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Dubai Land Department is preparing to launch a Rent Now, Pay Later scheme that would let tenants spread their annual rent across up to 12 interest-free monthly instalments, according to local media reports citing unnamed sources. A participating bank would pay a tenant’s full annual rent to the landlord upfront, and the tenant would repay the bank monthly rather than fronting the traditional lump sum or multi-cheque payment.
Dubai Land Department is reportedly preparing a Rent Now, Pay Later scheme in which a partner bank pays a tenant’s annual rent to the landlord upfront, and the tenant repays the bank in up to 12 interest-free monthly instalments. This has not been officially confirmed by DLD.
The scheme would build on DLD’s Flexi Rent programme, launched in June 2026, which already let landlords offer monthly, quarterly and semi-annual payment schedules instead of the traditional one-to-four-cheque system.
This would not be Dubai’s first Rent Now, Pay Later product: Keyper, a private proptech platform backed by First Abu Dhabi Bank and Dubai First, launched its own RNPL service in July 2023. What’s new here is a government-affiliated, bank-backed version tied directly to DLD.
How the Rent Now Pay Later scheme would work
Under the scheme as reported, a tenant selects a property and a participating bank pays the landlord the full annual rent immediately, in the way a lump-sum cheque payment traditionally would. The tenant then repays the bank in equal instalments spread across up to 12 months, without interest. For landlords, that structure would preserve the certainty of receiving a full year’s rent at the start of a tenancy. For tenants, it converts one of Dubai’s largest single annual expenses into a manageable monthly payment aligned with salary cycles, rather than requiring a large cheque, or several post-dated ones, upfront.
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Not Dubai’s first RNPL product
Rent Now, Pay Later is not a new concept in Dubai’s market. Keyper, a private proptech and property-management platform, launched its own RNPL service in July 2023, letting tenants pay rent monthly via credit or debit card while landlords still received their preferred payment structure. That service ran on rails from First Abu Dhabi Bank and Dubai First, and Keyper itself described it as first-of-its-kind in Dubai at the time. What would genuinely be new about the DLD-linked version being reported now is a government land authority sitting directly inside the mechanism, rather than the product living entirely with a private fintech.
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Why it matters
For Dubai’s rental affordability push
DLD’s Flexi Rent programme in June 2026 already signalled an intent to move tenants away from Dubai’s traditional one-to-four-cheque annual rent structure. A bank-backed RNPL scheme, if it launches as reported, would be a further step in that direction, and unlike Flexi Rent, it directly involves a bank fronting the landlord’s payment rather than simply restructuring the cheque schedule.
For UAE banks and rent-focused fintechs
A government-affiliated RNPL scheme, once officially confirmed, would put DLD in direct proximity to the same rent-financing space Keyper and its banking partners have already operated in since 2023. Whether the two coexist, compete, or the DLD scheme ends up running through some of the same banking partners, is one of the more concrete things to watch once official details land.
What’s next
Whether DLD confirms this scheme at all, and if so, on what terms. Until an official DLD statement names the participating bank, sets eligibility criteria, and confirms whether any fees apply, this remains a reported initiative rather than a live one.
FAQ
How does DLD’s Rent Now Pay Later scheme work?
A participating bank would pay a tenant’s landlord the full annual rent upfront, and the tenant would repay the bank in up to 12 interest-free monthly instalments.
Is this the first Rent Now, Pay Later product in Dubai?
No. Keyper, a private proptech platform backed by First Abu Dhabi Bank and Dubai First, launched an RNPL service in Dubai in July 2023.
How does this relate to DLD’s Flexi Rent programme?
Flexi Rent, launched in June 2026, let landlords offer monthly, quarterly or semi-annual rent payment schedules. The reported RNPL scheme would go further by having a bank front the landlord’s full annual payment upfront.