Form A in Dubai: The RERA Listing Mandate Every Property Sale Starts With

Form A is the RERA-issued Broker Listing Agreement that gives a real estate agent the legal mandate to market a property in Dubai. Without it, no agent can list a property on Property Finder, Bayut, Dubizzle, or any other portal — and no buyer can be confident they are dealing with an agent who actually represents the seller.

formadubai.ae is the dedicated Dubai reference on Form A, maintained by Cendale Documents Clearing Services FZCO. The site covers what Form A does, why it matters to both sides of a transaction, and the requirements for executing it correctly.

What Form A Does

Form A is the standardised Broker Listing Agreement issued under the authority of the Dubai Land Department (DLD) and the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA). Its function is simple and decisive: it transfers the owner’s mandate to market the property to a specific licensed broker.

Once Form A is signed and registered through the Dubai REST application, the named agent has the legal authority to list the property on portals, issue marketing materials, conduct viewings, and negotiate offers on the owner’s behalf. Without Form A, an agent has no mandate — and any marketing they undertake is unauthorised, regardless of what the owner may have agreed verbally.

This is why Form A sits at the foundation of every legitimate Dubai property listing.

Why Form A Is Mandatory to List Any Property

In Dubai, a property cannot be listed for sale through a broker without Form A. This is not a best-practice guideline — it is a regulatory requirement enforced through the Trakheesi advertising permit system.

Every portal listing on Property Finder, Bayut, Dubizzle, or any other approved platform must display a valid Trakheesi permit number. That Trakheesi permit can only be issued against a registered Form A. The chain is unbreakable:

No Form A → No Trakheesi permit → No legal listing.

Listings that appear without a valid Trakheesi number are non-compliant and subject to immediate removal, broker fines, and potential suspension of the brokerage’s licence. Owners who allow unregistered marketing also expose themselves to disputed commission claims and complications when the transaction reaches Form F.

This regulatory architecture is deliberate: it gives DLD and RERA full visibility over who is marketing what, on whose authority, and at what price.

What Form A Signals to Buyers

For buyers, Form A is the trust marker that separates a legitimate agent from someone speculatively forwarding a listing.

When an agent has Form A, they have the seller’s mandate. They can:

Confirm the property is genuinely available for sale at the stated price
Provide the Trakheesi permit number for verification
Negotiate on the owner’s behalf with binding effect
Progress the transaction directly to Form F (MOU) once terms are agreed
Access the title deed, NOC documentation, and DLD records needed to complete

When an agent does not have Form A, none of this holds. They are forwarding a listing they have no authority over — often picked up from another broker’s marketing. Buyers dealing with such agents commonly experience price discrepancies, unavailable properties, viewing cancellations, and failed negotiations because the agent cannot actually bind the seller to anything.

The simplest buyer protection in Dubai is to ask the agent for the Trakheesi number on the listing and confirm it traces back to a registered Form A. A legitimate mandate-holding agent will provide this without hesitation.

What Form A Signals to Owners

For owners, Form A is the control mechanism over who can legally represent the property.

Signing Form A is a deliberate appointment. It records:

Which agent or brokerage holds the mandate
The agreed listing price
The commission payable on successful sale
The duration of the engagement
Whether the listing is exclusive or non-exclusive

Owners who sign Form A casually — or who allow agents to “test the market” without formal documentation — typically end up with the same property listed at different prices across multiple portals, sometimes by agents the owner has never spoken to. This damages the property’s perceived market position and creates commission disputes when offers eventually arrive.

A properly executed Form A puts the owner in control: one agreed price, one mandate-holder (or a defined set of non-exclusive holders), and a clear contractual basis for commission.

Exclusive vs Non-Exclusive Form A

Form A allows the owner to choose between two engagement models, and the choice determines how the mandate is held.

Exclusive Form A. The mandate sits with a single broker for a defined period, typically three to six months. Only that broker may list and market the property during the exclusivity term.

Commission is paid to the exclusive broker on any successful sale during the term, regardless of how the buyer was sourced. In return, the broker generally invests more heavily in marketing, professional photography, premium portal placements, and qualified-buyer matching.

Non-Exclusive Form A. The mandate is shared across multiple brokers simultaneously. Each holds a valid Form A and markets independently. Commission is paid only to the broker who introduces the successful buyer. This offers broader reach but typically results in less marketing investment per broker, inconsistent pricing across portals, and duplicate listings.

For premium and unique properties, exclusivity concentrates effort and protects market positioning. For standard inventory in active segments, non-exclusive arrangements often perform adequately. The decision is the owner’s — but it must be recorded clearly on Form A.

Broker Eligibility to Hold Form A

Only RERA-registered brokers operating under a DLD-licensed brokerage may sign Form A. Each broker must hold a valid broker card with a current Broker Registration Number (BRN), and the brokerage itself must hold a current Trade Licence permitting real estate brokerage activity.

A broker operating without valid registration cannot issue a legally binding Form A, regardless of any signed document. Owners should verify both the brokerage licence and the individual broker’s BRN through the Dubai REST app before signing. Buyers should do the same when an agent claims to hold the mandate.

Commission Terms on Form A

Form A specifies the commission payable on successful conclusion of the sale. The Dubai market standard is 2% of the sale price plus 5% VAT on the commission, payable by the seller to the mandate-holding broker. The form should record the agreed percentage, the responsible party, the trigger event for payment (typically Form F execution or DLD transfer), and VAT treatment.

Commission outside the standard 2% is permissible — premium properties sometimes negotiate lower percentages, while difficult or unusual listings may carry higher rates. What matters is that the figure is recorded clearly on Form A. Verbal variations are not enforceable, and disputes invariably default to the written terms.

Validity and Termination

Form A specifies a validity period during which the mandate is held. Exclusive agreements typically run 90 to 180 days; non-exclusive agreements are often shorter or open-ended subject to written termination.

Termination before expiry requires written notice. For exclusive agreements, terminating early may carry consequences if the property subsequently sells to a buyer the broker had introduced or was actively negotiating with — the commission may still be due. Owners considering termination should review the specific clauses in their Form A before issuing notice.

Form A automatically expires at the end of its validity period unless renewed. A renewal is treated as a fresh agreement and must be re-registered.

Form A in the Transaction Sequence

A Dubai property sale follows a defined three-form sequence:

Form A — Owner grants the listing mandate to a broker
Form B — Buyer makes a formal offer accompanied by a 10% deposit cheque
Form F — Buyer and seller sign the Memorandum of Understanding recording agreed price, deposit, and transfer timeline

Form A is the first link. Without it, the broker has no authority to bring offers, no basis to progress to Form F, and no path to DLD transfer at the Trustee Office.

Documentation Required for Form A

To execute a valid Form A, the following are typically required:

Original Title Deed (or Oqood for off-plan)
Owner’s Emirates ID and passport copy (or attorney’s documents if signed under Power of Attorney)
Property details: community, building, unit number, plot number, size, parking allocation
Agreed listing price
Commission terms
Listing duration and exclusivity status

Where the owner is overseas or unavailable to sign in person, Form A can be executed by an attorney holding a valid Property Power of Attorney. For POA drafting, notarisation, and attestation, see poas.ae.

Trakheesi: How the Mandate Becomes a Legal Listing

Once Form A is registered, the broker applies for a Trakheesi advertising permit before publishing any marketing. The Trakheesi system ties each portal listing, brochure, and signboard to a specific Form A and a specific broker.

Every legitimate Dubai property advertisement displays a Trakheesi number — it is the visible proof that the agent has the mandate and the listing is compliant. Listings without a Trakheesi number visible are either pre-registration drafts that should not be live, or unauthorised marketing.

Owners should ask their broker to share the Trakheesi reference for each platform the property is advertised on. Buyers should ask agents to confirm the Trakheesi number against the listing they are enquiring about. This single check resolves most legitimacy questions in the Dubai market.

Execution

Property sale execution at the Dubai Land Department, from Form F through to title registration, is coordinated through conveyance.ae.

Frequently Asked Questions

Listing a property without Form A

A listing without a registered Form A is unauthorised marketing. The agent cannot obtain a Trakheesi permit, the listing cannot legally appear on portals, and the agent has no mandate to negotiate on the owner’s behalf.

Confirming that an agent holds the mandate on a property

The check is the Trakheesi permit number on the listing. A mandate-holding agent will provide it immediately. The number can be verified through the Dubai REST app and traces back to the registered Form A.

Signing Form A with more than one broker

This is permitted only where the agreement is non-exclusive. Signing an exclusive Form A and then engaging additional brokers is a breach of contract and exposes the owner to commission claims from the exclusive broker.

Form A expiring before the property sells

The mandate lapses. The broker can no longer legally market the property, and active Trakheesi permits should be cancelled. A new Form A must be signed to resume — with the same broker or a different one.

Signing Form A from outside the UAE

Form A can be signed from outside the UAE through a Property Power of Attorney granted to a UAE-based representative. The POA must be drafted, notarised, and attested for UAE use. The drafting and attestation of a Property Power of Attorney is covered on poas.ae.

Responsibility for the commission

Standard practice is for each party to pay their own broker. The seller pays the Form A mandate-holder; the buyer pays their Form B broker if one has been engaged. Variations are negotiable but must be recorded on the form.

Form A versus a generic listing agreement

Only Form A is recognised by RERA and the DLD. A privately drafted listing agreement, however detailed, carries no regulatory weight — Trakheesi permits cannot be issued against it, and the transaction cannot progress to Form F on its basis. A request to sign anything other than Form A to list a property is a serious red flag.