•  Over 411,000 advertising permits have been issued with a QR code since its launch last April 
  • Marwan bin Ghalita: We have seen a positive and collaborative response from all stakeholders, which supports our strategy for achieving comprehensive real estate control
  • Ali Abdulla Al Ali: We are continuing with inspection campaigns, adhering to specific standards, including verifying the alignment with the data in the QR code
  • The number of warnings issued to companies not complying with placing the QR code on ads reached 1,980  

Dubai, United Arab Emirates: The electronic service Madmoun has been responsible for generating QR codes for each real estate advertising permit issued by the Dubai Land Department. This initiative aims to enhance transparency in the real estate sector and bolster confidence among investors and stakeholders in the emirate. The service simplifies access to real estate details by providing more accurate and faster information to those who scan the code on their phones or tablets.

Since the service was launched in April 2023 by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA), the regulatory arm of Dubai Land Department (DLD); a total of 411,608 real estate advertising permits have been issued with a QR code. RERA launched the service with the aim of enabling customers to effectively verify the approved authenticity of advertisements, by being able to compare information directly on the Dubai Land Department website, including the company information, advertisement information, status, details, and property value, noting that the link can be secured to prevent any modification of the data.

The importance of adhering to rules and regulations:

His Excellency Eng. Marwan bin Ghalita, CEO of RERA at DLD, emphasised the significance of adhering to the laws and rules issued by the RERA, and complying with the regulations issued by the Agency to avoid violations and fines. He added, "In the recent period, we have seen a positive and collaborative response from all stakeholders. This reflects our collective efforts to enhance awareness, trust, and transparency in the real estate sector, contributing to effective governance, which supports our strategy in achieving comprehensive real estate control.”

In an indication of the commitment from the concerned parties to issue a QR code for any real estate advertising permit according to the Madmoun service, only five violations were recorded, where the value of each violation amounts to AED 50,000. DLD states its intention to enforce violations directly on companies failing to adhere to real estate advertising conditions, without issuing prior warnings. This action follows a given grace period for companies to align with the circular issued on this matter. Consequently, DLD urges all real estate companies to rectify non-compliant advertisements lacking the code. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of adhering to the specified dimensions for readability during scanning.

Standards for controlling non-compliant companies

Ali Abdullah Al Ali, Director of the Real Estate Control Department at RERA said, "Our ongoing inspection campaigns focus on verifying the continued compliance of real estate companies with the use of the QR code. This involves linking the QR code to real estate marketing platforms and activating it through the Trakheesi system. We enforce specific standards in controlling non-compliant companies, which include ensuring the presence of a code on the advertisement, verifying that the announced data aligns with the code data, checking the validity of the permit, and confirming that it was issued to the same advertising company. The Madmoun service facilitates the submission of reports regarding any real estate advertisement not matching the code data. To date, we have issued 1,980 warnings to companies failing to comply with the placement of the QR code on advertisements."

As part of its mission to enhance awareness and confidence within the real estate community, DLD strongly advises all customers and investors to only engage with real estate advertisements that feature the QR code to ensure the protection of their rights and prevent their exposure to any fraudulent or unreliable transactions.