Your Off-Plan Project Is Running Late: A Practical Action Plan

A delayed handover is one of the most stressful things an off-plan buyer can face. You have been paying for months or years, and the date you planned around has come and gone. The natural reaction is to stop paying until the developer catches up. In Dubai, that reaction can backfire. This is the sequence we recommend to clients in this position.

Start from what protects you

Your instalments are not simply sitting with the developer. The escrow law (Law 8 of 2007) requires them to be paid into an account dedicated to that one project. The developer can withdraw only in step with construction that has actually been carried out.

Where a project is officially cancelled by the regulator, purchasers receive refunds under the escrow rules. Knowing this usually takes some of the panic out of the situation.

Understand what a delay does and does not change

Once the anticipated handover date passes, your sale and purchase agreement remains in force. It is not terminated by the delay on its own.

Most SPAs include two provisions that matter here:

a grace period, giving the developer extra time beyond the stated date; and
a force majeure clause, listing events for which the developer is not held responsible.

Should the matter reach court, the judge will weigh the wording of your contract, the causes of the delay and the stage the construction has reached.

Why we advise against stopping payments yourself

We understand the frustration, and it is reasonable. The risk, though, is real. If a buyer stops paying without a lawful basis, the developer may begin the formal procedure against that buyer for breach of contract. Under Dubai's rules, that process can conclude with the contract terminated and part of the amount paid retained by the developer.

Our consistent advice: keep paying while you get proper legal advice. Feeling wronged is understandable, but acting alone on that feeling can weaken a position that might otherwise be strong.

Verify the true progress

Rather than relying on marketing updates, look at the official figure. Both the Dubai REST app and the Dubai Land Department website offer a project status service showing the registered completion percentage.

Then line it up against your payment plan. Instalments tied to construction milestones should correspond to the work genuinely completed. If they do not, that is worth raising.

Your step-by-step response

Re-read the SPA. Note the handover date, how long the grace period runs, what the force majeure clause says, and the stated consequences of a developer delay.
Check official progress using the service described above.
Contact the developer in writing. Request the revised date and the reason for the delay by email or letter, and keep copies of everything sent and received.
Consult a property lawyer before you withhold any instalment or ask to terminate.
Understand when cancellation may be available. In some situations, such as a delay well beyond what the contract permits or major changes to what was promised, termination with a refund is possible. This usually runs via the Dubai real estate courts, or via arbitration where the contract provides for it.

Lessons for your next off-plan purchase

A late project is a good moment to tighten the checks for any future buy. Before signing again, we suggest:

reviewing the developer's earlier projects and when each one was actually handed over;
reading the delay and force majeure wording before signing rather than after a problem arises;
checking how instalments track construction progress, and how large the handover payment is.

How we help

For clients with a late project, we help pull together the SPA terms, the official progress figure and a clear written record of correspondence, so that any conversation with a lawyer starts from solid facts. For new purchases, we review developer delivery history and contract clauses with you before you commit. We do not give legal advice ourselves, and we will always point you to a licensed lawyer for your specific contract.

*Sources: Dubai Law 8 of 2007 (escrow accounts); Dubai Law 13 of 2008 as amended, including Law 19 of 2020; Executive Council Resolution 6 of 2010; Dubai Land Department project status service; Awatif Mohammad Shoqi Advocates, "Off-plan property dispute in Dubai", September 2026.*

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Check current rules with DLD/RERA before acting.