A DIFC will lets a non-Muslim who owns assets in the UAE say who inherits them, instead of leaving that question to default succession rules. Registration costs between AED 5,000 and AED 15,000 depending on which will you choose and whether it covers one person or a couple, according to the DIFC Courts fee schedule retrieved 5 August 2026. There is no annual fee.
That last sentence is the part most sources get wrong. Registration costs circulate widely in US dollars, often alongside a reference to an annual update charge. Neither appears anywhere on the schedule the DIFC Courts publishes, which is denominated in dirhams and lists no recurring cost at all.
One more thing worth knowing: the whole registration, witnesses included, can be done by video conference from anywhere in the world. You do not have to be in Dubai, and you do not have to be a UAE resident. This guide covers who qualifies, which of the six wills to pick, what each step costs, and where a will stops and a structure has to take over. If you are still choosing between instruments, our overview of UAE wealth structuring vehicles sets the four side by side.
This is general information, not legal advice. Outcomes depend on your nationality, religion, residence and where your assets sit. Take advice in every relevant jurisdiction before you register anything.
Key TakeawaysRegistration runs from AED 5,000 for a single Guardianship, Business Owners, Financial Assets or Digital Assets will to AED 15,000 for a mirror Full Will, per the DIFC Courts fee schedule retrieved 5 August 2026. There is no annual fee.Figures quoted in US dollars for will registration do not match that schedule, which is priced in dirhams. Registration fees are not subject to 5% VAT.Eligibility is narrow but not residency-based: non-Muslim and never having been Muslim, aged 21 or over, and either owning UAE assets or having minor children resident in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah, per the DIFC Courts wills FAQ.Registration by video conference is open to testators and witnesses anywhere in the world, which makes the service workable for overseas owners who never intend to move to the UAE.A foundation only controls what it owns. Anything still in your own name, plus guardianship of minor children, needs a will.
In this article:
- What a DIFC will does
- Before you begin: who can register
- Step 1: Choose which of the six wills you need
- Step 2: Decide between a single and a mirror will
- Step 3: Budget every fee, not just the headline one
- Step 4: Sign and register by video conference
- Step 5: Keep the will current
- A will and a foundation solve different problems
- Where this goes wrong
- Frequently asked questions
- Where to start
What a DIFC will does
A DIFC will directs the UAE assets still held in your own name and, depending on the form you choose, appoints guardians for minor children. It is registered with the DIFC Courts Wills Service, the registry that holds the document and later handles the estate. The governing law is Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017, per the DIFC Courts, retrieved 5 August 2026.
Three words carry most of the weight here. The testator is the person making the will. Probate is the court process that confirms the will is valid and gives the named executor authority to deal with the estate. Forced heirship is any rule of law that hands named relatives a fixed share of an estate regardless of what the will says.
Be precise about what the DIFC route achieves. For non-Muslims, Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017 provides an opt-out over their UAE assets, so those assets can pass under the terms of the registered will and through the DIFC Courts. It is not a general override of Sharia. For Muslim testators, Sharia succession can still apply to certain UAE assets. If you are weighing this against an entity-based approach, how a DIFC foundation works covers the alternative.
Before you begin: who can register
Eligibility is a short checklist, and residency is not on it. The DIFC Courts wills FAQ, retrieved 5 August 2026, sets these conditions:
- You are not Muslim, and you have never been Muslim.
- You are aged 21 or over.
- You either own assets in the UAE, or you have minor children resident in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah.
- You are of sound mind.
- You are not subject to bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings.
UAE residency is not required. A non-resident who owns Dubai property, holds a UAE bank account or owns shares in a UAE company qualifies on the strength of those assets alone, which rules the service in for many overseas owners who assume it is closed to them.
Have ready: the UAE assets you want covered, full names and passport details for beneficiaries and executors, and, if minor children are involved, your proposed guardians.
Step 1: Choose which of the six wills you need
By the end of this step you will know which form to book, and that is the single decision that sets your fee. The Wills Service offers six registrable wills. Five are deliberately narrow, so a testator with one type of asset does not pay for coverage they do not need.
- Full Will (Form 1) covers all your UAE assets and can appoint guardians. Broadest option, highest fee.
- Property Will (Form 3) covers up to five UAE properties.
- Guardianship Will (Form 2) appoints guardians for minor children and does nothing else. A Guardianship Will is the only instrument here that names who raises your children, which no company, trust or foundation can do.
- Business Owners Will (Form 4) covers shares in up to five UAE companies. If those shares sit inside a holding structure rather than in your own name, read our note on UAE holding company structures first.
- Financial Assets Will (Form 5) covers up to ten UAE bank or investment accounts.
- Digital Assets Will (Form 6) covers digital holdings.
The asset caps are the trap. Five properties, five companies, ten accounts. Cross a ceiling and the narrow will no longer covers your position, which usually points to the Full Will. The forms and their limits come from the DIFC Courts wills FAQ and the DIFC Courts fee schedule, both retrieved 5 August 2026.
Step 2: Decide between a single and a mirror will
A mirror will is a matching pair registered together for a couple, and choosing it over two separate wills is where most couples save money. Each partner still has their own will; the two documents mirror each other, typically leaving everything to the survivor and then to the same beneficiaries.
The saving is real. Two single Full Wills cost AED 20,000 in service fees. The mirror version is AED 15,000. On a Guardianship Will the comparison is AED 10,000 against AED 7,500, per the DIFC Courts fee schedule retrieved 5 August 2026.
Mirror wills suit couples whose intentions genuinely match. Where they do not, a second marriage with children from a first being the common case, two separate wills are usually cleaner even at the higher combined fee.
Step 3: Budget every fee, not just the headline one
The registration fee is not the only line item, and the booking fee behaves in a way that catches people out. The full published schedule:
| Item | Single (AED) | Mirror (AED) |
|---|---|---|
| Full Will (Form 1) | 10,000 | 15,000 |
| Property Will (Form 3), up to 5 UAE properties | 7,500 | 10,000 |
| Guardianship Will (Form 2) | 5,000 | 7,500 |
| Business Owners Will (Form 4), up to 5 UAE companies | 5,000 | 7,500 |
| Financial Assets Will (Form 5), up to 10 UAE accounts | 5,000 | 7,500 |
| Digital Assets Will (Form 6) | 5,000 | 7,500 |
| Booking fee, charged separately | 1,000 | 2,000 |
| Modification, per will | 550 (plus 55 booking) | 550 (plus 55 booking) |
| Inspection | 375 | 375 |
| Withdrawal | Free | Free |
| Standing search | 1,500 | 1,500 |
All figures come from the DIFC Courts fee schedule, retrieved 5 August 2026. Registration fees are not subject to 5% VAT.
The booking fee is deductible but not refundable. It comes off the service fee if you go ahead, so in the ordinary case it costs nothing extra. Cancel before registration and AED 1,000 per will is gone. Book when you are ready, not while you are still deciding which form you need.
Now the correction this topic needs. Fee figures quoted in US dollars for DIFC will registration, and any reference to an annual update service fee, do not match the schedule above. The DIFC Courts price wills in dirhams and publish no recurring charge of any kind. A registered will sits in the registry until you modify or withdraw it, and neither event runs on a calendar.
Step 4: Sign and register by video conference
You finish this step with a will signed before at least two witnesses and deposited with the registry. That deposit is the moment it becomes a registered DIFC will rather than a draft.
The witnessing requirement is the part people plan around, and it no longer requires a trip. Full virtual registration by video conference is available to testators and witnesses anywhere in the world, per the DIFC Courts wills FAQ retrieved 5 August 2026. Testator in London, witnesses in two other countries, registry officer in Dubai: that combination is supported.
Pair that with the residency point above and the reach of the service widens. Someone who bought a Dubai apartment as an investment, and has never lived in the UAE, can register a Property Will over it without boarding a plane.
Confirm the step worked by checking that the registry has issued its confirmation of registration. A signed document in your own drawer is not a registered will.
Step 5: Keep the will current
Changing a registered will costs AED 550 plus an AED 55 booking fee and withdrawing one costs nothing, so maintenance is event-driven rather than calendar-driven. There is no renewal to diarise. Four post-registration services appear on the DIFC Courts fee schedule, retrieved 5 August 2026: modification at AED 550 per will plus AED 55 booking, inspection at AED 375, withdrawal free of charge, and a standing search at AED 1,500.
Review the will when something structural changes: a marriage or divorce, a birth, a property bought or sold, a new UAE company, or crossing a cap from Step 1. A Property Will that covered four apartments does not stretch to a sixth.
One point on probate deserves care, because the misinformation runs in the same direction as the fee claims. The DIFC Courts fee page publishes no application fee for a Grant of Probate. It does publish an "Objection to a Probate Order" fee of USD 300 to USD 2,000, which is a different service and should never be quoted as the cost of applying. If you are given a probate application figure, ask which published line it comes from. Company owners should also read UAE corporate tax rules, which sit outside the will entirely.
A will and a foundation solve different problems
A foundation only controls what it owns, so anything still registered in your own name falls outside it, and no foundation can appoint a guardian for a child. That is the whole distinction, and it is why plenty of families hold both rather than choosing.
Two different questions are being answered. A foundation answers who controls the assets transferred into it. A will answers what happens to everything that has not been transferred, plus who raises the children. Keep a bank account, a car and a second property in your own name, and the will is the only instrument covering them.
Demand for the entity side has grown fast. DIFC foundations reached 1,409 by mid-2026, up 67% in twelve months, per the Dubai Media Office on 28 July 2026. More structures does not mean fewer wills. It usually means narrower ones, scoped to residual assets rather than the whole estate. Our guide to DIFC foundation setup and cost covers what a transfer involves.
Abu Dhabi offers its own equivalent, and the choice of centre is separate from the choice of instrument. See the ADGM foundation route for that comparison.
Where this goes wrong
Five assumptions cause most of the wasted money and most of the gaps.
Treating a will and a foundation as alternatives. They cover different assets, and only a will names guardians. Choosing one and calling the job done leaves something uncovered.
Buying the narrow will when the estate has outgrown it. The caps are five properties, five companies and ten accounts. A sixth property is not a partial gap; it sits outside the will entirely.
Booking while still deciding. The booking fee comes off the service fee, but AED 1,000 per will is not refundable if you cancel before registration.
Budgeting from a US dollar quote. No dollar figure for will registration appears on the DIFC Courts fee schedule, and neither does an annual fee.
Assuming the emirate makes no difference. The two eligibility limbs are not scoped the same way. The asset limb refers to UAE assets, while the guardianship limb is scoped to minor children resident in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah, per the DIFC Courts wills FAQ retrieved 5 August 2026. If your property, company or children sit in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or another emirate, put the scope question to the DIFC Courts Wills Service and get the answer confirmed before you book, rather than assuming coverage. Treat it the way you should treat a probate figure: ask which published line the answer comes from.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a DIFC will cost, and is there an annual fee?
Registration runs from AED 5,000 for a single Guardianship, Business Owners, Financial Assets or Digital Assets will to AED 15,000 for a mirror Full Will, plus a booking fee of AED 1,000 single or AED 2,000 mirror that is deducted from the service fee. There is no annual fee and no annual update service fee, and registration fees are not subject to 5% VAT, per the DIFC Courts fee schedule retrieved 5 August 2026.
Do I need to be a UAE resident to register a DIFC will?
No. Residency is not a condition. You must be non-Muslim and never have been Muslim, aged 21 or over, and either own UAE assets or have minor children resident in Dubai or Ras Al Khaimah, per the DIFC Courts wills FAQ. A non-resident who owns Dubai property, a UAE bank account or shares in a UAE company qualifies on the asset limb.
Can I register without travelling to Dubai?
Yes. Registration by video conference is available to testators and witnesses anywhere in the world. The will still has to be signed before at least two witnesses and deposited with the registry; the video option removes the travel, not the formalities.
I already have a DIFC foundation. Do I still need a will?
Almost certainly. A foundation governs only what has actually been transferred into it, so anything left in your own name is untouched, and no foundation can appoint guardians for minor children. Compare the instruments in our overview of the four UAE structuring vehicles.
What if I need to change the will later?
Modification costs AED 550 per will plus an AED 55 booking fee, and withdrawal is free, per the DIFC Courts fee schedule retrieved 5 August 2026. There is no renewal, so changes are event-driven: a marriage, a divorce, a birth, a property bought or sold, or crossing an asset cap.
Where to start
Work out which form fits your assets, check the caps in Step 1, then price the single and mirror versions against each other before you book. The booking fee is the only irreversible cost here, so it belongs at the end of the decision rather than the start.
If part of the estate is heading into an entity instead, read the foundation's main advantages next, then scope the will to whatever stays in your own name.
Written by
Amine Derag
Director of Strategy, Ancova Associates
Amine Derag is Director of Strategy at Ancova Associates, the Dubai advisory firm for company formation, residency, citizenship by investment, and cross-border tax structuring. He advises founders and private clients relocating to the UAE on how a UAE structure interacts with their home-country tax and reporting obligations.
Connect on LinkedInThis article is general information for educational purposes only and is not legal, tax, financial, or immigration advice. Investment thresholds, processing times, and program terms change — speak with a qualified Ancova adviser before acting.
