By July 12, the third—and perhaps final—deadline for registering on the Alternative Housing Platform for tenants under Egypt’s Old Rent Law will have expired, following nearly nine months since applications first opened and after the deadline was extended twice. While the government continues urging eligible tenants to register as soon as possible, campaigns calling for a boycott of the platform have gained momentum among tenants on social media.

With the enactment of Law No. 164 of 2025 last August, tenants under Egypt’s Old Rent Law found themselves facing a new legal reality. The law increased rents by 10 to 20 times their previous value and introduced a seven-year transitional period before the tenancy relationship is fully liberalized, ending in 2032. At the same time, Article 8 of the law grants the original tenant—or any lawful successor to the tenancy agreement—the right to obtain an alternative housing unit from the housing stock made available by the state before the end of the transitional period, subject to regulations established by the government.

To implement this provision, the government launched an online platform to receive applications from eligible tenants seeking alternative housing. Registration opened in October 2025 and was initially scheduled to close in January 2026, before being extended first to April 2026 and then once more until July 12. Since January, the Egyptian Postal Authority has also allowed eligible applicants to register electronically through 500 post offices nationwide. Nevertheless, by the end of May 2026, the number of applicants had reached only 93,000, according to Mai Abdel Hamid, Chief Executive Officer of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund, during a televised interview on May 24, 2026.

Official statistics indicate that approximately 1.6 million households were living in old-rent units according to the 2017 Population Census. However, Mai Abdel Hamid estimates that the number of households actually expected to seek alternative housing is closer to 400,000. She attributes the discrepancy to several factors: some tenants may reach amicable settlements with landlords, others may already own alternative housing, some may choose to move in with relatives, while others have passed away.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly echoed this assessment, referring to estimates suggesting that the number of eligible households had declined significantly due to deaths or voluntary relinquishment of rental units. He later acknowledged, however, that the relatively low number of registrations on the government’s platform might not accurately reflect the true number of eligible beneficiaries. With only 93,000 registrations out of an estimated 400,000 targeted households, participation has remained at roughly one-quarter of the government’s expected demand between October 2025 and May 2026, raising an important question: Why have nearly 75 percent of eligible tenants refrained from registering?

Who Is Eligible to Apply?

To qualify for an alternative housing unit, applicants must demonstrate that they have been continuously residing in the rented unit, without interruption exceeding one year, and that they do not own another residential unit anywhere in Egypt. Applicants are also required to vacate the current unit and hand it over to the landlord immediately upon the issuance of the allocation decision, and must submit an officially notarized eviction notice, registered with the Real Estate Registration Office, in order to complete the procedures for receiving the alternative unit.

Boycott Campaigns

At the same time, Facebook groups representing old-rent tenants have launched campaigns urging tenants to boycott registration on the Alternative Housing Platform, hoping that public pressure may eventually lead to amendments—or even repeal—of the law.

Among those responding to these boycott calls is Ibrahim El-Sayed, a 63-year-old retired civil servant who has lived for decades in an old-rent apartment in Shubra El Kheima.

Ibrahim refuses to register on the platform, not only because he opposes the law itself, but also because he fears losing the stability that his neighborhood has provided throughout his life.

“I’ve spent my entire life here. I got married here. My children were born here, grew up here, and eventually got married themselves. Now I live here with my wife, supporting each other through the years we have left, surrounded by neighbors who have become like family after a lifetime together. It’s hard to leave the place that has been my home for all these years.”

Financial Burdens and Uncertain Destinations

For Ahmed Mostafa, a man in his fifties who lives with his family in an old-rent apartment in Boulaq El-Dakrour, relocating to another area could impose substantial financial burdens, even if the new unit were comparable in terms of size or rental cost.

Ahmed explains that his workplace, his children’s schools, and the services his family relies on are all concentrated within a limited geographic area where they have lived for many years.

He adds that moving elsewhere would increase daily transportation expenses and require considerably more commuting time, creating a recurring economic burden that could be just as significant as the rent itself. Ahmed’s concerns highlight another dimension of the alternative housing issue—one that extends beyond the dwelling itself to encompass the economic and social networks that families have built over many years.

Meanwhile, Samia Abdel Wahab, a 64-year-old widow who lives alone in an old-rent apartment in Cairo’s El-Zeitoun district, says she does not object in principle to relocating to an alternative housing unit.

“I just want to know exactly where the apartment is, how much it will cost, and what transportation options are available.”

Samia visited her local post office hoping to obtain answers before completing her registration, but left without submitting her application.

“No one could tell me where the apartment would be or how much it would cost.”

Living on a monthly pension of approximately EGP 8,000, much of which is spent on medical treatment and medication, Samia views the future rent as the decisive factor in determining whether she can afford to relocate.

Ayman Essam, legal adviser to the Tenants Association, questioned the process in comments to Diwan Alomran:

“How can you ask a tenant to register when they have no idea where the alternative unit is located, how much it will cost, or what rent they will be expected to pay?”

He added that a large proportion of tenants are elderly people and pensioners, making any new financial obligation a genuine source of concern.

Incomplete Information

The government’s platform states that alternative housing units will be available under several tenure schemes, including:

• Rental;
• Rent-to-own;
• Direct ownership through cash payment;
• Installment plans; and
• Mortgage financing.

However, the platform provides no information regarding expected rental rates, installment amounts, reservation deposits, the final purchase price of the units, or the criteria by which they will be allocated among applicants.

Former Minister of Housing Sherif El-Sherbiny previously announced that the government had identified 238,000 completed housing units for use as alternative housing across Egypt’s governorates.

According to him, these units are located in El-Salam and Gesr El-Suez in Cairo, Bary Karmouz in Alexandria, as well as in several other cities and governorate capitals nationwide.

He also revealed that the government had designated approximately 14,500 feddans of land suitable for future residential developments across the governorates, in addition to another 2,200 feddans in Egypt’s new cities.

Mai Abdel Hamid, CEO of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund, explained that the government views the platform primarily as a tool for measuring actual demand and identifying future housing needs, thereby enabling more effective planning for the number of units required in the coming years.

Yet this approach creates a fundamental dilemma. While the government seeks first to determine the scale of demand, many tenants insist that they need to know the details of the government’s offer before deciding whether to register.

Does Registration Mean Eviction?

For many tenants, hesitation is driven by more than economic or social considerations.

Some, including Ibrahim El-Sayed, believe that registering on the platform amounts to an implicit agreement to vacate—or even relinquish—their current homes.

“I’m afraid that, all of a sudden, I’ll find myself giving up my apartment in exchange for another place that I know nothing about—where it is or how much it costs.”

According to the government’s platform, beneficiaries are required to submit an officially notarized eviction notice only after an alternative unit has been allocated and all required procedures have been completed.

Responding to these concerns, the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund stated in a Facebook post that:

“Registration does not constitute immediate eviction; it is simply the gateway to obtaining an alternative housing unit.”

For his part, Ahmed El-Behairy, legal adviser to the Association of Those Harmed by the Old Rent Law, told Diwan Alomran that fears surrounding registration are not legally justified.

According to El-Behairy, tenants will have the opportunity to review the government’s final offer before completing any binding procedures. He warned that refusing to register could ultimately deprive eligible tenants of the opportunity to benefit from alternative housing altogether.

Note: This article is an English translation of the original Arabic publication. All sources, references, quotations, and factual information are drawn from the original Arabic version. For the complete list of sources and supporting references, please refer to the original Arabic article.