In Dubai the approving authority is set by your address, not your project. JLT, Palm Jumeirah and mainland offices each follow a different route, and that choice shapes your programme before a single drawing is issued.

The site looks finished long before it is finished. What separates a completed fit-out from an occupied one is testing, snagging, and the paperwork nobody scheduled.

Flat paint and high-gloss are giving way to surfaces you can read with your hand: fluted timber, acoustic felt, dimensional tile, and glass that filters rather than reveals.

In 2026 greener specification stopped being the premium option. What changes on site is not the material list. It is the documentation behind it.