Ejari is the tenancy contract registration system administered by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency of the Dubai Land Department. Every tenancy in Dubai, by law, must be registered through Ejari. The registration produces a record — a unique Ejari number — that confirms the tenancy’s existence, identifies the parties, identifies the property, and records the rent and the term. A tenant’s Ejari history is the record of the tenancies they have been registered against.
In Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and the other emirates, the registration systems differ in name and detail but the principle is similar. This page focuses on the Dubai Ejari system, which is the most frequently encountered in screens.
The Ejari history shows, for the tenant whose history is being checked, each registered tenancy in their name, with the period of the tenancy and the property concerned. The history is a sequence of facts: that this tenant was registered as the tenant of this property for this period. Where the registration has lapsed naturally at the end of the term, the record shows the lapse.
Where the registration has been terminated early by the parties, that fact may be recorded depending on the type of termination. Where a dispute proceeded to the Rental Disputes Centre or to the courts, the dispute itself is recorded separately by the dispute body, not in the Ejari history; the Ejari history is the registration record, not a litigation record.
A tenant with a continuous Ejari history of multiple tenancies over years, with each registration concluding naturally at the end of its term, is a tenant whose conduct as a tenant in Dubai is on record. The record does not show how each tenancy went — it does not show whether the rent was paid in full, whether disputes arose, whether the property was returned in good condition — but it shows that the tenancies occurred.
A tenant whose Ejari history shows a gap, or a tenancy that ended sooner than its registered term, raises questions worth understanding. The questions are not, in themselves, adverse to the tenant; tenancies end early for many reasons. The history surfaces the fact; the prior landlord reference is the appropriate place to colour the fact.
A tenant with no Ejari history is not a tenant whose conduct is concealed; they are a tenant who has not previously rented in Dubai, or has rented only in other emirates, or has lived in housing that was not registered. The absence is information, but it is not adverse information.
The Ejari history does not show the conduct of the tenancy. It does not show whether rent was paid on time. It does not show whether the property was kept in good order. It does not show whether the tenant gave the landlord cause for concern. These are matters that, if they exist, come out in the prior landlord reference, not in the Ejari record.
The Ejari history is therefore a foundation, not a substitute. It confirms that the tenant was registered as the tenant of certain properties. The reference adds substance to those entries.
Access to Ejari history for screening purposes is conducted through the appropriate channels, with the tenant’s consent. The check is part of the rental history component of a screen and is conducted alongside, not in place of, prior landlord references where they can be obtained.
Related pages: prior landlord references, what a tenant screen includes.