How we write our guides.

No invented people

We do not write characters with first names, employers, or back-stories who don't exist. When a scenario helps explain a rule, we frame it explicitly: "Example: a Dubai tenant paying AED 80,000 in JLT..." The reader knows immediately it's illustrative.

No invented numbers

Every percentage, fee, threshold, and deadline must be sourced. If the authority doesn't publish a specific figure, we write "typical" or "as published by [source]" and link the source. We'd rather say "RTA does not publish an official pass rate; Gulf News reports the average UAE driver needs three attempts" than make up a percentage.

Every fact is verified before publishing

Before any guide goes live, every legal reference, percentage, fee, named institution, and date is checked against a primary source. We check:

• UAE legislation portals — u.ae, uaelegislation.gov.ae, dlp.dubai.gov.ae
• Authority sites — MOHRE, FTA, RTA, DLD, CBUAE, MoI, GPSSA, Federal Authority for Government Human Resources
• Authority-published fee schedules and press releases
• UAE major newspapers (Gulf News, The National, Khaleej Times) for statistics or quotes from officials

Forum posts, Reddit threads, real estate portal blogs, and other UAE calculator sites do not qualify as primary sources.

We check for recent changes

UAE laws change. Federal Law 21 of 1995 was repealed and replaced by Federal Decree-Law 14 of 2024. The annual RERA rental index was replaced by the Smart Rental Index in January 2025. Before publishing or updating any guide, we search for the most recent version of the relevant law — never assuming what we know is current.

Length is not a quality signal

A guide can be 400 words or 2,000 words. The metric is: did the reader leave with the answer they came for and the source URL to verify it? We don't pad to hit a word count. We don't truncate when a topic needs more.

Visuals where they help, not as decoration

We add charts, tier diagrams, timelines, decision flows, and cost-breakdown bars when they let the reader grasp a rule at a glance — not when they pad the page. A visual must encode the same verified data as the prose; nothing in a chart appears that isn't in the cited source. Topics that almost always benefit: tiered ceilings (rent cap, tax bands), time-anchored rules (notice periods, deadlines), and cost-scenario comparisons. Definitional explainers and simple how-tos usually don't need them — prose is fine.

We mark our work

Every guide shows a Last verified date and lists its primary sources at the top. If we ever find a wrong figure in a published guide, we correct it, update the verification date, and note the correction in the commit history.

What our guides are not

Our guides are not legal, tax, or financial advice. They are general information about UAE laws and procedures as understood at the verification date. UAE laws and fees change. For any decision that matters, verify with the relevant authority or a qualified UAE professional.

If you spot something wrong

Email hello@liphyr.com with the URL and the source you have. We fix material errors within the working day and note the correction publicly.