Land can only be relinquished to family members who don’t already own a land plot or flat

Housing Ministry hands over land plots from K. Gulhifalhu on January 22, 2026. (Photo/Ministry of Construction, Housing & Infrastructure)

The administration's recent policy announcement marks a noteworthy evolution in the housing landscape of the Greater Male area. By allowing citizens to pass down land holdings that were previously mandated for surrender to the government, the state is acknowledging the importance of family-based property stability. The policy, which was officially published in the Government Gazette, establishes the specific conditions under which these transfers can occur. This initiative is designed to balance the needs of the government to manage land distribution with the rights of families to preserve their existing assets. Central to this policy is the definition of the immediate family and the strict prohibition against the accumulation of properties. According to the government directive, land can only be relinquished to a child by birth, a parent, a spouse, or a sibling. Crucially, the intended recipient must not currently possess any other land plot or flat. Furthermore, the policy explicitly forbids transferring property to any individual who is already an owner of a land plot exceeding 400 square feet, or to those who are already beneficiaries of a flat or housing unit under any public housing scheme. These rules ensure that the transfer process does not lead to the creation of excessive individual property wealth but rather serves as a mechanism to support those who are genuinely without adequate housing. The policy also addresses scenarios involving co-owned and inherited properties, which often complicate administrative processes. For co-owned plots, the recipient is only required to relinquish the specific area of the plot that they hold ownership over, provided it is transferred to an eligible family member. In cases where the recipient lacks a qualifying family member, the land must be surrendered to the state or a party determined by the government. Similar rules apply to inherited land. If an individual inherits a plot from a parent, child, or spouse, and the inheritance has been confirmed by court order, the plot area they own must be relinquished to a child by birth or a sibling, subject to the same eligibility and non-ownership constraints.

Recipients of public housing in the Greater Male area may now transfer their existing smaller land plots to immediate family members instead of returning them to the government.
Eligible family members for such transfers are restricted to children by birth, parents, spouses, or siblings.
The policy strictly prohibits transferring land to anyone who already holds a land plot, flat, or housing unit under a public housing scheme or owns land larger than 400 square feet.
Individuals who are unable to utilize their land due to small size or location constraints must complete the process of relinquishing their property to the state or a designated government party within five years.

While recipients of land from the greater Male’ area under public housing schemes now have the option of relinquishing their existing land to family instead of the government, the new policy also dictates that it can only be relinquished to a member of the immediate family who does not already have a plot of land or flat registered to their name.

At a press briefing on Monday, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu announced the decision to change the policy that requires people who apply for public housing schemes to relinquish land plots that they own that are smaller than 400 square feet in size, so that it can be retained within the family instead of going to the government.

This new policy was published on the Government Gazette on Monday.

The policy states that housing recipients may relinquish their existing land to either a child by birth, a parent, a spouse or a sibling. If the recipient does not have such a family member, then the land will need to be relinquished to the state or a party determined by the government.

If the land the recipient owns that needs to be relinquished is co-owned, then the plot area they own must be relinquished to a child by birth, a parent, spouse or sibling. If the recipient does not have such a family member, then the land will need to be relinquished to the state or a party determined by the government.

If the recipient is required to relinquish a land they inherited from a parent, child or spouse following the death of the original owner, and after the court confirms the inheritance, then the plot area they own must be relinquished to a child by birth or sibling.

The policy states that those who are unable to build on their land due to the small size or location in a narrow road or those who wish to relinquish their ownership of the entire land under the exchange method, must relinquish the land they previously owned for free to the state or a party determined by the government within five years from the date on which they receive their new land.

The policy dictates that the land cannot be relinquished to a party who already owns a land plot larger than 400 square feet, or a land plot, flat or housing unit under a public housing scheme.