Landlord Demanding More Rent? Check the DLD Calculator Before You Sign
If your lease renewal is approaching, you don’t have to guess whether a rent hike is legal. The Dubai Land Department (DLD) operates an official online rental index calculator that tells you exactly whether your landlord can raise your rent and by how much. Rental adjustments across the emirate are regulated by Decree No. 43 of 2013 On Determining the Increase in the Real-Estate Rentals in the Emirate of Dubai, which ties any permitted increase directly to official market benchmarks.
How the Official Index Works
The DLD calculator determines permissible rent hikes by comparing your current annual rent against average rental rates for similar properties in your area. The system factors in your specific building classification, amenities, and bedroom count to establish an average price range for comparable units.
If your current rent is aligned with local averages, no increase is permitted upon renewal. If your rent sits significantly below the area’s baseline market rate, Decree No. 43 of 2013 establishes the maximum percentage cap your landlord can apply.
What This Means for Tenants and Landlords
For tenants, the calculator provides immediate legal clarity before signing a renewal contract. You aren’t required to accept an arbitrary rate hike simply because your lease is ending; any proposed increase must match the official percentage authorized by the DLD platform.
For landlords, the portal sets clear boundary lines prior to issuing contract renewal notices. Adjusting rent beyond the official rate calculated under Decree No. 43 of 2013 is prohibited, keeping all property adjustments tethered to official real estate data.
How to Check Your Rent Limit Step by Step
You can verify your renewal rates directly through the Dubai Land Department rental index portal.
- Visit the official portal at `https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/rental-index/rental-index/#/`.
- Enter your lease contract end date.
- Select your property type: hotel apartment, apartment, or villa.
- Choose your search method: enter your DEWA Premise Number (found on your water and electricity bill), your Ejari contract number, or select your residential area from the dropdown menu.
- Enter the exact annual rent you currently pay.
- Click calculate.
Suhail star UAE 2026 rises in Khor Fakkan amid fog
Thick Fog Hides the Suhail Star in Khor Fakkan on August 24 Rising
Down along the Khor Fakkan coastline, early morning visibility took a direct hit on Monday as a thick blanket of fog and heavy humidity rolled in, obscuring what astronomers look for all summer long.
Ibrahim Al Jarwan, chairman of the Emirates Astronomy Society, was on site in Khor Fakkan to document the event as part of ongoing efforts to track the star's arrival from different points across the country, following previous observations from Jebel Hafeet in Al Ain, Jebel Jais, and various southern and coastal spots. But nature had other plans for the calendar.
While calculations peg August 24 as the exact date for the star’s annual rise, catching it with the naked eye on day one is rare. Over the past 10 years, actual sightings generally happened between August 26 and 28, with only one or two sightings on August 24 itself over that entire decade. Humidity climbing past 80 per cent, combined with morning fog, dust, and local lights, kept the Star of Yemen entirely out of sight this morning.
Residents hoping for an immediate break from the outdoor heat shouldn't pack away their summer gear just yet. The appearance kicks off Sufriya, a roughly 40-day transitional period where the intensity of the summer begins to ease, but the change takes its time.
Daytime temperatures are set to remain high through September. The shift shows up first after dark, bringing noticeably milder nights while lingering daytime heat behaves much like a cooking pot that stays hot long after the flame turns off.
Clearer weather is expected to push through in the coming days. Ordinary clear skies should give the general public a clear, naked-eye view of the star starting around August 28.
US Proposes $103,265 H-1B Visa Fee for High-Skilled Work
$103,265 Per Worker: US Moves to Make Massive H-1B Fee Permanent
The US Department of Homeland Security has proposed a regulation to make permanent a $103,265 fee on new H-1B visas for specialty foreign workers. Posted online in the Federal Register, the proposed rule opens a 30-day public comment window and could be finalized by the end of 2026. The action seeks to solidify an emergency policy first established under a presidential proclamation in September 2025, which is set to expire next month.
Cost Impact on Sponsoring Companies
The proposed fee fundamentally reshapes the economics of hiring international talent, directly affecting US companies, technology providers, universities, and research institutes. Standard H-1B filing fees historically ranged between $2,000 and $5,000 per worker. Under the proposed structure, employers would face a massive financial obligation for each newly hired employee under the program's annual statutory limits, currently set at 65,000 general visas and 20,000 visas reserved for advanced degree holders.
Demand for the specialty visas has already dropped significantly under the heightened fee environment. Data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services shows employers registered for roughly 344,000 H-1B visas last year. That represents a decline of over 25 percent compared to 2024 and less than half of the 794,000 registrations submitted in 2023. Court filings indicate that as of late February, roughly 70 employers had paid the previous $100,000 fee across 85 visa applications.
Regulatory Deadlines and Legal Challenges
Because this rule is undergoing formal administrative rulemaking, affected entities have an immediate timeline to respond before the policy becomes final.
- Submit formal written feedback through the Federal Register during the official 30-day public comment window.
- Review long-term international staffing budgets and pending petition pipelines ahead of potential finalization by the end of the year.
- Monitor federal court proceedings challenging the regulation. A federal judge blocked the temporary fee in June, ruling it illegal. That decision is currently under review by a Boston-based appeals court, alongside separate litigation led by the US Chamber of Commerce, state attorneys general, and labor unions.
| Visa Filing Category | Historical Standard Fee | Proposed Permanent Fee |
|---|---|---|
| New H-1B Petition Fee | $2,000 to $5,000 | $103,265 |
China AI jobs hit by mass cuts as 47.5% of firms adopt tech
Industrial AI usage jumps to 47.5% as workforce faces displacement
China's accelerating deployment of artificial intelligence is triggering job losses across software development, media production, and logistics, as corporate adoption expands under national policy incentives. Software coders, translators, and delivery workers face immediate displacement or severe wage reductions as enterprise implementation of AI models and automated robotics systems scales across the domestic market.
Industrial AI adoption rose to 47.5% as video production dropped 75%
The share of Chinese industrial enterprises using artificial intelligence models and automated agents rose to 47.5% last year, up from 9.6% in 2024, according to market intelligence firm IDC. In Beijing, computer programmer Fei Zhaojun, 40, was laid off alongside approximately 160 colleagues after management evaluated automated coding tools, reflecting a pattern of retrenchment across technology teams. Media sectors face similar disruptions, with production of live-action short and vertical video series designed for mobile phones falling about 75% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period a year earlier as generative AI tools substitute traditional filming pipelines. In Chengdu, part-time translator Du Qinchun reported that overall industry compensation has dropped by more than half compared to prior years, even as workers take temporary contracts to train machine translation models.
Plenum senior analyst Shujing He noted that tasks previously requiring specialized training can now be executed by general staff using AI tools, heightening displacement risks for workers in narrowly focused roles. Physical automation is simultaneously moving into blue-collar industries, where humanoid robots sort parcels in postal centers and automated food delivery robots threaten the livelihoods of millions of courier workers nationwide.
India student protests: Amnesty cites electric shocks, guns
Amnesty Cites Electric Shock Devices, Pellet Guns in Youth Rally Probe
Indian security forces deployed electric shock devices, pellet guns, and batons against youth demonstrators in New Delhi and Bihar during July demonstrations over national exam leaks, rights group Amnesty International stated on Monday. The findings challenge official police accounts, adding international scrutiny to law enforcement actions as human rights organizations and legal bodies press for accountability following the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan last month.
Supreme Court sets up investigative panel as documented abuses spark formal police case
In Bihar's Siwan district, verified visual evidence confirmed a police officer unlawfully used lethal force against a crowd in two separate instances, while demonstrators in Delhi faced pellet-firing shotguns, tear gas launchers, and stun weapons. Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi staged a sit-in at a Delhi police station alongside a 19-year-old demonstrator wounded by pellets during the July 20 march toward parliament, prompting officers to formally register a criminal case over the complaint.
The violent crackdown follows weeks of expanding demonstrations organized by the online Cockroach Janta Party that began over the Neet-UG 2026 medical entrance exam leak and evolved into widespread youth protests against unemployment and governance.
UAE Travel Ban, Iran Sanctions Escalation Hits Markets
Oil Hits $93.30 as Washington Prepares Historic Iran Sanctions
Washington unveiled plans to impose the toughest economic sanctions in history against Iran, prompting sharp threats from Tehran as naval transit through the Strait of Hormuz remains heavily restricted. Regional airline operators are adjusting flight corridors while financial institutions and energy traders evaluate the fallout of mounting geopolitical friction across the Middle East.
Dubai Index Gains 0.3% as Crude Prices Ease to $93.30
Dubai’s main stock index closed up 0.3% on Friday following two consecutive losing sessions, anchored by a 3.1% surge in Emirates Integrated Telecommunications (du) and a 1.3% advance in Mashreq Bank. Despite those domestic equity gains, crude oil prices slipped 0.5% to $93.30 a barrel by 1139 GMT as investors parsed broader security risks across the Arabian Gulf. Joseph Dahrieh, managing director at Tickmill, confirmed that local equity markets remained range-bound throughout the week as traders monitored shifting energy prices and military developments.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the United States is finalizing its most severe sanctions regime to date against Iran, calling on international partners including Beijing to enforce the measures. Beijing rejected the pressure campaign, maintaining that unilateral sanctions will not resolve the diplomatic standoff. US Vice President JD Vance described economic leverage as Washington’s primary mechanism while acknowledging that balancing sanctions against global energy costs requires a delicate approach. Tehran condemned the planned US measures as illegal, warning that any government assisting the American sanctions strategy will be treated as an enemy state.
The economic confrontation coincides with heightened military activity across the region. The United States designated Hezbollah as an Iranian proxy, citing direct operational links to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and announced fresh sanctions targeting the group following overnight Israeli airstrikes and artillery bombardments in southern Lebanon.
The strategic realignment occurs as the US Navy begins rotating its aircraft carriers out of the region following an extended operational deployment.
