Short answer
Send it by international bank transfer, either from your UK bank or through a regulated currency specialist, straight to the developer's escrow account. Expect source-of-funds checks on both sides. Prices are in dirhams, which are pegged to the US dollar, so your cost in pounds depends on the GBP/USD rate on the day you pay.
Step by step
- Get the escrow details from the SPA or the developer's official payment page, never from an email alone. Confirm them by phone.
- Prepare source of funds: payslips, sale proceeds, savings statements. UAE brokers and developers must run anti-money-laundering checks.
- Choose how to convert. A currency specialist can often beat a high-street bank's rate, and some let you fix a rate ahead for later instalments.
- Send in AED where possible, so the exact amount arrives.
- Keep every receipt. HMRC will want the pound cost of each payment when you sell.
Currency facts
The dirham is fixed at AED 3.6725 to US$1. Against the pound it floats with GBP/USD.
General information, not financial advice. Figures attributed to Mitch come from transactions he tracks.