Legal framework by country
Updated 17 August 2026
A property referral programme that says nothing about the applicable law exposes you, and exposes me. Here is the state of the law in the three countries involved, as verified when this programme was built. This is not legal advice and does not replace your own counsel.
On this page
The principle that governs everything else
The share is calculated on the commission, net of tax, that I collect. Never on the property price. That choice is not cosmetic.
Expressed as a share of fees, your payment qualifies as an introduction premium: you are paid for making an introduction. Expressed as a percentage of the property price, it would resemble an estate agent's commission, a regulated activity in all three countries. The drafting changes the legal nature of the payment.
France, the Hoguet Act
Act no. 70-9 of 2 January 1970, known as the Hoguet Act, makes property intermediation and management subject to a professional card. The carte T is required as soon as intermediation becomes habitual, including as a secondary activity.
An occasional unpaid introduction, or a single isolated paid one, is tolerated. This programme's tier structure falls outside that tolerance from the second deal in a given year.
A wealth adviser holding a regulated status such as CIF or insurance broker is not covered for property intermediation by that status. The two regimes are separate.
United Arab Emirates, Brokers Law
Property brokerage in Dubai is governed by the Brokers Law and Bylaw no. 85 of 2006. Any brokerage activity requires a RERA licence and registration on the brokers' register, evidenced by an Office Registration Certificate and a Profession Practice Card.
Two direct consequences for a referral programme:
- Paying a transaction-linked percentage to an unlicensed person does not comply with the local framework.
- An amount promised on that basis is not recoverable by the person owed it before the local courts. In plain terms, an unlicensed introducer who is not paid has no recourse.
That is why the 50 % split is reserved for holders of a valid licence: between licensed professionals, fee sharing is the normal and unqualified arrangement. For other profiles, the structure of the payment and the invoicing jurisdiction are examined case by case.
SWISS PRO 360 REAL ESTATE L.L.C holds licence no. 1537642, issued by the Department of Economy and Tourism, Dubai, activity Real Estate Buying & Selling Brokerage, valid until 5 August 2027.
Morocco, innominate contract
No law in force governs the estate agent profession in Morocco. Draft law 36-17, intended to regulate it, was never adopted. Introductions therefore fall under the innominate contract regime of the Dahir forming the Code of Obligations and Contracts.
Three practical consequences:
- A written contract is not a formality, it is the only source of your rights. Without a statutory framework, what is not written does not exist.
- The commission is a supply of services, subject to VAT at 20 %.
- For a non-resident introducer, the applicable withholding tax must be quantified before the first payment, not after.
Off-plan sales are governed by Law 44-00 as amended by Law 107-12. The mechanism is close to the French VEFA regime, which makes the product easier to explain to European buyers.
Regulated professions
Notaries, lawyers and accountants cannot receive any introduction commission. Their professional conduct rules forbid it, and no structure works around that.
The only compatible arrangement is unpaid mutual referral: you point a client to me when the subject comes up, I point files that fall within your expertise to you, and no money moves in either direction. That route is open and is flagged as such in the application form.
What this programme refuses to do
- Promise a yield, a capital gain, a resale or a residency permit. Neither me nor you. That is a contract clause, not a recommendation.
- Pay an introducer who negotiates price, collects a purchase offer, runs viewings alone as my representative, or signs on my behalf. Those acts are brokerage, not introduction.
- Let an introducer take money directly from the end client.
- Pay a regulated profession.
- Pay without an invoice and without first checking the framework applicable in your country of residence.