Open folder with a blank deduction schedule panel and binder clips before any refund leaves — Itemise each charge on one schedule before the undisputed balance moves

How to Itemise Deposit Deductions With Invoices Before Refund

Dubai landlords: itemise deposit deductions with an invoice or quote per line, separate rent and utilities from damage, refund the undisputed balance.

15 October 2026•4 min read•Article•IziRento Editorial

Rental operations notes from the IziRento team. Not legal advice.

Key takeaways

An itemised deposit deduction schedule is the exit file after move-out findings and before the undisputed balance is refunded: deposit received; each charge tied to a condition issue with evidence, basis, invoice or quotation, and amount; unpaid rent and utilities separated from damage; balance shown. Send it with the undisputed refund. Do not invent a deposit percentage or statutory refund day-count as law.

Keys are back and the only message is a round “damages” or “maintenance” figure with no lines, no invoice or quote attached, and no balance shown. That is not an itemised deduction schedule. Before the undisputed balance leaves, build one schedule — deposit received; each charge against a move-out finding with evidence, basis, invoice or quotation, and amount; unpaid rent and utility lines separated from physical damage; balance to refund — and send it with that refund. This is the exit itemisation, not the intake deposit receipt register, not the handover condition walkthrough, and not DEWA — Dubai Electricity and Water Authority — clearance.

Disclaimer: IziRento is operations software, not legal advice. Local tenancy rules vary; check a qualified adviser for binding decisions.

When keys are back and the only figure is round

An itemised deposit deduction schedule — sometimes called a settlement statement — is a party-made list prepared after move-out findings, and after utility clearance inputs where those matter. It lists each proposed deduction with evidence and a cost document. The header maths are simple: deposit received minus the sum of lines equals the balance to refund. You send that schedule with the refund of the undisputed amount, or with an interim position and a follow-up date when one final invoice is still pending.

This file starts from an amount already held. The security deposit receipt register records the deposit when it was first paid. The rental handover inspection checklist is the signed room-by-room condition walkthrough that supplies the findings this schedule points at. DEWA clearance before deposit refund is the utilities gate; a DEWA or chiller balance may appear as one separate line with a bill PDF, not as a second clearance how-to.

Blank schedule panel with clipped cards for deposit received and balance shown — Replace a round damages figure with one lined schedule

Refund duty, not an invented form or percentage

Dubai Law No. 26 of 2007 Article 20 names a landlord duty to refund the security deposit or the remainder when the lease ends; it does not prescribe a schedule template, a deposit percentage, or a day-count for the refund. Article 21 excepts ordinary wear and tear, so wear does not sit on this schedule as a charge. The Rental Disputes Center FAQ treats comprehensive cleaning and painting of interior walls on departure as typically the owner’s responsibility under customary practice — do not auto-line “paint + deep clean” without lease wording and evidence. Invoices for completed work usually weigh more than after-the-fact quotes, but a quotation can support a pending line if the schedule says so and the undisputed balance still moves. This file is not the intake receipt register, not the handover walkthrough, and not DEWA clearance. If money is still disputed after the schedule and the undisputed refund, the Rental Disputes Center handles that claim on its own process.

What one deduction row holds

Landlord settlement guides usually use the same columns: what and where the issue is, where the evidence sits, a short lease or maintenance basis, an invoice or quotation labelled as such, and the amount. Laguna Life’s August 2026 checklist puts those fields on one schedule and keeps unpaid rent and utility claims separate from physical damage. Settlement-statement formats show deposit paid, each deduction with evidence, then the balance. Write the deposit and the balance as prose around the grid — not as a percentage column or a statutory day-count cell.

Under Law No. 26 of 2007 Articles 20 and 21 the landlord undertakes to refund the deposit or the remainder at expiry, and the tenant returns the property as received except ordinary wear or damage beyond the tenant’s control. That is why a clear remainder on paper matters. Neither Dubai Land Department nor RERA publishes a mandatory deduction-form template for this schedule.

Blank clipped cards for condition issue, evidence pointer, and line amount fields — Every deduction row needs the same empty fields filled once

Columns on one deduction schedule row

Condition issue (what / where)	Evidence pointer	Lease / basis note	Invoice or quotation	Amount
Specific finding from move-out notes (room and defect)	Exit photo file name or handover report line	Short note: lease maintenance clause or agreed purpose	Label which: completed-work invoice or pending quotation	AED figure for that line only

Do not send a round “maintenance” or “damages” figure with no attachment. Do attach an invoice or quotation on every charge line, and say which document type it is. Maawa’s July 2026 deductions note rejects blanket round-number cleaning and maintenance cuts and upgrade charges that improve the unit beyond its original condition. Pramana’s 2026 deposit rules overview treats invoices for work already done as stronger evidence than quotes produced after the fact; a quote alone still does not prove who caused the fault.

When a final invoice will take time, document an interim position with a clear next date and return the undisputed balance with the schedule. DLD news on deposit refunds restates the Article 20 refund-or-remainder duty where no repairing works required deductions. The Rental Disputes Center FAQ is the place for deposit reclaim questions once correspondence fails — not a substitute for sending this schedule first.

Build and send the schedule in this order

Confirm findings and clearance inputs already exist
Open the move-out condition notes and photos from the handover inspection file, and confirm utility clearance is filed where relevant. This schedule starts after those inputs; it does not replace them.
Write deposit received at the top
Open a blank schedule (email, PDF, or spreadsheet). Copy the deposit amount received from the intake receipt register or the signed registered contract. Do not invent a percentage as if statute fixed it.
List each deduction against a specific finding
For every proposed charge write what and where, an evidence pointer (photo or report line), and a short basis note (lease clause or maintenance purpose).
Attach a cost document to every charge line
Attach an invoice for completed repair work or a quotation for pending work. Label which document type it is. Skip any round figure that has no attachment.
Separate unpaid rent and utility balances from damage
Put unpaid rent on its own line. Put a DEWA balance or a chiller balance — district cooling billed separately in some towers — on its own line too, each with its own bill or statement PDF. Keep those money claims apart from physical-damage lines so each can be checked alone.
Skip ordinary wear
If the line is normal ageing — minor scuffs, fading, fair wear — it does not belong on the schedule as a charge. Article 21 excepts ordinary wear; the Rental Disputes Center FAQ also treats routine departure cleaning and interior painting as typically the owner’s customary responsibility.
Total, show balance, mark interim if needed
Add the lines. Show balance to refund. If one invoice is still pending, mark an interim amount and a follow-up date, then refund the undisputed part now with the schedule.
Send with the undisputed refund and store the pack
Send the schedule and attachments to the tenant with the refund of the undisputed balance. Store the schedule, invoices, quotes, and related photos with the tenancy file. IziRento can store that pack beside the tenancy; it does not build the schedule, obtain quotes, or make anyone compliant.

FAQ

Can a quote replace a completed-work invoice?

A quotation can support an estimate for work that is still pending. A completed-work invoice is stronger evidence of actual cost. If only a quote exists, say so on the line and prefer an interim schedule until the invoice lands — practice guidance, not a statute that bans quotes.

Does fair wear and tear belong on this schedule?

No. Ordinary wear is excepted under Article 21 of Law No. 26 of 2007. The Rental Disputes Center FAQ also treats comprehensive cleaning and interior painting on departure as typically the owner’s customary responsibility. Do not list wear as a charge.

Does this schedule replace the deposit receipt register?

No. The security deposit receipt register records the deposit when it was taken. This file is the exit itemisation before the balance is returned — a different paper for a different moment.

Stop when this exit has one itemised schedule sent with the refund of the undisputed balance: deposit received; each charge line tied to a move-out finding with an invoice or quotation attached; unpaid rent and utility lines separated from damage; balance shown, with an interim note only if one invoice is still pending. Do not invent a deposit percentage as law, and do not invent a statutory day-count for the refund. IziRento can store the schedule and attached invoices, quotes, and photos beside the tenancy and does not build the schedule, obtain quotes, or make anyone compliant. Leave the deposit receipt register, the handover condition walkthrough, and DEWA clearance in their own files.

Keep the schedule with the tenancy

Store the deduction schedule and attached invoices, quotes, and photos beside the lease. IziRento does not calculate deductions or obtain contractor prices.

Start a workspace

Dubai landlords: itemise deposit deductions with an invoice or quote per line, separate rent and utilities from damage, refund the undisputed balance.

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