How to stay in the UAE for more than 90 days

Residents of the UK and some other countries like Australia, the United States of America, Canada, and Japan (see the full list of countries here at https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/visa-and-emirates-id/do-you-need-an-entry-permit-or-a-visa-to-enter-the-uae) are allowed to stay in the United Arab Emirates without a pre-arranged or resident visa for no longer than 30 days a year. While the residents of most European countries are allowed to stay in the UAE without a pre-arranged visa for 90 days. What’s more, at the airport their passports are even stamped with a 90-day visit visa free of charge.

But besides all of this, what do you need to do if you want to stay in the UAE for more than 30 or 90 days? How does one go about applying to stay in the UAE for more than 90 days? What exactly is the process?

Table of contents

• Types of entry permits in the UAE
• How to prolong a 30-day visa in the UAE
• We will assist you to purchase an apartment in the United Arab Emirates

Types of entry permits in the UAE

The visa process between the UAE and other countries is quite straightforward. Currently, there are eight types of permits that one can choose from depending on the reason for one’s stay in the country. Below is a comprehensive list of all the different types of visas available in the UAE.

1. Transit visa – if during a flight to another country the transfer lasts longer than a day, then a transit visa will be issued to you and will be valid for 96 hours.
2. Tourist visa – this is one of the most common types of entry permits in the United Arab Emirates. All travelers from other countries who visit the UAE for tourist purposes need to get this visa. Also, the duration of a tourist visa varies from 30 to 90 days depending on the traveler’s citizenship.
3. Cruise visa – this type of visa is required when you visit the Emirates as part of an ocean trip. It allows you to stay in the country for four days.
4. Visit visa – to visit relatives or friends who live in the United Arab Emirates, you need to apply for a visit visa. With this visa, you are allowed to stay in the country for no longer than 30 days. However, it is possible to stay for a longer period by having it extended. In this case, your relatives or friends you are visiting need to make a visa extension request to the UAE Migration Service.
5. Business visa – this type of visa is required for business travel. So if your employer is a company registered in the UAE, they apply for your visa. Also, the duration of the business visa allows you to stay in the country for 60 days.
6. Work and residency visa – during this time of either working or living in the UAE you need to apply for a work and residency visa through your employer. Also, while this type of visa is valid for two years, the rules where this is concerned might vary depending on the nationality of the applicant.
7. Residency visa or residence permit – this type of visa is issued for different lengths of time. So it can vary anywhere from two to 10 years, depending on the reason for the permit. For example, after purchasing real estate in the UAE that falls within the specified price range, you can apply for a residency permit for 10 years.
8. Visa obtained on arrival – a visa obtained on arrival allows foreigners from about 50 countries to stay in the United Arab Emirates for a period of no more than 30 or 90 days, depending on their nationality. What’s more, the visa starts from the moment it is stamped upon arrival. That is to say, from the date that is indicated on the stamp. In addition, a 30-day visa can be extended for a further 30 days. As such, its total validity is then 60 days. To get a stamp at the airport, you need to ensure that your passport is valid for at least six months from your date of entry into the UAE.

On July 7, 2020, the Dubai government opened the borders for foreign tourists. Although, it should be noted that other emirates such as Abu Dhabi, Ajman, and Sharjah cannot be entered directly, at least legally.

In addition to this, an immigration officer at the airport might even ask you where you are staying (your hotel reservation). Also, they have the right to check if you have medical insurance too. Furthermore, to cross the UAE border you must ensure that you have travel insurance, as this will cover the costs for any treatment with regards to the coronavirus should you contract it.

The following additional rules also apply for tourists:

• From August 2020, all travelers arriving in Dubai, including those making a transit transfer here, must show airport employees a certificate of having passed a polymerase chain reaction test (PCR test).
• After you leave the airport, you will have to get tested for the coronavirus again. Also, to receive the results of your test immediately upon arrival at the airport, you need to install a mobile application on your phone. This way, the test results will be sent directly to you. For more information on this, the immigration officer in charge will further instruct you.
• You need to isolate yourself in your apartment or hotel immediately after taking the test as the test results will only be available within 24 hours after being tested.
• If a traveler tests positive for the coronavirus, then they will go through a two-week quarantine period in a hotel or receive treatment in a hospital in the United Arab Emirates.

So since there are so many tourists interested in staying in the UAE for more than 90 days, how can they go about doing this?

How to prolong a 30-day visa in the UAE

How can you extend your stay in the UAE for more than 30 days?

To legally stay in the United Arab Emirates for longer than 30 days, you need to extend your visa upon arrival. Also, please be aware that you can only legally extend the period of your stay in the country by a maximum of 30 days.

Moreover, to increase your stay in the UAE, you need to contact the migration service, where you will be asked to fill out an application. In this application, you need to indicate the personal number of your current visa and the extended duration period that you’re requesting. Note that this was already mentioned above. It cannot be for longer than 30 days.

After this, you need to pay the visa fee of AED 100.

Alternatively, if you do not extend your visa for your stay in the country, you will be fined in accordance with the following procedure. For each day of your stay in the United Arab Emirates with an expired visa, which is classified as an illegal stay in the country, you will pay an amount of AED 200. Moreover, an additional AED 100 will be added for each extra day spent in the country.

For those who are planning to stay in the Emirates for more than three months (90 days), you need to make sure that you apply for a visa before you arrive in the country.

Furthermore, if you applied for a visa but did not enter the United Arab Emirates during your visa period, most likely, you will be assigned a fine of $2,000. This might lead to potential problems in the future where obtaining a permit to enter the UAE is concerned.

We will assist You to purchase an apartment in the United Arab Emirates

Find your dream apartment in the UAE today! Visit us on our website Emirates.Estate and find a wide selection of only the best properties for sale from the most trusted developers and real estate agencies in the UAE. Our experts are ready and available not only to assist you in finding and purchasing your dream apartment but also with arranging all of the paperwork and providing you with the necessary legal assistance. So get in touch with Emirates.Estate right now because purchasing an apartment in the UAE has never been this easy or safe.