Dubai: Tired of receiving yet another promotional call from a property broker or real estate agent, despite not having registered your phone number with them?
You can put an end to this – all you have to do is register a complaint with Dubai Land Department (DLD) online through their official website, dubailand.gov.ae. Once you report the cold call, DLD will get back to you in a week with an update.
If a property brokerage is found to be cold calling, it may lead to a suspension of their licence and hefty fines.
Here are the details.
How to report cold calls related to real estate
In Dubai, you can report unwanted calls from real estate agents and brokers online through the ‘Report Malicious Calls’ service from Dubai Land Department.
1. Visit this website: https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/report-malicious-calls/#/, and start filling out the form.
2. Enter the complainant details, which include:
• Your full name
• Email address and mobile number.
Once you enter your mobile number, you will receive a One Time Password (OTP),which you must enter for verification purposes.
3. Next, provide a description of the complaint, and attach any supporting evidence in either of the following formats – jpg, jpeg, png, or pdf.
4. Enter the defendant’s details. Under this section of the form, you must enter the details of the company making the cold calls. You would need to provide the mobile number, and can also add the name and email address.
5. Next, click the ‘Submit’ button.
After you have submitted the complaint, you will receive an email from DLD confirming your request.
How to block all promotional calls in the UAE
If you want to put an end to all unsolicited calls, you can sign up for the UAE’s 'Do Not Call Registry’ (DNCR) by registering your mobile number.
To find out how you can register for DNCR, if you are a Etisalat, Du and Virgin Mobile, click here.
Steps for registering on the ‘Green List’
1. Create an account on the Dubai REST app
You can create an account using any of the following details:
• Unified number (UID number)
• Emirates ID number
• UAE Pass
You will also be asked to provide the following details:
• Full name
• Email address
• Mobile number
• Nationality
• Date of Birth
• Passport number
• Passport issue place
• Date of issuance
• The expiry date of your passport and Emirates ID
Once that is done, upload the front and back of your Emirates ID card.
• Tap on ‘Submit’. You will then receive a verification email. Once you click on the link in the email, your registration will be complete.
2. Register on the Green List
• Once you have created an account on the Dubai REST app, go to the bottom of your screen and tap on ‘services’.
• In the services section, search for ‘Green List’ and tap on it.
• Since you have already registered your Emirates ID number, mobile number and email on the app, simply tap – ‘I would like brokers to get in touch with me for property sale or rent’ and select the services you want to opt for.
• You can now choose the services based on whether you want to buy, sell or lease, the property type, area and budget.
You can also opt out of this service at any time, by unchecking the option for receiving calls from brokers.
Want to receive calls from real estate agents in Dubai? Register on the ‘Green List’
Alternatively, if you are selling or renting a property and are interested in receiving calls from property brokers and agents, you can register on the ‘Green List’ available on ‘Dubai REST’, which is a smartphone application from RERA.
The Green List service was launched by DLD on August 8, 2020, through the ‘Dubai REST’ application, which is available for both Apple and Android devices.
Steps for registering on the ‘Green List’
1. Create an account on the Dubai REST app
The ‘Green List’ is available on the Dubai REST app, but to use this service you must have an account or create a new profile.
You can create an account using any of the following details:
• Unified number (UID number)
• Emirates ID number
• UAE Pass
You will also be asked to provide the following details:
• Full name
• Email address
• Mobile number
• Nationality
• Date of Birth
• Passport number
• Passport issue place
• Date of issuance
• The expiry date of your passport and Emirates ID
Once that is done, upload the front and back of your Emirates ID card.
• Tap on ‘Submit’. You will then receive a verification email. Once you click on the link in the email, your registration will be complete.
2. Register on the Green List
• Once you have created an account on the Dubai REST app, go to the bottom of your screen and tap on ‘services’.
• In the services section, search for ‘Green List’ and tap on it.
• Since you have already registered your Emirates ID number, mobile number and email on the app, simply tap – ‘I would like brokers to get in touch with me for property sale or rent’ and select the services you want to opt for.
• You can now choose the services based on whether you want to buy, sell or lease, the property type, area and budget.
You can also opt out of this service at any time, by unchecking the option for receiving calls from brokers.
