File Photo: Historic building in the Egyptian capital Cairo's downtown district. AFP
The ministry said applicants will be able to create an online account to track their requests, submit documents, and update information.
The process will require selecting the relevant category, specifying the property address, choosing an allocation system—subsidised rent, rent-to-own, or ownership via mortgage finance—and identifying the preferred geographic area.
For residential units, applications can be submitted by the original tenant named on the lease, their spouse if the contract was extended to them, or any tenant to whom the lease was later extended. For non-residential units, the original tenant or the leaseholder after extension may apply.
Housing Minister Sherif El-Sherbiny reviewed the application procedures with ministry officials and the CEO of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Support Fund, Mai Abdel Hamid, which will oversee allocation.
A dedicated unit will register applications, classify them, set priority lists, and determine the number of housing units required for eligible categories within six years of the law’s issuance.
Under Article 8 of the amended law, affected tenants may request state-allocated residential or commercial units for rent or ownership, with priority for vulnerable groups, including the original tenant, their spouse, and parents from whom the lease was extended.
Article 4 sets rent in premium areas at 20 times the current legal rate, with a minimum of EGP 1,000; 10 times the rate in middle-class areas, with a minimum of EGP 400; and 10 times the rate in economic areas, with a minimum of EGP 250.
Tenants must also pay EGP 250 monthly until classification committees complete their work, after which any rent differences will be collected in instalments.
The House of Representatives passed the controversial legislation on 2 July, and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified it on 4 August.
The new law phases out old contracts after a transitional period of seven years for residential properties and five years for commercial ones, while significantly raising rents.
Under the previous system, some properties worth millions remained leased for decades at token rents, leaving landlords unable to reclaim them.
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