Dubai continues to be one of the most preferred destinations for Indian property buyers, whether the goal is investment, holiday use or future relocation. With modern infrastructure, attractive visa options and a tax-friendly environment, interest from India has been rising steadily year after year, making Indian buyers the largest segment of foreign investors in the UAE real estate market.
However, with this growing investment flow, authorities in India have become more alert to how overseas property purchases are being funded. Recent attention from financial regulators has prompted buyers to ensure that payments are made through approved, transparent channels. At the same time, new local regulations in the UAE also mean that buyers must plan carefully for the upfront costs involved in a purchase.
Earlier this year, the UAE Central Bank confirmed that banks can no longer include transfer fees or broker commissions as part of mortgage financing for property purchases in Dubai. This means that in addition to the standard down payment requirement of at least 20 per cent for non-resident buyers (and 30 per cent for higher-value purchases), buyers must independently cover related expenses such as agency fees, trustee charges and transfer fees, which can add up to around 6–7 per cent of the purchase price.
For buyers from India, the challenge is not only gathering sufficient funds but also ensuring that the money is remitted abroad in full compliance with financial regulations. Under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), Indian residents are not permitted to use domestic credit cards for capital transactions such as overseas property bookings or instalments. Even small initial amounts charged to an Indian bank-issued card could be considered non-compliant.
The correct channel for sending funds overseas is through the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), which allows residents to legally remit up to USD 250,000 per financial year for specified purposes, including property investments. Transfers must be carried out through authorised banks, ensuring oversight and supporting documentation. Regulators in India have increased scrutiny over cross-border payments, meaning informal or undocumented transfers can now attract attention even if the property itself is purchased legitimately.
Beyond the transfer method, investors also need to ensure they follow several basic rules: staying within the annual remittance allowance, providing accurate purpose documentation for each transfer, reporting overseas assets in annual tax filings, and avoiding routes that do not pass through regulated financial institutions. Many issues faced by buyers arise not from the property purchase, but from gaps in how funds were moved.
For visitors and non-resident Indians, this shift means that small token payments once made casually for off-plan reservations may no longer be advisable. Instead, the safest and most widely accepted method is an LRS-compliant bank transfer directly to the developer’s approved escrow account, a process now standard for most UAE developers.
Dubai remains an attractive and dynamic property market for Indian investors, but the process of making payments has become more structured than in previous years. Following both UAE and Indian rules, ensuring correct documentation and planning payments carefully are essential steps for safeguarding the investment and keeping the purchasing experience smooth and trouble-free.
