The variety of folks shifting overseas for work has grown considerably lately, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a high vacation spot. The UAE’s easy employment visa necessities contribute to its giant expat neighborhood, which makes up 88% of the inhabitants.
Earlier than shifting to the UAE, expats, or international nationals, should apply for a UAE work visa. This software course of entails a number of steps, resembling selecting the best work visa, acquiring an entry visa, making use of for an Emirates ID, and getting a medical checkup.
On this information, we examine the UAE’s varied work visas, present a listing of required paperwork wanted for visa software, and stroll by the steps of the applying course of.
We additionally element how working with an immigration skilled simplifies your complete work visa course of for world firms serious about hiring UAE expats or relocating expertise to the UAE.
Desk of Contents
Sorts of UAE Work Visas
Earlier than getting into the UAE for work, international nationals should get hold of a UAE work visa. Foreigners can select from three sorts of UAE work visas: normal work visa, Golden Visa, and Inexperienced Visa. The appropriate visa is determined by the circumstances of every applicant.
Commonplace Work Visa
A regular work visa within the UAE is an employer-sponsored work visa that allows an expat to reside and work as an worker within the UAE for 2 to a few years. After this time, the employer should renew or cancel the visa.
A regular work visa is among the most typical choices for working or hiring talent in the UAE. It requires an employment contract and approval from the Ministry of Human Sources and Emiratization (MoHRE).
Earlier than arriving within the UAE on a normal work visa, a international nationwide should settle for a job provide in writing and acquire an entry allow. The entry allow permits them to enter the UAE and start the method of officiating their work visa and residence visa.
Inexperienced Visa
In October 2022, the UAE launched the Inexperienced visa to draw and assist international freelancers and self-employed people within the UAE. The Inexperienced visa grants holders residency for 5 years and, in contrast to the usual UAE work visa, doesn’t require employer sponsorship.
The Inexperienced visa has extra advantages, resembling the power to sponsor quick family to relocate to the UAE, a six-month grace interval upon visa expiry or cancellation, and a simplified software course of.
The paperwork required to use for a Inexperienced visa range relying on the applicant’s work class. Nonetheless, normal required paperwork embrace a legitimate employment contract or self-employment allow from the MoHRE, proof of schooling, and proof of ample earnings in the course of the applicant’s keep within the UAE.
Golden Visa
The UAE’s Golden visa is an prolonged residence allow that permits professionals with distinctive {qualifications} to reside, work, and examine within the UAE for 10 years and not using a native sponsor. Individuals who qualify for the Golden visa are often medical doctors, scientists, athletes, inventors, artists, healthcare workers, or others with choose {qualifications}.
Golden visa holders take pleasure in varied advantages, resembling entry to unique medical insurance packages and the power to sponsor limitless quick members of the family and assist workers. They’ll additionally spend limitless time exterior the UAE with out impacting the validity of their visa.
The record of supporting paperwork for a Golden visa varies relying on the applicant’s background. An eligibility quiz on the Federal Authority for Identification, Citizenship, Customs, and Port Safety (ICP) web site clarifies whether or not or not an individual qualifies for the Golden visa.
Who Is Eligible to Get hold of a UAE Work Visa?
Anybody over 18 can legally work as an expat within the UAE, supplied the employer and worker meet the MoHRE’s standards. Under is a common overview of the MoHRE’s situations for working within the UAE:
- The employer has a legitimate working license
- The employer has no violations
- The worker’s work corresponds to the character of the corporate’s operations
- The worker has not less than a highschool diploma
There isn’t any most age restrict for candidates, however employers should pay an extra AED5,000 (US$1,360) price each two years for using employees over 65 years outdated.
Necessities for Acquiring a UAE Employment Visa
UAE employment visa necessities range, relying on the visa class. Under is a common record of the required supporting paperwork for a UAE work visa software:
- Authentic passport and duplicate
- Passport-sized pictures consistent with UAE requirements
- Emirates ID card
- Entry allow from the Ministry of Labor (MoL)
- Medical certificates issued by a government-approved well being heart within the UAE
- Copies of the worker’s tutorial {qualifications} with authorization from the Ministry of International Affairs and a UAE Embassy within the worker’s dwelling nation
- Paperwork from the employer, resembling their business license and firm card
The employer is accountable for the work visa software course of and associated prices, whereas the worker is accountable for submitting paperwork for the residence allow.
Find out how to Get a UAE Work Visa: 10 Steps
It’s useful to think about the UAE work visa software course of in three phases: getting an employment entry visa, making use of for an Emirates ID, and acquiring a residence visa and work visa. We define the phases and their steps beneath.
Stage 1: Get hold of an Employment Entry Visa within the UAE
1. Apply for an Entry Visa Quota Approval
If the applicant resides and works in one of many UAE’s 46 free zones, the employer should apply for a UAE free zone visa, which requires visa quota approval from the Ministry of Labor.
Free zone employers have a quota restriction on work visas, which range throughout free zones. For instance, the quota in Dubai is one visa per 9 sq. meters of workplace house. If an employer reaches their quota, they will transfer to a bigger workplace or apply for a quota improve.
2. Submit a Signed Employment Contract
Upon receiving quota approval, the employer should submit a signed work contract to the MoL for approval. The contract have to be in English, Arabic, and the worker’s native language if it differs from both language.
3. Submit a Work Visa Utility and Apply for an Entry Visa
The employer should submit their work visa software for approval. At this stage, the MoL confirms that the sponsor is a registered UAE company entity and determines if any unemployed UAE residents can fill the vacant place as a substitute of the international applicant. The MoL should approve the work visa software earlier than issuing an entry visa.
4. Obtain an Employment Entry Visa
Upon approval of the work visa software, the MoL points an employment entry visa, often known as a pink visa. The entry visa is legitimate for 2 months for normal and Inexperienced visa holders and 6 months with a number of entries for Golden visa holders. It permits the worker to legally enter the UAE to formalize their work visa and apply for a residence visa.
The worker receives the entry visa upon arrival to the UAE. If they can’t journey to the UAE inside 60 days, they might apply for a one-time extension. If the worker is already within the UAE on a unique visa, they need to apply for a visa ‘change of standing’ or do a ‘border run’ to acquire the entry visa upon arrival.
Upon entry, the worker should start amassing supporting paperwork for his or her residence visa software, resembling an Emirates ID and well being certificates, whereas the employer submits extra paperwork to officiate the work visa.
Stage Two: Apply for an Emirates ID
5. Apply for an Emirates ID
International nationals getting into or relocating to the UAE for work should get an Emirates ID, which is important for the required medical screening. The ID instantly hyperlinks to the expat’s residence visa and serves as an on a regular basis identification doc within the UAE instead of a passport.
To use for an Emirates ID, the worker should go to an Emirates Identification Authority (EIDA) heart with their passport and entry visa and supply biometrics, resembling their fingerprints and {a photograph}.
Stage 3: Get hold of a Work Visa and Residence Visa within the UAE
6. Get a Medical Checkup
All candidates should obtain medical screening at a government-approved clinic within the UAE. The outcomes of the checkup are required for the residence visa software.
7. Submit a Labor Contract
As part of the UAE work visa formalization, employers should add their worker’s labor contract to the MoL web site inside 14 days of receiving the worker’s medical screening outcomes.
8. Get Well being Insurance coverage
Medical health insurance is obligatory for all expat workers within the UAE. In some Emirates, resembling Abu Dhabi and Dubai, employers should present medical insurance for workers and their households.
If a international worker resides in Sharjah or one of many northern Emirates, they need to buy their very own medical insurance plan. The MoL doesn’t concern or renew work visas for workers and not using a legitimate medical insurance card.
9. Obtain a Work Visa and Start Payroll
After finishing the above steps, it takes about 5 days for the MoL to grant an official work visa. Upon receiving the work visa, workers can legally start working within the UAE, and employers can begin administering payroll by the official UAE system.
10. Obtain a Residence Visa
As soon as all the above gadgets are in place, the worker should submit the required paperwork with their software for a residence visa. If the applicant hasn’t acquired their official Emirates ID, an software receipt will suffice. The residence visa is legitimate for 2 years and is renewable.
All expats want a residence visa to reside within the UAE, and the MoL lists the worker’s work visa as a part of the residence visa. Expats additionally want a residence visa for finishing formalities, resembling opening financial institution accounts, registering a automobile, and opening a PO field.
Concerns Earlier than Acquiring a Work Visa within the UAE
One of many distinctive concerns for buying a normal work visa within the UAE is that each applicant requires sponsorship from a legally integrated entity within the UAE. This requirement complicates the method for international firms serious about hiring expertise within the UAE.
If an organization has not established an area entity within the UAE however needs to make use of international nationals, it may well associate with an employer of document (EoR) as a substitute. An EoR is a third-party group that serves because the authorized employer of your world workforce so you’ll be able to rent expertise exterior your private home nation with out establishing an area entity.
An EoR handles every little thing from onboarding and payroll to visa necessities and compliance so firms can check markets within the UAE and shortly rent UAE expats or locals with out risking noncompliance with UAE employment and immigration laws.
Be taught extra: What Is an Employer of Record?
Simply Rent or Relocate Expertise within the UAE With Velocity International
Regardless of the UAE’s comparatively easy visa necessities, acquiring UAE work visas comes with distinctive challenges for world employers and expats. Remove the effort and compliance dangers by partnering with Velocity International.
Velocity International’s built-in Global Immigration solution simplifies visa acquisition for distributed workforces within the UAE and past. As a part of our International Employer of Document (EoR) resolution, we deal with doc assortment, translation, and administration whereas guaranteeing compliance with evolving immigration legal guidelines so you’ll be able to rent or relocate expertise in international markets with ease.
Get in touch with Velocity Global right this moment to discover ways to take away the stress of world immigration and shortly rent high expertise within the UAE.