Flat-Sharing Can Attract Fines Of Up To AED200,000 With Several Cases Prosecuted Recently

Sharing accommodation with family, friends or strangers may help you save some bucks but you’ll have to face a hefty fine if you get caught.

In the last 30 months, more than 300 people have been prosecuted in Abu Dhabi courts for violating housing rules.

The laws allow only one family to live in an apartment or villa. Sharing property is not allowed by the law as it’s said to be a threat to the safety and security of the people.

In 2016, there were 297 cases of housing rule violations and 2017 had as many as 434 cases according to Gulf News .

Fines can range from AED10,000 right up to AED200,000 for repeat offences

Sharing accommodation is not allowed for a number of reasons including:

• electric meters can get overloaded and pose a serious threat to the residents of the building.
• can lead to illegal activities such as unlicensed trading, liquor sales and prostitution.
• such houses consume a lot of water and lead garbage to pile up which is unhygienic.