UAE residents can get visit visas only for first and second-degree relatives

Emad Eddin Khalil, Staff Reporter

The Federal Authority for Identity and Nationality, Customs and Ports Security confirmed that issuing an entry visa for foreigners is limited to first and second-degree relatives.

The authority stated, according to the decision on the control of entry and residence of foreigners, that in order to obtain an entry visa to visit a friend or relative, the foreigner coming to the country must be a friend or relative of a citizen, regardless of the degree of kinship, and that the foreigner coming to the country must be a first-degree or first-degree relative of a resident residing in the country.

The second requirement is that the resident foreigner must have a job in the first or second professional level.

The authorities indicated that there is a list of 459 jobs within the first and second professional levels, of which 131 are within the first level and 328 are within the second.

The authorities added that there are other requirements for issuing a relative or friend’s visit visa, including that the visitor should be a relative or friend of a citizen, or a resident residing in the country, in accordance with the provisions determined by the authority.

There must be evidence of kinship and justifications for the visit, a financial guarantee determined for the purpose, and the reason for the entry, particularly if it’s the foreign wife of a man who is a citizen of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, provided that he has a valid residence permit.

The authorities have allowed individuals residing in the UAE to apply for a request to issue a visit visa for a relative or friend of foreigners abroad, through the smart application (UAEICP) in simple and smooth steps, which enhances the experience of electronic services provided to customers, and meets the future needs of all groups of foreigners and residents.

The authorities invited all individuals to download the smart application and take advantage of the many and varied services offered to it, including the request for a visit visa for a relative or friend, as applying for it requires logging in through the application via the digital identity, choosing to start a new service and clicking on a new visa for multiple trips, depending on the type of visit visa for a relative or friend (30, 60 or 90 days).

The authority confirmed that after issuing the visa to the customer abroad, he must enter the country within 60 days from the date of issuance of the entry permit, pointing out that the entry permit is valid for a period of 30, 60 or 90 days, depending on the period for which it was issued. He can leave the country or extend the entry permit before the expiration of the period prescribed to avoid additional fines, which amounts to Dhs100 for each additional day.