Immigrant workers face eviction, Dubai cracks down on illegal sublease

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Lights flash, doors hang from hinges and holes in walls that hang from hinges and holes in walls, revealing the pipes of apartment buildings, Egyptian migrant worker Hesham lives in Dubai, a famous emirate known for its famous emirates. Glamorous skyscrapers and top floors.

His two-bedroom rental unit was carved into nine other people, and what he said was the home was a modified closet that was enough to accommodate a mattress.

A modified closet, an immigrant worker living in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, saw on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Gabe Levin)

But now, the government has ordered the 44-year-old salesman to spend $270 a month even in that cramped space. He is one of many low-wage foreign workers and has been widely suppressed by Dubai authorities for illegal sublease.

These include rooms lined with bunk beds that don't offer privacy, but are cheaper per night, and partitioned apartments like Hesham's, where plywood boards, drywalls and plastic shower curtains can turn the apartment into a temporary dormitory for 10 or 20 people.

Dubai officials launched the campaign over concerns about zoning apartment representatives following a fire on high-rise buildings in June Major fire risks. Some of these evictions were frightened to stay away from the streets where begging was illegal. Others were worried that they might be the next one, unsure when or where the inspectors would show up.

“Now we don't know what we're going to do,” Hesham said, until his landlord evicted him. Like other people living in the cheapest and most crowded spaces in Dubai, he was in the case of the Associated Press, only his name was used because they feared falling into the crosshairs of the authorities enforcing illegal housing bans.

“We have no choice,” he said.

The city of Dubai, which oversees the city-state, declined the AP's request for an interview. It said in a statement that authorities have inspected the emirates to curb fires and safety hazards – an effort that will “ensure the highest standards of public safety” and lead to “enhanced quality of life” for tenants. It does not address where those who cannot afford legal housing will live in a city-state Synonyms for luxury goods However Abolish the trade union And guarantee no minimum wage.

People walked past a concrete bench with cheap, divided housing advertisements posted on it, located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Dubai's booming rent

Dubai has seen a boom since the pandemic, showing no signs of a stop. Its population of 3.9 million is expected to grow to 5.8 million as more people move from abroad to commercial hubs.

Most of Dubai's real estate market caters to places where wealthy foreign professionals live for a long time. For most workers, there are few affordable options – temporary, low-wage contract immigrants usually only earn a few hundred dollars a month. Real estate firm Knight Frank said nearly one-fifth of Dubai’s homes were worth more than $1 million as of last year. Developers are competing to build more high-end housing.

Continuous growth means rents rise across the board. Short-term rentals are expected to increase by 18% by the end of this year compared to 2024, according to online rental company Colife. Most of the migrant workers AP talked to said they could only earn between $300 and $550 a month.

In low-income areas, a partitioned apartment space typically costs $220 to $270 per month, and a single bunk in an unseparated room costs half the cost. If shared, the cost of both may be lower, or depends on size and location. In any case, they are much cheaper than the average one-bedroom rental, and real estate firm Engel & Völkers says it costs about $1,400 a month.

Like other Gulf Arab countries, the United Arab Emirates relies on low-paying workers in Africa and Asia to build, clean, babysit and drive taxis. Only UAE nationals with more than nearly 9 to 1 person from foreign residents are eligible for a range of government benefits, including housing financial aid.

Large employers, from construction companies and factories to hotels and resorts, need laws to house workers if they pay less than $400 a month, they send most of them to families overseas.

But Steffen Hertog, a Bay labour market expert at the London School of Economics and Politics, said many immigrants are employed informally, making their living arrangements difficult to regulate. He said the crackdown would raise their housing costs, “putting a lot of pressure on people whose living conditions are already unstable.”

Hassan is a 24-year-old security guard from Uganda who shares a bed in a partitioned apartment with friends. He said the government has not found it so far, but he has reason to be nervous.

“They can tell you there is no choice and nowhere to go.”

Dry clothes on the balcony of a residential building in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Fire remains a threat in Dubai

Dubai has targeted overcrowded apartments amid a series of high-rise fires Fueled from flammable siding material. The latest round of inspections follows a 67-storey tower fire near Dubai Marina in June, where some apartments are partitioned.

According to police reports, more than 3,800 residents were forced to evacuate from the building, which has 532 occupied apartments. This means that on average, seven people live in the towers of one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments in each of these units. Dozens of houses are uninhabitable.

The fire did not cause any major damage. But another one in Dubai’s historic Deira community in 2023 At least 16 people were killed and nine more were injured In a unit considered to have been divided.

Ebony, a 28-year-old strange worker from Ghana, was recently forced to leave her apartment on a separate street. She lives in a tight space with a roommate, who sleeps above her on a plywood loft bed made by Jerry.

“Sometimes even stand up and your head will hit the plywood,” she said.

She is now in a new apartment, with 14 rooms in one room, sometimes with people coming, sometimes with more than 20 rooms, sharing the bed. Her income is about $400 a month, she says she has no other choice and she is afraid of being forced to quit again.

“I don't know what they want us to do. Maybe they don't want most people in Dubai,” Ebony said.

The walls of the building are covered with advertisements for cheap, zoning housing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

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