Fit out and renovation FAQs — Dubai
Twenty-six questions we are actually asked, answered with real figures from our own quotations rather than marketing copy. Costs, timelines, approvals, scope and warranty — all in one place.
What these fit out and renovation FAQs cover
These are the fit out and renovation FAQs Dubai clients send us most often, grouped by what people are actually trying to work out: what it costs, how long it takes, what approvals apply, what is in scope, and who we are. The cost answers use the same published ranges as our residential and commercial pages — renovation cost per sq ft Dubai and fit out cost per sq ft Dubai are set by specification, not by floor area, so treat every range as a starting point and let the free site visit and quotation set your number.
Abdulla Carpentry EST has been a licensed and approved contractor in Dubai since 1984, working across Dubai and all UAE emirates with in-house trades and our own joinery workshop in Ras Al Khor. Dubai Municipality approval, developer NOC and the fit out permit are handled by us, turnkey fit out and design and build sit under one contract, and a written warranty on workmanship is issued at handover.
Cost of renovation and fit out in Dubai
Villa renovation cost, apartment renovation cost and kitchen renovation cost, plus fit out cost per sq ft Dubai businesses pay.
How much does a villa renovation cost in Dubai?
A full villa renovation cost in Dubai runs from AED 500 to 900+ per sq ft over three to six months, and a cosmetic refresh of paint, flooring and light joinery from AED 300 to 500 per sq ft over three to five weeks. The renovation cost per sq ft Dubai owners actually pay is driven by specification, not villa size: stone, veneer, imported sanitaryware and MEP alterations move the rate far more than floor area does. We confirm your figure after a free site visit and quotation.
How much does an apartment renovation cost in Dubai?
A full apartment renovation cost is typically AED 500 to 750 per sq ft, taking eight to fourteen weeks from site possession. A lighter refresh sits at AED 300 to 500 per sq ft. Towers add cost the villa market does not: owners association approvals, service lift booking, restricted working hours and waste removal through a single loading bay. Those are priced into our quotation rather than added later.
How much does a kitchen renovation cost in Dubai?
Kitchen renovation cost for supply and installation runs AED 25,000 to 120,000+ across four to eight weeks. The spread is almost entirely material: carcass and door construction, worktop stone, and whether appliances are included. Because we build kitchens in our own Ras Al Khor workshop, you are paying for the joinery rather than a trading margin on someone else’s units.
How much does a bathroom renovation cost in Dubai?
A single bathroom stripped back to slab costs AED 22,000 to 60,000 and takes three to five weeks. That covers waterproofing, tiling, sanitaryware, the vanity and the MEP alterations behind the wall. Bathrooms are where cutting cost shows up fastest as a callback, so we quote the waterproofing and the falls properly rather than trimming them to win the job.
How much does an office fit out cost in Dubai per sq ft?
The fit out cost per sq ft Dubai businesses pay is AED 250 to 400 per sq ft for a standard office specification over four to eight weeks, and AED 400 to 600 per sq ft for a high specification over eight to fourteen weeks. Retail runs AED 400 to 700, a cafe AED 450 to 700, a salon or spa AED 400 to 650, a showroom AED 300 to 550, and warehouse office and amenity areas AED 180 to 350. Send us the lease drawings and the landlord’s fit-out guide and we price your unit, not an average.
What is the cost of a full home renovation in Dubai?
A full home renovation in Dubai is quoted on the same per sq ft basis as above — AED 500 to 750 for an apartment, AED 500 to 900+ for a villa — with joinery, stone and MEP scope setting where you land in the range. Any contractor quoting a firm total before seeing the property is guessing, which is why our free site visit and quotation comes first and the itemised price follows it.
Process and project timeline
The fit out process in Dubai, the free site visit and quotation, and what a realistic project timeline looks like.
How long does a villa renovation take?
Three to six months for a full villa renovation, measured from site possession rather than from the day you call. A cosmetic refresh is three to five weeks. The project timeline we issue with the quotation shows approval dates alongside build dates, because on villas needing a Dubai Municipality approval the paperwork often runs longer than the building work.
How long does an office fit out take in Dubai?
Four to eight weeks for a standard office specification and eight to fourteen for a high specification, again from site possession. Add the approval lead times on top: landlord fit-out approval one to three weeks, a Dubai Municipality building permit two to five weeks, Civil Defence two to six weeks. A realistic opening date is the build programme plus those, and that is the date we put in writing.
What is the fit out process in Dubai?
Five stages. A free site visit and quotation against your landlord’s fit-out guide; drawings, 3D visuals and a programme with approval dates in it; submissions for the fit out permit and NOC, then hoarding; the build, with each inspection booked and passed as that trade finishes; then testing, snagging, the completion certificate and handover with keys, manuals and warranty papers. One contract, one company, from first survey to handover.
Do you provide a free site visit and quotation?
Yes, and there is no charge for either whether or not you proceed. The free site visit and quotation covers the site survey and measurement and the project consultation that follows, anywhere in Dubai. You get an itemised quotation in writing, with a response within 24 hours. For Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates we will tell you honestly first whether the travel makes sense for the size of the job.
Do you provide 3D designs before starting work?
Yes. Drawings and 3D visuals are produced before anything is built, so you approve a picture of the finished room rather than a description of it. They are issued as part of the design and build package, and they double as the submission drawings for Dubai Municipality approval, so the thing you approved is the thing that gets permitted and built.
Approvals and legal
Dubai Municipality approval, developer NOC, the fit out permit, and the authorities behind each one.
Do I need approval to renovate my villa or apartment in Dubai?
Usually, yes. Painting and replacing furniture do not need a permit. Moving or removing a wall, altering MEP, changing a bathroom layout or touching anything structural needs a Dubai Municipality approval, and in a tower or a master community you also need the developer NOC or owners association consent. We establish which of those your property needs at the site visit and handle the submissions ourselves.
What approvals are needed for an office fit out in Dubai?
Landlord fit-out approval on every leased unit, a Dubai Municipality building permit for partitions, structural change, MEP alteration and most F&B work, Civil Defence approval where fire alarm, sprinkler or extract systems are altered, a DEWA application for new or upgraded supply, Food Control for any unit preparing food, and DHA approval for clinics. Units in DMCC, DIFC, DSO or JAFZA go to the free zone authority in place of Municipality.
Do you handle Dubai Municipality, DDA, Trakhees and developer approvals?
Yes — we draw, submit and chase all of them in-house. Dubai Municipality for mainland work, DDA for Dubai Design District, Media City and Internet City, Trakhees for Ports and Free Zone areas, and DMCC or JAFZA for those free zones, plus the developer NOC or owners association consent where the building requires it. You are not asked to walk paperwork around on our behalf.
Are you an Emaar, Nakheel or Damac approved contractor?
We work regularly in Emaar, Nakheel and Damac communities — Dubai Hills, Arabian Ranches, Damac Hills, Palm Jumeirah and Town Square among them — and we obtain the developer NOC for each job as that community requires. Approved-contractor lists differ by developer and are reviewed periodically, so ask us about your specific community and we will tell you exactly where we stand with it rather than give you a blanket yes.
Do you provide a fit out NOC and permit?
Yes. The fit out permit and the NOC are part of our scope, not an extra you chase separately. We prepare the submission drawings, lodge them with the relevant authority or free zone, chase the approval, and arrange the hoarding and access permits — typically three to ten days, including the deposit and insurance evidence malls and towers ask for.
Scope of works
Turnkey fit out and design and build, custom joinery and carpentry, and MEP works by our in-house trades.
What is the difference between fit out and renovation?
Renovation means reworking something that already exists — stripping out, repairing and rebuilding an occupied or previously occupied space. Fit out means taking a shell or a bare leased unit and building it into a usable space for the first time. In practice the trades overlap almost completely, which is why we hold both on one licence and quote either under a single contract.
Do you do design and build or turnkey projects?
Yes — turnkey fit out and design and build is how we prefer to work. Design, joinery, approvals and site delivery sit under one contract, so you sign once and we carry the drawings through permitting, construction and handover. There is no gap between a designer who drew something and a contractor who says it cannot be built, because they are the same company.
Do you do custom joinery and carpentry?
Yes, and it is what the company was founded on in 1984. Kitchens, wardrobes, TV and media walls, doors, wall panelling, reception counters and office furniture are made in our own Ras Al Khor workshop rather than bought in. That is why our joinery fits: it is measured on your site and cut for your walls, not ordered from a catalogue of standard sizes.
Do you provide MEP works, electrical, plumbing and AC?
Yes. MEP works — electrical, plumbing, air conditioning and fire systems — are delivered by our own in-house trades, not subcontracted to whoever is cheapest that month. That matters for approvals: the same team that installed the work attends the Civil Defence and DEWA inspections and corrects anything on the spot.
Can I live in my home during renovation?
Often yes, and we phase the work so you can. Room-by-room sequencing, dust screens, protected walkways and services kept live overnight all make it workable. It is harder where the kitchen or the only bathroom is being stripped to slab, or where the whole property is being reworked at once — we will tell you plainly at the site visit which of those your job is, because living through the wrong one is miserable.
Do you renovate rented apartments with a landlord NOC?
Yes. Tenants renovate with us regularly, and the landlord NOC is the first document we deal with, alongside the owners association consent the building needs. We put the scope in writing so what you agreed with the landlord is what gets built, and we hand over the completion paperwork at the end so there is no dispute when the lease ends.
Company, coverage and warranty
Where we work across Dubai and all UAE emirates, our licence, and the warranty on workmanship.
Which areas of Dubai and the UAE do you cover?
We work in Dubai and all UAE emirates, including Sharjah and Abu Dhabi. In Dubai the regular run is Dubai Marina, Downtown, Business Bay, JVC, Dubai Hills, Damac Hills, Arabian Ranches, Palm Jumeirah, Mirdif and Al Quoz, plus Business Bay, DIFC, JLT and Sheikh Zayed Road on the commercial side. Our workshop in Ras Al Khor Industrial Area sits close enough to all of them that a site visit rarely needs more than a day’s notice.
Are you a licensed fit out company in Dubai?
Yes. Abdulla Carpentry EST has traded since 1984 and is a licensed and approved contractor, which is what allows us to submit drawings to Dubai Municipality and the free zone authorities in our own name. You can verify any contractor’s trade licence through Dubai Economy and Tourism before you appoint them, and we would encourage you to do exactly that — with us and with anyone else you are considering.
Do you offer a warranty on your work?
Yes — a written warranty on workmanship is issued at handover along with the completion certificate, the keys and the manuals. Manufacturer warranties on appliances, sanitaryware and hardware pass to you separately. If something we built moves, fails or was fitted wrong within the warranty period, we come back and correct it; that is far easier for us than arguing about it, and it is why most of our work comes from repeat clients.
How do I get a renovation quote?
Call or WhatsApp 056-5608073, or send the details through the contact form. We arrange the free site visit, survey and measure, and come back with an itemised quotation in writing, usually within 24 hours of the visit. For commercial units, send the lease drawings and the landlord’s fit-out manual with your first message and we can do most of the pricing before we arrive.
Check the answers yourself
Nothing on this page asks you to take our word for it. These are the authorities that issue the approvals and licences referred to above.
Still have a question?
Ask us directly — the site visit and the quotation are both free, and we reply within 24 hours.
