Does commercial property qualify for a Golden Visa?
Offices and retail units can count toward the AED 2 million threshold. Almost no guide mentions it, because almost no agent sells it.
Yes, subject to the same threshold. The Golden Visa property route is generally described in terms of homes, but the requirement is about registered property value, not about what the property is used for.
Commercial property in a Dubai freehold zone, registered with the Dubai Land Department, at a value of AED 2 million or more, can qualify on the same basis as residential.
Almost every guide you will find assumes residential. That is a reflection of who writes the guides rather than of the rule.
Why this is worth knowing
Two situations where it matters.
You already own commercial space. If you hold an office or a retail unit through a business, and it is registered in your personal name at qualifying value, you may already meet a threshold you thought you needed to buy a home to reach.
The yield maths is different. Commercial property in Dubai typically carries different lease structures and different net yields from residential. If your purpose is an investment that also produces residency, restricting yourself to apartments is an arbitrary constraint.
The conditions that actually bite
Registration in your personal name. The visa attaches to a person. Property held by a company is generally the company's, not yours, and corporate ownership structures are exactly where these applications fail. If your commercial space sits inside a free zone entity, the ownership is likely the entity's.
A freehold zone. The same geographic restriction applies as for residential. Outside designated freehold areas, what a foreign national can own is different.
DLD registration and valuation. The figure that matters is the DLD's property status statement, not the price on your invoice.
The honest caveat
This is a less-travelled route, which means fewer people at the counter have processed one, and generic guidance is thinner. Expect to explain yourself more than a residential applicant would.
Before you rely on it, confirm with the ICP or GDRFA that your specific holding, in its specific ownership structure, qualifies. The general rule being favourable does not mean your particular arrangement is.
Position as of May 2026.