UAE Tenant Screening Service Goes Live for Landlords

Etihad Credit Bureau’s Tenant Screening service has gone live in the UAE, introducing a new digital tool for landlords to assess prospective tenants before finalising rental agreements.

The service allows private landlords to securely request a tenant’s credit score through the Etihad Credit Bureau mobile application. The information is shared only after the tenant provides explicit consent through UAE PASS, ensuring that personal credit data remains controlled by the individual.

The launch marks a significant step in the UAE’s move towards a more transparent and data-driven rental market. As rental demand remains strong across key emirates, landlords are increasingly looking for clearer ways to assess tenant reliability before entering into lease agreements.

Through the service, a landlord can initiate a screening request by entering the prospective tenant’s Emirates ID details in the ECB app. The tenant then receives a secure consent request through UAE PASS. If approved, the credit score becomes available to the landlord through the app. If the tenant rejects the request or does not respond before it expires, no information is shared.

The system gives landlords access to the tenant’s credit score, rather than unrestricted access to the full credit report. This means the service acts as an additional decision-making tool, complementing existing checks such as employment letters, salary certificates, tenancy history and references.

For tenants, the launch places greater importance on maintaining a healthy credit profile, particularly in competitive rental markets where landlords may be reviewing multiple applicants for the same property. It also gives residents control over when their information is shared, with consent required for every screening request.

The Tenant Screening service was developed in collaboration with UAE PASS and forms part of a wider push to expand the use of trusted digital identity and consent-based data sharing across key sectors. The service was previewed by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority and Digital Dubai at GITEX 2025 before its launch through the Etihad Credit Bureau mobile app.

The move also supports broader digital transformation across the UAE real estate sector, where leasing, payments, documentation and tenant verification are increasingly shifting towards paperless and data-backed processes.

For landlords, the service could reduce uncertainty around rental defaults and payment behaviour. For tenants, it adds a new layer of financial visibility to the leasing journey. Together, the system is expected to strengthen trust, transparency and accountability in the UAE rental market.

Source: Gulf News