Visa and Work Permits in the UAE
Visas to enter the UAE are required by all nationalities except for nationals of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries. Other nationals may enter the UAE on visit or tourist visas, transit visas and employment or residence visas.
Short-term Visas
Tourist/Visit Visa
Citizens of some countries, such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the USA and most countries of the European Union, as well as some Asian countries such as Japan, Malaysia and Singapore, can obtain tourist/visit visas on arrival to the UAE. Passports will be stamped with the visit visa as they pass through Immigration at any airport in the UAE. The visa entitles the holder to stay in the country for 30 days.
Other nationals must obtain a tourist/visit visa, which is valid for 30 days and non renewable, before departure from their country – from a UAE embassy, through a travel agent of through Emirates Airlines. A local ´sponsor´ is required to guarantee the stay of these nationals in the UAE. The sponsor can be a company the person is visiting, friends or family resident in the UAE, Emirates Airlines or the hotel where the person will be staying. If the sponsor is a UAE national or a foreigner with a residency permit in the UAE, he/she will have to declare the minimum required income to be able to ´sponsor´ the visitor. Holders of tourist/visit visas are not allowed to work in the UAE.
Entry Service Permit
An entry service permit (sometimes referred to as a 14-day stay) is available to professionals and their families accompanying them. Examples of professionals include accountants, auditors, lawyers, university lecturers, architects, and engineers. The permit must be sponsored by a company or commercial establishment operating in the UAE. The visa, which is non-renewable, is valid for 14 days from the date of issue.
Multiple Entry Visa
Multiple entry visas are issued to business visitors who are frequent visitors to the UAE and who have a relationship with a company in the UAE. The visa is valid for six months from date of issue; each visit must not exceed 30 days in total. For some nationalities, the visitor must enter the UAE on a visit visa and obtain a multiple entry visa while in the UAE; while for others, a multiple entry visa can be issued at a UAE embassy in the respective country.
Transit Visa
If a passenger who requires a visa to enter the UAE is flying to or from Europe or the United States from or to Asia or Africa and passing through UAE airports, he/she can obtain a special 96-hour transit visa. The passenger must be sponsored by an airline operating in the UAE and must have a valid ticket for an onward flight.
Long-term Visas
Foreign nationals wishing to take up employment with a governement organisation in the UAE – such as RAK Free Trade Zone – must obtain residence visas, which are issued by the Department of Immigration. Foreign nationals wishing to work in the private sector must obtain both residence and employment visas, which are issued by the Ministry of Labour. Employment visas are valid for three years and are renewable for additional three-year periods. Residence visas are granted to dependents of foreign nationals who have employment visas and who satisfy certain income and status conditions. No quota system is currently imposed on immigration into the UAE.
Employment Visas
An employment visa or issued by the Immigration Department, upon approval of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, must be granted in order for a foreign national to be allowed to work in a company in the UAE. An employment permit/visa allows the holder to enter the UAE once for a period of 30 days and is valid for a period of two months. Once the employee enters of the country on the basis of the employment visa, the sponsoring company should arrange to complete the formalities of his residence stamping. The first step involves arranging for the employee to receive a health card from a government health centre and undergo a medical fitness examination which must be passed to obtain a medical certificate.
Once the medical certificate is issued by the health department, an application for a Labour Card should be submitted to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairswithin 30 days of the employee’s entry into the country. The next step is to submit the passport, visa, medical examination report and police verification report, to the Immigration Department to receive the residency stamp on the employee’s passport. All the above formalities should be completed within 60 days of the arrival of the employee in the UAE.
Residence Visa
A residence visa is required for those who intend to enter the UAE to live indefinitely with a person who is already a resident of the country. This type of visa is issued for a spouse or son/daughter whose husband/wife or parent is employed in the UAE. It should be noted that, if a person who is a resident of the UAE stays for more than a six month period at a time out of the country, his/her permit becomes invalid. There are more restrictions for a woman sponsoring her parents, husband, or children than there are for men.
Investor Visa
An expatriate investor, who holds a minimum shareholding of AED 75,000 in the share capital of a company, shall be issued an investor visa. In some emirates, it is required to deposit an amount of AED 10,000 to obtain an investor visa, and if the capital is less than AED 70,000, the deposit shall be AED 20,000. The holder of a professional licence is also eligible for an investor visa, and the required deposit amount is AED 20,000.
Mission Entry Visas
Expatriate doctors, engineers, lawyers and technicians are entitled to obtain the newly introduced Mission Entry Visa, according to an Interior Ministry’s decision. The visa will be issued to those who come for temporary jobs with the permission of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. It is issued for three months for a fee of AED 600 and can be renewed only once for another three months for an additional fee of AED 1,200, along with the permission of the Ministry of Labour.
Visas for 90 days are issued to workers who are needed for special projects. Companies are classified according to their size and performance. A quota is specified for each company, and they will only be allowed to bring in a certain number of workers on the mission entry visa. Workers brought in must be provided health care and paid sick leave by the company. The grace period for renewal or departure of a visitor on a 90-day visa will be seven days.
Related Links
www.government.ae/visas
