UAE: Employment and Immigration Laws

UAE: Employment and Immigration Laws

The UAE has relaxed the rules regarding Tourist Visas as part of their Expo 2020 objective. The Prime Minster of UAE announced in January 2020 that the time limit of the multi entry visit tourist visa shall be increased from 90 days, to a period of 5 years. This initiative aims to boost national economy by attracting more and more people into the retail and hospitality sector.

Despite increasing the term to a period of 5 years, visitors shall not be permitted to work in the UAE. Considering the increase in the number of visitors expected to enter into the UAE, there shall be certain restrictions that will be imposed on holders thereof. It is likely that the government will impose a cap on the period of time that an individual may remain in the country.

Further, as part of the golden visa system, the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship has introduced a new portal to facilitate ease of visa application for investors and entrepreneurs. This serves a dual objective, by increasing the number of investors in the country and making the UAE an attractive and long term base for conducting business.

The new law shall afford an opportunity to entrepreneurs to extend their visa from an initial period of six months to 5 years, and once they meet all visa requirements, they even have the option of extending their visa to a period of 10 years.