Rules for 3 Major Visas in UAE

Business friendly policies, world class infrastructure and an ever accelerating growth rate has put UAE on the 8th spot globally in 2017 Index of Economic Freedom. UAE’s economy has experienced a significant push in the recent years, diversifying its sources of revenue, boosting GDP and moving close to retiring itself from crude oil dependency. With numerous projects already taking off and the world Expo 2020 on course, UAE has made far sighted plans to establish it as the world’s top locations to live, work and invest. The UAE government has also focused its efforts to increase financial reserves by introducing tax reforms. As the new year took off, VAT officially made itsway into UAE at a fixed rate of 5%, further helping the state strengthen its annual income.

As a top tier destination to work and live, UAE has transformed into a melting pot of cultures, with over 200 nationalities prospering in the country. Over the last decade, numerous career and investment opportunities have attracted millions of expatriates from different sectors, giving them a progressive work atmosphere with numerous government benefits, and limitless amenities. To cater the needs of the foreign community, the UAE government has introduced certain measures to help individuals and families enter the country in flexible and straightforward process. The visa process itself has been streamlined, allowing workers and businessmen from all sorts of backgrounds to apply for UAE visa without any hurdles. 

The UAE government offers 3 major types of visas across its business jurisdictions, employment visa, investor visa, and family visa.

Employment

Employment visa is the most common type of visa in UAE. Unless the employee’s company contract is from a free zone authority, the UAE Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs will authorize all employment visas. The procedure involves 6-7 steps where the applicant gives bank guarantee, submits documents, acquires E-Visa, clears medical checkup and finally receives ID and visa. 

Investor Visa

Investor visa also depends on business jurisdictions. For a UAE free zone business, no Emirati local is required for partnership and the visa procedure is much simpler. Although the visa procedure is almost the same, the requirements vary distinctly, involving much higher bank guarantees, business/trade license from chosen jurisdiction and partner documents and MOA (for LLC). Investor visa is granted for 3 years, but expires if the holder remains out of the UAE for more than 6 months. 

Family Visa

Family visa also known as dependent visa, allows parents, children and spouse to immigrate and live in UAE through sponsorship of the employee, investor or a legal entity. For children family visa, the child must be below age of 18 while the sponsor must earn a minimum of AED 4000 in case of spouse or a minimum of AED 20,000 in case of parents. Aside from legal documents, the dependents also required attested certificate of relationship from embassy in country of residence.