From the UAE you can file a complaint before the Real Estate Regulatory Authority of the Indian state where the project is located, online and through an advocate. If the possession date in your agreement has passed, you may claim a full refund with interest, or possession with interest for each month of delay. Refunds are credited to the account you paid from and can be repatriated.
- Document route
- Indian Embassy or Consulate attestation
- Time difference
- 1.5 hours behind IST
- Handled in India at
- State RERA authority or consumer commission
- Travel to India
- None; hearings online
How it works from the UAE
We read the agreement, compute what is due at the prescribed interest rate and assess the developer's finances, because a refund order is only as good as the builder's ability to pay. A legal notice often opens negotiation. If not, the complaint is filed with the agreement, receipts, brochure and emails; hearings are attended by our advocates and are frequently online.
Where the developer ignores the order, a recovery certificate is sent to the District Collector for attachment of accounts and property. If the company is heading into insolvency, we file your claim there as a financial creditor. Buyers holding several units in the same project file for each, heard together.
What is different for NRIs in the UAE
- Do not accept possession without an occupancy certificate.
- Assured-return promises in the brochure are enforceable.
- A consumer complaint is an alternative forum.
Step by step from the UAE
Free review call
With only ninety minutes between Dubai and India, calls happen in normal office hours. We read your papers on a claim against a builder first, so the call is about your options and not a repeat of the facts.
Authority from UAE
Where a representative must act for you in India on a claim against a builder, you sign before the consular officer at the Embassy in Abu Dhabi or the Consulate in Dubai, generally through the outsourced attestation centre. We draft the document and send signing instructions.
Work in India
In India, we read the agreement against the project registration, send the demand and file the complaint in the forum that suits your claim. Updates for clients in the UAE go by email and WhatsApp with scans of whatever is filed.
Result and handover
At the end you receive the order and we pursue recovery if the builder does not pay. Originals are couriered to your address in the UAE if you need them.
The law in full
This page covers what changes when you handle a claim against a builder from the UAE. For the Indian law, the complete document checklist, common mistakes and more questions, read our main page on Builder Fraud & RERA Complaints. For other matters, see all legal services for NRIs in the UAE or the Property & Real Estate practice area.
Questions from NRIs in the UAE
Can I file a RERA complaint from Dubai?
Yes. Filing is online on the state portal and an authorised advocate appears at hearings.
Will my refund come back to my NRE account?
It is paid to the account from which the purchase was funded, and retains that account's repatriation character.
What if the builder offers a different flat instead?
You are not bound to accept. The right to withdraw and claim refund on delay is yours.