tax additions and penalties.⁶ How rent and a later sale are taxed in your case depends on your income and residency, so confirm the tax treatment with a chartered accountant before you buy.

The Golden Visa: what AED 2 million means from India

Dubai’s residency authority, GDRFA, grants a Golden Residence valid for 10 years to real estate investors who own one or more properties worth at least AED 2,000,000 in total, certified by a property status certificate from the Land Department. Mortgaged property is accepted. If you own a share of a jointly held property, your own share must be worth at least AED 2 million, and a lien is placed on the property for as long as you hold the residency.¹⁰ At the reference rate, AED 2 million is about USD 544,600,⁷ more than twice what one person may remit in a year. Adding a co-owner helps you pay for a property, but it only helps the visa if each applicant’s share reaches AED 2 million. Confirm with the Land Department how your off-plan unit will be valued before you reserve. In Abu Dhabi the rules differ again, as our Talay guide shows for Saadiyat Island.

Buying from India, step by step

Check your residential status under FEMA and for income tax, for each financial year in which you will pay.
Decide who is on the title. Family members who are co-owners can use their own LRS limits. Non-owners cannot. For the Golden Visa, each applicant’s share must reach AED 2 million.⁴¹⁰
Map each payment to a financial year and check it against the USD 250,000 limit and the cash tied up in TCS.
Reserve and sign the Sale and Purchase Agreement. For off-plan, the developer must register your purchase in Oqood within 90 days, and you receive the certificate by email.⁸
Remit through your bank under the LRS with Form A2. For an off-plan unit, pay only into the project’s escrow account named in your contract, after checking it with the Land Department.⁴⁹
Keep every remittance record and the Form No. 133 certificates for your Indian return.⁶
Report the property in Schedule FA every year you hold it while resident and ordinarily resident, and the rent once it is let.⁶

What sources disagree on

Pooling family limits: many broker guides say a family can simply add up its LRS limits. The RBI allows clubbing for a property only between family members who are co-owners.⁴⁵
The TCS figures: older articles still quote a ₹7 lakh threshold, a 5% rate or Section 206C(1G). For remittances from 1 April 2026, the threshold is ₹10 lakh, the rate for property is 20%, and the rule is in Section 394(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025.⁶
Golden Visa on off-plan property: broker sites disagree on whether the full contract value of an unfinished unit counts or only the amount already paid. GDRFA asks for a property value of at least AED 2 million certified by the Land Department, without a separate rule for off-plan units on its service page.¹⁰ Ask the Land Department about your unit in writing.
Couples and the Golden Visa: some guides suggest a couple can share one AED 2 million property for the visa. GDRFA requires each applicant’s own share to be worth at least AED 2 million.¹⁰

Before you send the first rupee

Add up your LRS use for the current financial year, including fees, travel and family remittances.
Put every payer on the title who will send money for the property.
Choose a payment plan whose instalments fit inside your yearly limits.
Budget the 20% TCS above ₹10 lakh as cash you pay upfront and later set off against your income tax.
For off-plan, pay only into the project’s escrow account in the contract, never to an agent or a personal account.
Talk to a chartered accountant about your residential status, Schedule FA and how rent and a later sale will be taxed.

Our advisors can help you match a payment plan to your LRS limits for projects such as Talay, The Wilds and Linar. Before you commit, read whether Dubai property could crash, then message us on WhatsApp or get in touch.

Frequently asked questions

Can an Indian citizen buy property in Dubai?

Yes. Under Dubai's Law No. 7 of 2006, foreigners may own freehold property in areas designated by the Ruler, and Indian citizens buy on the same terms as other foreign buyers. If you live in India, the money side is governed by Indian foreign exchange rules: a resident individual may send money abroad to buy property under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme.

How much money can I send from India to buy property in Dubai?

Under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, a resident individual may remit up to USD 250,000 per financial year, April to March. The limit covers all your remittances in that year, including travel, studies and gifts, not only the property payment.

Can my spouse and I combine our LRS limits?

For buying property, family members can only club their remittances if each of them is a co-owner of the property and meets the scheme's conditions. Two co-owners can therefore send up to USD 250,000 each in the same financial year. A relative who is not on the title cannot add their limit.

How much TCS is collected when I send money for Dubai property?

Under Section 394(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, which replaced Section 206C(1G) from 1 April 2026, your bank generally collects TCS of 20% on a property remittance, on the amount by which your total LRS remittances in a tax year exceed ₹10 lakh. Education, medical treatment and tour packages have lower rates. TCS is not a final cost: it is credited against your income tax, any excess can be refunded, and the bank issues a certificate in Form No. 133.

Do I pay tax in Dubai on rent from my apartment?

The UAE does not tax rent that an individual earns from property held as a personal investment, provided the letting is neither carried out through a licence nor requires one. If you are resident and ordinarily resident in India, you report the rent in your Indian return and the property in the foreign asset schedule. Ask a chartered accountant how this applies to you.

Can I get a UAE Golden Visa by buying property in Dubai from India?

Dubai's residency authority, GDRFA, grants a Golden Residence valid for 10 years to real estate investors who own one or more properties worth at least AED 2 million. If you co-own, your own share must be worth at least AED 2 million. That is about USD 545,000, more than one person may send in a single year under the LRS, so plan the payments across financial years and confirm with the Dubai Land Department how an off-plan unit is valued.

Sources

Figures are taken from the sources above as of the date shown. This article is general market information, not investment advice. STOREYS does not provide financing advice.

Buying Property in Dubai from India: LRS Limit, TCS, Taxes and Golden Visa (2026 Guide)