Do UAE tenants now need approved credit checks before signing rental contracts?

Dubai: Is the UAE rental market now entering a new phase of financial screening? Private landlords across the country can now request the credit scores of prospective tenants through a new “Tenant Screening” solution launched by Etihad Credit Bureau in collaboration with UAE PASS.

For UAE residents searching for homes, the move could gradually change how rental applications are assessed. For landlords, it introduces an additional tool to evaluate payment risk before signing tenancy contracts.

The system allows landlords to access a tenant’s credit score only after the tenant approves the request through UAE PASS, the country’s national digital identity platform. The feature was initially previewed at GITEX 2025 by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) and Digital Dubai before being rolled out through the Etihad Credit Bureau mobile app in April 2026.

For tenants in the UAE, the introduction of credit screening means financial history could increasingly become part of the rental evaluation process alongside salary certificates, Emirates IDs, visa status and cheque arrangements.

Under the new system, a landlord can send a request for a prospective tenant’s credit score through the Etihad Credit Bureau platform. The tenant then receives a notification through UAE PASS and decides whether to approve or reject access to the information.

“The information is only shared once tenants accept through their UAE PASS,” Etihad Credit Bureau said. If the tenant declines the request, the landlord cannot access the credit score.

For many UAE residents, particularly those applying for high-demand or high-value properties in areas of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the system could become another factor considered during rental applications.

The platform could also give landlords additional visibility into a tenant’s repayment history when assessing financial reliability linked to rent payments or post-dated cheques.

While the system remains consent-based rather than mandatory, landlords may seek additional financial assurances in some cases where tenants choose to share lower credit profiles, particularly in situations involving:

Etihad Credit Bureau has not announced any minimum score requirements for tenancy approvals, and the system is not currently mandatory for rental contracts.

For landlords, the platform offers a formal financial screening mechanism before entering into tenancy agreements. Until now, many landlords relied primarily on:

The Tenant Screening system adds verified credit information into that process. Still, landlords are likely to assess broader indicators tied to a tenant’s financial behaviour, including repayment consistency and overall credit exposure. The service may become particularly relevant for landlords leasing:

In those segments, landlords often face larger financial exposure if tenants default or delay payments.

A key part of the initiative is the use of UAE PASS as the approval gateway for sharing financial data. Officials described the platform as part of the UAE’s expanding “digital trust infrastructure” that supports secure consent management and trusted data exchange.

Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, Director General of Digital Dubai, said: “UAE PASS has evolved into a cornerstone of the UAE’s digital trust infrastructure, extending beyond digital identity to enable secure consent management and trusted data exchange.”

He added: “Our collaboration with Etihad Credit Bureau reflects a strategic step toward activating a responsible data economy, empowering individuals with control over their data while enabling its use to deliver more transparent, efficient, and user-centric services.”

For UAE residents, that means the system is designed so tenants retain control over whether their financial information is shared.

The launch represents a broader expansion of Etihad Credit Bureau’s role beyond traditional banking and lending services. Marwan Ahmad Lutfi, Director General of Etihad Credit Bureau, described the initiative as a practical digital solution aligned with market needs.

“Tenant Screening is an excellent example of the positive outcomes that result from close collaboration with our strategic partners in government and the private sector to deliver digital services that are practical, easy to use, and aligned with market needs,” he said.

He added: “By integrating the sharing of trusted credit data through the well-established UAE PASS platform, along with enhancing cheque scanning with AI, we continue to boost transparency and confidence with new use cases in key sectors.”

Alongside Tenant Screening, Etihad Credit Bureau also upgraded its existing Cheque Clearance Indicator feature using artificial intelligence. The bureau said the system can help cheque recipients assess the likelihood of a cheque being cleared based on the issuer’s credit records.

In practical terms, this could become relevant for UAE landlords who still rely heavily on post-dated rent cheques. Officials said the combined services could help reduce:

The bureau also said the services are intended to “boost confidence across real estate transactions.”

The UAE does not currently have a mandatory tenant credit-check system similar to some international markets. Still, the launch could gradually influence expectations between tenants, landlords and property managers.

Over time, UAE residents applying for homes may increasingly encounter requests to share credit information as part of rental applications. Credit data could also eventually become one of several factors considered during discussions around:

The initiative also aligns with the UAE government’s broader digital transformation agenda.

Eng. Majed Sultan Al Mesmar, Director General of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, said the initiative supports the UAE’s vision of “building an interconnected digital ecosystem that enables trusted data exchange.”

He added that the collaboration reflects the country’s commitment to “advancing innovative digital business models that support the digital economy and advance the goals of digital transformation.”

Some questions UAE residents and landlords will have in the coming months as the service rolls out:

The bureau said it plans to continue developing the Tenant Screening platform with the real estate sector and expand additional consent-based services using UAE PASS.

For UAE tenants and landlords alike, the launch signals a gradual shift toward more data-driven leasing decisions, where verified financial information could increasingly become part of rental evaluations.