The housing crisis in the Greater Malé region remains one of the most critical socio-economic challenges in the Maldives. To tackle this issue, the administration of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu introduced the "Boahiyaavahikan Enmenah" (Housing for All) scheme. The first major project launched under this framework is the "Aailee Boahiyaavahikan" (Family Housing) programme. This flagship national housing initiative aims to provide permanent residential solutions across different income segments through the allocation of 15,000 land plots and 7,900 flats.
The program utilizes geographic expansions in the Greater Malé area, specifically prioritizing the newly reclaimed land mass of Rasmalé alongside existing regional developments. By restructuring eligibility conditions, the project targets distinct social categories, including registered Malé natives, long-term urban residents from other islands, special labor sectors, and vulnerable populations.
Breakdown of key categories and allocations
The initiative divides its real estate allocations into precise sub-categories to manage demographic density and provide equitable access to real estate.
Land plot allocations
A total of 15,000 land plots, each standardizing at a base size of 1,250 square feet, are being distributed under the housing scheme:
- Malé residents (birth registration): 7,000 plots are reserved for individuals who have been registered to an address in Malé since birth.
- Later-stage Malé registrants: 2,000 plots for individuals who shifted their registry to a Malé address later in life.
- Malé Dhaftharu registry: 1,000 plots for individuals listed on the official Malé non-residential registry who currently do not own property.
- Long-term Malé residents: 3,000 plots for individuals originating from outer islands who have documented proof of living in the capital region for more than 15 years.
- Individuals without an inheritance: 500 plots for individuals unable to inherit land due to the death of a parent.
- Narrow-street land swaps: 1,500 plots allocated to residents who own small, poorly accessible plots on narrow roads in Malé, provided they agree to transfer their existing plots back to the government to improve public safety and zoning.
Flat allocations
The 7,900 residential flats are partitioned across identical socioeconomic lines, with a rent-to-own or affordable homeownership structure:
- Malé residents (birth registration): 2,500 units.
- Later-stage Malé registrants: 500 units.
- Malé Dhaftharu registry: 1,000 units.
- Long-term Malé residents: 1,500 units.
- Special and priority sectors: 2,400 units are divided across 15 sub-categories. This includes dedicated units for public servants, military personnel, the Maldives Police Service, and workers in primary economic sectors like tourism, taxi driving, and fisheries. It also incorporates a specific sub-category reserving 100 units for persons with disabilities, allowing applications from those residing outside Malé who require specialized medical care unavailable on their home islands.
Recent updates and policy adjustments
The Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development has introduced several critical revisions to the program's framework based on community consultations and legislative progress:
- Rule changes for previous scheme recipients: Individuals who previously received one-bedroom or two-bedroom housing units under historical government initiatives are now permitted to apply for three-bedroom flats under the new scheme. This is conditional upon family expansion parameters and the number of dependent children.
- Spousal eligibility fixes: Following public concern over rigid disqualification criteria that barred individuals whose spouses already held properties, the Ministry introduced the "Goathigedhoru" program extension. This adjustment allows individuals whose spouses own housing to apply independently for land plots of 1,250 square feet specifically located in Rasmalé.
- Binveriya scheme modifications: A specialized tracking system has been integrated for joint recipients of land under the previous administration's "Binveriya" scheme. It allows joint owners to file for individual plot splits or to relinquish existing flat documents in exchange for fresh land plot eligibility.
- Financial and banking integration: To address down-payment hurdles, the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) established the Inclusive National Affordable Housing framework. Under this rule, Bank of Maldives (BML) has dropped the required home loan equity from 20 percent down to 5 percent. Furthermore, a maximum of MVR 3 million can be acquired for home construction or renovation without pledging external supplementary assets.
Application deadlines
While the Ministry originally stated that deadlines would not be pushed past their early-year benchmarks, infrastructural closures and widespread complaints regarding the documentation collection window over the long Eid al-Adha holidays forced a timeline extension.
Official final deadline: The submission window for both land plots and flat application categories under the Boahiyaavahikan Enmenah policy has been extended to June 15, 2026, at 11:59 PM (23:59).
All entries must be finalized digitally through the central state portal before this cutoff time. The government maintains its administrative target to process these files, confirm registries, and hand over physical ownership before the expiration of the current five-year executive term.
Relevant information links and contact hubs
To facilitate documentation tracking, submission, and public verification, the following portals and contact nodes remain operational:
- Official application portal: Boahiyaavahikan Portal
- Central submission dashboard: Hiyaavehi Portal (Note: Digital login requires verified eFaas credentials for identity authentication).
- State secretariat information: The President's Office of the Maldives
- Official query email: hotline@infrastructure.gov.mv
- Ministry support hotlines: 860-4004, 861-4004, 862-4004, 863-4004, 864-4004, 865-4004
