UAE Family Visa Requirements

If you are living in the UAE with an investor or work visa and intend to bring your family or parents to the country, it is crucial to prepare the required documents and consider specific accommodation requirements in advance.

In this article, we will outline the key points you need to be aware of to ensure a smooth and hassle-free family relocation to the UAE.

Required documents

The necessary documents depend on the family members you plan to sponsor. In the UAE, family visas can be obtained for:

• Spouse (Muslims can sponsor up to two spouses)
• Children below a certain age (biological and adopted)
• Your parents or your spouse's parents
• Minor siblings
• Grandchildren (with grandparents as sponsors)
• Immediate family members of students attending UAE universities

In the following sections, we will discuss the main cases from full family to single-parent families and the peculiarities of parental sponsorship.

Sponsoring a spouse and children

In this section, we will provide information on the documents required for UAE family visas for spouses and children.

Case 1: Full family with children. Sponsor - husband

• Sponsor's residency visa
• Sponsor's Emirates ID
• Photocopy of sponsor's passport
• Job Contract or Salary Certificate issued not earlier than one month before the application. In the Mainland, it is issued by the employer; in a free zone, it is issued by the free zone itself.
• Marriage Certificate (Muslims with mosque-registered marriages must obtain state marriage certificates)
• Birth certificates for children
• Photocopies of wife and children's passports
• Photographs of wife and children
• Registered lease or property purchase agreement with Ejari
• Proof of legal guardianship for foster children (typically a court order)
• Medical insurance certificates for wife and children (not mandatory for visa application but recommended for staying in the UAE)

Case 2: Full family with children. Sponsor - wife

When the wife is the family visa sponsor, an additional document is required: the father's permission. This is a standard No Objection Certificate (NOC), issued by a notary at the Dubai Court. Note that the father's permission for the child to travel abroad is insufficient.

Case 3: Father with his children

A father relocating to the UAE with his children without their mother can obtain family visas for the children without the wife's consent.

Case 4: Mother with children

When a mother and her children move to the UAE, the children will require their father's permission (NOC), the father's death certificate (if he is not alive), or a court certificate stating the mother is the sole custodian of the children to obtain family visas. In this case, the father's permission for the children to travel abroad is not sufficient.

Sponsoring parents

In addition to preparing the standard documents listed above, there are certain additional requirements in order to obtain family visas for parents:

1. Mandatory insurance

The older the parent, the more expensive the insurance will be. There is no age limit for family visas.

2. Mandatory sponsorship of both parents

You cannot sponsor only the father or only the mother, as long as both parents are alive. If the parents are divorced, proof of divorce or death of either parent is required.

3. Separate room for parents

Rented or owned accommodation in the UAE must provide a separate room for parents. Therefore studios or one bedroom apartments are not suitable.

4. Minimum wage requirement of the sponsor

In order to sponsor parents, the salary of the sponsor must be at least AED 20,000.

5. Deposit

A deposit of AED 3,000 is required for each parent, regardless of the sponsor's visa type (investor or worker). 

6. Providing proof of parental status and marriage

It is necessary to add to the package of necessary documents the Marriage Certificate of the parents as well as the Birth Certificate of the sponsor proving that they are their parents or parents of the spouse.

Legalization of documents

Before coming to the UAE, it is necessary to legalize all documents that will be required in the Emirates, such as children's birth certificates, your marriage certificate or diploma. Legalization of documents means their certification by the relevant state authorities in the country of issue.

Important! Each document shall be legalized in the country of issue! In the UAE this can be done through the Consulate General of your country in the UAE, but it will require a power of attorney and will take a longer time! Therefore, we recommend you to legalize the necessary documents while you are still in your country.

Since the UAE has not acceded to the 1961 Hague Convention, legalization of documents involves consular procedures.

Step-by-step instructions for legalizing documents in the country of issue:

1. Prepare notarized copies of documents for legalization.
2. Translate the copies into Arabic and have the translator's signature notarized. An English translation is also recommended, but Arabic remains the main language.
3. Have the notary's signature and seal certified by the Ministry of Justice in your country.
4. Sign the seal of the Ministry of Justice and the signature of the official at the Consular Department of your country's Foreign Ministry.
5. Have the signature and seal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs witnessed at the UAE Consulate.

Steps to apply for a Dubai Family Visa

It is possible to apply for family visas when the family is still at home as well as when they have already arrived in the UAE. The procedure in both cases is the same, namely:

1. Collection of documents.
2. Applying for an Entry Permit.
   The sponsor needs to come to Dubai AMER Center with the package of documents and original Emirates ID. Generally, the permit is ready within five business days.
3. Changing visa status
   If family members are already in the UAE on tourist visas, their visa status is changed from tourist to resident. If they are not in the country, they have 60 days under this permit to enter the UAE and apply for a family visa. If they do not manage to complete the procedure within 60 days, they have to obtain Entry Permit again.
4. Medical examination and fingerprinting (take the 16 years old and over)
5. Applying for an Emirates ID
6. Making deposit for sponsored persons
   If the sponsor has an investor visa, then he/she should make a deposit at the rate of 3,000 AED for each sponsored family member. In the case of sponsoring parents, the deposit is due regardless of visa type.
7. Obtaining a Visa Sticker
   A Visa Sticker will be mailed as proof of residency status in the UAE. Keep it as it will be required along with your Emirates ID in the future. Note that the physical visa stamp is no longer placed in your passport. With this sticker you can leave the country if necessary. It is not necessary to wait for Emirates ID. You can get it later.
8. Getting an Emirates ID card
   Within a week after receiving the Visa Sticker, the Emirates ID card itself will be ready, and the person becomes a full-fledged resident of the UAE.

Family Visa cost

The cost of obtaining a family visa in 2024 broken down by service: