A digital government report highlighted that the UAE's Golden Visa program offers long-term residency to specific categories of foreigners residing in the Emirates or those wishing to move there.
Long-Term Residency
This visa allows individuals to live, work, invest, and study without needing a guarantor or host, while also providing exclusive benefits. The visa categories include investors, entrepreneurs, and individuals with exceptional talents such as scholars, specialists, top students, graduates, humanitarian pioneers, and frontline workers.
Purpose and Duration
According to the research, the government of the United Arab Emirates established the Golden Residency Program to provide permanent residence visas. With these visas, a guarantor is not required for entry into the nation. Categories determine the length of time a Golden Visa is valid, which can be five or 10 years.
The digital government report identified seven exclusive benefits for Golden Visa holders. These benefits include a multiple-entry visa valid for six months to complete the Golden Residency procedures and a renewable five- or ten-year residence visa.
Golden Visitors to the United Arab Emirates can extend their stay abroad beyond six months without being required to reapply for residence. Family members, including wives and children, are eligible to receive residence permits under the scheme. Recruiting support service professionals is not constrained in any way. Plus, if the principal visa holder (breadwinner) dies, family members can stay in the nation for as long as their residence permits.
The report also detailed the specific requirements for obtaining a Golden Visa, which vary based on the applicant's category, such as investors, talents, or entrepreneurs. For investors in public investment funds, eligibility for a ten-year Golden Visa without a guarantor requires a letter from an approved investment fund in the UAE confirming a deposit of 2 million dirhams, a valid commercial or industrial license with the company’s articles of incorporation showing that the share of capital invested is at least 2 million dirhams, and a letter from the Federal Tax Authority confirming ownership or partnership in an establishment that pays tax to the government, with a minimum annual tax contribution of 250,000 dirhams. The capital must be fully owned and not borrowed, and proof of health insurance for the applicant and their family is required.
For property owners, a renewable five-year Golden Visa can be obtained under similar conditions and without the need for a guarantor. Entrepreneurs who own an economic project of a technical or future-oriented nature that relies on risk and innovation can also obtain a five-year Golden Visa.
Additionally, individuals with rare talents and specializations, such as doctors, scientists, creative individuals in culture and art, inventors, executives, specialists in priority scientific fields, athletes, and holders of doctoral degrees, are eligible for the Golden Visa. This category also includes specialists in engineering and science fields, outstanding students in high schools and universities, humanitarian pioneers, and frontline defense workers.
One Touch Service
The digital government has introduced the comprehensive "One Touch" service to streamline the Golden Visa application and renewal process. This service aims to simplify the submission and renewal of Golden Visa requests, saving time and effort for applicants. It consolidates various steps into integrated packages for completing the application, issuing the visa, settling status, and obtaining residency and identity cards, with the possibility of renewal in just one step. Applications can be submitted through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs, and Port Security’s website or its smart application available on the Google Store or Apple Store.