Who the DIFC register accepts
Registration with the DIFC Courts Wills Service rests on three conditions: you are not Muslim and have never been Muslim, you are at least 18, and you hold assets in the UAE or have minor children residing with you here. Residency and visas are not required — the roughly 20-minute signing appointment runs by video call or in the office from anywhere in the world.
Checked before any fee is paid
One firm rule to know early: a basic grasp of English is required at signing, since translators are not accepted. Before any fee is paid we confirm eligibility against these conditions, and we confirm the route itself — families seated in Abu Dhabi may belong with ADJD civil will registration under Abu Dhabi Law No. 14 of 2021 instead. Arriving with a complete draft prepared to the authority checklist is what stops a file stalling at this stage.
The signing appointment and the fees around it
At the appointment a Compliance Officer verifies identity, reads over the terms with you and two witnesses, and you sign electronically — the electronic will is the original, held by the Registry for 120 years from your date of birth, and you download a registered copy at the end. Witnesses must be 18 or older, carry a passport or Emirates ID, and must not be beneficiaries or guardians or their spouses.
What the registry charges today
Registry fees are published by the authority: a Full Will is AED 10,000 single or 15,000 mirror, a Property Will AED 7,500 or 10,000, and Guardianship, Business Owners, Financial Assets and Digital Assets wills AED 5,000 or 7,500 each, all exempt from VAT, with modification at AED 550 and withdrawal free. Our advisory fee is separate and quoted at consultation — always confirm current figures on the official schedule.
What registration does and does not settle
A registered will sits on the record the probate office opens first. Appointed guardians each sign a Guardianship Statement at registration, so care for minor children is settled in advance.
Limits and the road to distribution
The limits are equally official: registration is not legal advice, it does not guarantee enforcement outside the UAE, UAE real property follows UAE law, anything contradicting public order is void, and any interested party may contest the will. The estate itself is distributed only after funeral, administration, executor and debt obligations are settled in that statutory order — which is the work of DIFC wills probate once the testator has passed.
What registration does — and what it does not do
What it does
- Puts your will on the official register under Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017
- The court can issue probate orders confirming who administers the estate
- Covers your UAE assets, including those acquired after registration
What it does not do
- Replace legal advice — the Wills Service itself does not draft or advise
- Guarantee enforcement of assets outside the UAE
- Stop an interested party from contesting the will in court
- Distribute the estate before funeral, administration and debts are settled
DIFC Courts Wills Service — The DIFC Courts Wills Service administers registration for non-Muslims under Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017.
Abu Dhabi Judicial Department — Civil Wills Section — The Civil Wills Section of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department registers civil wills under Abu Dhabi Law No. 14 of 2021.
Dubai Courts — The Dubai Courts register Muslim wills and hear estate and inheritance files onshore — including probate where no DIFC or ADJD registration exists.
What registration gives you
Registration places your signed will on the DIFC Courts record under Dubai Law No. 15 of 2017, so the will the court opens is the will you signed.
A will the court can act on
An unregistered draft is paper in a drawer. A registered will sits on the official record the probate office opens first.
Virtual signing from anywhere
The roughly 20-minute signing appointment runs by video call or in the office, and residency or a visa is not required.
Guardians on the record
Appointed guardians each sign a Guardianship Statement at registration, so care for minor children is settled in advance.
Kept for 120 years
The electronic will is the original and the Registry retains it for 120 years from your date of birth, with a registered copy for your files.
When this service is NOT what you need
Registration is the wrong answer more often than people expect. Four honest disqualifiers.
You are Muslim
The DIFC register is closed to Muslims by rule. Our Muslim wills service through the onshore courts route is the correct path instead.
No UAE assets and no minor children here
Registration exists for non-Muslims with UAE assets or minor children residing in the UAE. If neither applies, a home-country will may be enough.
You need to change an existing DIFC will
There are no codicils. Any change means a fresh text and a modification appointment, currently AED 550. Ask for that appointment, not a first registration.
The will exists but the estate must now be distributed
Registration does not distribute the estate. Once the testator has passed, you need our probate section, which settles funeral and administration obligations first.
Who registers here
The families and investors who use the DIFC Courts record most.
Non-Muslim property owner
You hold Dubai real estate and want the will the Land Department and the court will actually open.
Chat About Your CaseParents of minor children
You live in Dubai with young children and want guardians recorded with signed statements, not left to inference.
Chat About Your CaseOverseas investor, no visa
You own UAE assets but live abroad and want the virtual signing route completed without relocating.
Chat About Your CaseSpouses signing together
You and your spouse want mirror wills done in one joint appointment, each with your own witnesses.
Chat About Your CaseRegistered with help versus on your own
The registry accepts anyone who arrives prepared. Preparation is where files stall, so compare the two paths honestly.
| Aspect | With SRAG | On your own |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility check | We confirm the three registry conditions before you pay any fee, including the non-Muslim requirement. | You read the eligibility pages yourself and risk a rejected appointment if one condition fails. |
| Draft readiness | Your draft arrives complete because we prepared it to the authority checklist, and the registry does not draft wills. | You arrive with the official template or your own text and answer the officer's questions alone. |
| Witnesses and ID | We brief your two witnesses on the age, ID, and non-beneficiary rules so the appointment is not adjourned. | You arrange witnesses yourself and learn the exclusion rules in the room if one is disqualified. |
| Appointment handling | We book the video or in-office appointment and walk you through identity verification and the read-over. | You book through the registry portal and prepare from the published guidance alone. |
| English requirement | We tell you plainly up front that a basic grasp of English is required, since translators are not accepted at signing. | You discover the language rule at the appointment, when it is too late to rearrange. |
| Later changes | We flag the revocation triggers like a later marriage and handle the AED 550 modification appointment when wishes change. | You track the no-codicils rule and the marriage-revocation effect yourself and re-register unaided. |
Eligibility check
With SRAG
We confirm the three registry conditions before you pay any fee, including the non-Muslim requirement.
On your own
You read the eligibility pages yourself and risk a rejected appointment if one condition fails.
Draft readiness
With SRAG
Your draft arrives complete because we prepared it to the authority checklist, and the registry does not draft wills.
On your own
You arrive with the official template or your own text and answer the officer's questions alone.
Witnesses and ID
With SRAG
We brief your two witnesses on the age, ID, and non-beneficiary rules so the appointment is not adjourned.
On your own
You arrange witnesses yourself and learn the exclusion rules in the room if one is disqualified.
Appointment handling
With SRAG
We book the video or in-office appointment and walk you through identity verification and the read-over.
On your own
You book through the registry portal and prepare from the published guidance alone.
English requirement
With SRAG
We tell you plainly up front that a basic grasp of English is required, since translators are not accepted at signing.
On your own
You discover the language rule at the appointment, when it is too late to rearrange.
Later changes
With SRAG
We flag the revocation triggers like a later marriage and handle the AED 550 modification appointment when wishes change.
On your own
You track the no-codicils rule and the marriage-revocation effect yourself and re-register unaided.
Why SRAG Wills for DIFC Will Registration
Registration is an administrative process with strict formalities. Our value is getting the file right the first time and staying with it until the will is on the record.
The right route, confirmed first
DIFC or the ADJD Civil Wills Section under Abu Dhabi Law No. 14 of 2021. We advise which register fits your family before drafting begins.
Files built to the checklist
Signed draft and identity documents checked against the authority's own list before anything is submitted, so appointments hold.
Appointments handled for you
Booking, witness briefing, and a plain-language walkthrough of the 20-minute signing, by video or in the office.
One contact throughout
A single point of contact from eligibility to the registered copy, reachable on WhatsApp with replies within one business day.
How registration works
Document check
We check your signed draft and identity documents against the authority's checklist before anything is submitted.
Appointment
We book your registration appointment and prepare you for what happens in the room — identity verification and confirmation of your wishes.
On the record
The authority places your will on its record. You keep the confirmation with your signed copy.
Register your will properly
Signed draft in hand? We take it from there — appointment, paperwork, and follow-up.
We respond within one business day.
Disclaimer: SRAG Wills is a wills consultancy, not a law firm or government body. Registration is completed with the DIFC Courts Wills Service or ADJD; Muslim wills, and estate and inheritance cases, are filed with the Dubai Courts.