Off-plan EOI deposits in Dubai: what they buy you and when the money is not refundable

On Dubai's headline launches, the best units sell out in hours, and the queue for them forms well before sales officially open. The tool behind that queue is the EOI, or Expression of Interest: a submission to the developer signalling intent to buy a specific unit type, sometimes a specific unit number. On its own it commits the buyer to nothing — but it is almost always paired with a payment, and whether that payment comes back is the one question to settle before wiring it.

What an EOI actually secures

An EOI buys a place in the allocation queue. When sales open, the developer offers EOI holders their pick in queue order; once a unit is chosen, the buyer puts down a booking deposit, and the EOI payment is usually credited against it. From there comes the Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) and registration in the off-plan Oqood registry — DLD rules require registration within 90 days of signing, after which the buyer's payments flow to the project's escrow account.

Deposit size varies by developer: some charge a flat fee in the tens of thousands of dirhams, others a percentage of the indicative price. There is no regulator-set standard.

When the money comes back, and when it does not

• No unit available. If the developer cannot offer the type or floor requested, the EOI is typically refunded in full, on a timeline — anywhere from a couple of weeks to longer — set out in the developer's own terms.
• A unit is offered and the buyer declines. This is where terms diverge most: some developers refund in full, some deduct an administrative fee, some treat it as non-refundable outright.
• The buyer selects a unit and signs the booking form. At that point it is no longer an EOI but a first instalment under the SPA, governed by off-plan sale law — walking away without consequence is rarely possible from here.

Checklist before you transfer

1. Get the EOI terms in writing, on developer letterhead, with a stated refund condition and timeline.
2. Pay only into the developer's own UAE bank account — never an agent's or an individual's account. The beneficiary name must match the developer's legal entity.
3. Verify the broker: agent BRN and agency ORN are checkable through DLD's own services, and the project's advertising must carry a permit with a QR code.
4. Do not place EOIs on three or four launches "just in case" — if several are approved at once, part of the money is likely to end up locked in non-refundable terms.

Abu Dhabi runs a tighter regime: EOIs there are accepted only through the Madhmoun platform, tied to a registered project with escrow. Our breakdown of escrow accounts and advertising fines covers both emirates' enforcement.

Is an EOI worth entering at all

An EOI earns its keep when the project is genuinely scarce and the launch-phase price is meaningfully below where it will sit a month later. If the same unit can be bought calmly after launch, an EOI just freezes cash for no reason. Vet the project the same way you would any off-plan purchase — developer track record, past handover delays, payment plan — a routine our due-diligence checklist walks through.

Planning to exit before handover? Read our breakdown of off-plan assignment first — developers typically allow resale only after a set share of the price is paid.