The news comes just a day before the ban was set to be imposed…

Homeowners in Downtown Dubai, take note: a decision taken by Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) will enable them to continue operating their holiday homes in the area.

Two weeks ago on Thursday September 5 2019, news broke that Emaar, the master developer behind Downtown Dubai, had decided that holiday home rentals will no longer be welcome in the area. At the time of announcement, homeowners were advised that they had until Thursday September 19, 2019 to cease all holiday home operations.

However, DTCM has since stepped in, sending out a notice to Downtown Dubai holiday home providers on Wednesday September 18, 2019 that they need not halt operations, reports Gulf News.

According to the Gulf News report, DTCM is expected to issue an official statement later today.

DTCM is the principal authority for tourism in Dubai, and in the statement, they advised that a master developer (in this case, Emaar) cannot impose a ban on holiday operations within their communities in Dubai.

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There are approximately 1000 apartments in the Downtown Dubai area that are leased to allow short-stays and the area itself is popular with tourists due to its central location.

Emaar made the initial decision to ban holiday homes in Downtown after numerous complaints from residents of disturbances, according to the statement issued at the time.

Emaar hasn’t yet issued a counter statement in light of this new development.

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Images: Getty