Applications to open Sun for individuals whose spouses own housing
Land plots will be allocated from Ras Malé, with each plot measuring 1,250 square feet.
Housing applications will open from Sunday for individuals seeking land plots under the Hiyaavahi housing programme, including applicants whose spouses already own property.
The decision was announced during the Presidential Address delivered by President Mohamed Muizzu at the opening of the People’s Majlis earlier this year.
According to the government, the policy change aims to expand access to housing opportunities.
The Ministry of Housing, Land and Urban Development on Wednesday released guidelines for the allocation of state-owned residential land plots in Malé under the Hiyaavahi programme.
Under the guidelines, applications will open this Sunday and remain open until the end of next month.
Land plots will be allocated from Ras Malé, with each plot measuring 1,250 square feet. The government has announced that 1,000 plots will be issued under this category.
The land will be allocated under two categories.
The first category applies to residents of Malé. Applicants must be at least 18 years old and must have been registered residents of Malé for at least one year.
The second category applies to individuals from other islands who currently reside in Malé. Applicants must be at least 18 years old and must have lived in Malé continuously for 15 years.
For both categories, applicants must not own a land plot or land share exceeding 400 square feet anywhere in the Maldives.
Applicants must also agree to relinquish any land or land share they may inherit from property registered in the name of parents, children or a spouse. If the applicant holds a share of jointly owned property, they must agree to transfer their share to the remaining owners.
Applicants must not have received a flat through a government housing programme. In addition, applicants must not have sold, transferred or relinquished land or a flat previously obtained through a government housing scheme.
The Housing Ministry also announced that individuals who received land under the Binveriya scheme through joint applications may apply for separate plots if all joint beneficiaries agree to relinquish the previously allocated land.
The measures form part of the government’s “Housing for All” policy. Under this initiative, the government plans to allocate 15,000 land plots in the Greater Malé area and Ras Malé, and 7,900 housing flats in the Greater Malé area.
