How can you get your hands on a golden visa and make your move to the UAE? Here’s everything you need to know.
More than 200,000 ex-pats make their way to Dubai each year, and 88 percent of Abu Dhabi’s 10 million residents come from abroad. So, if you’re considering an international move to the United Arab Emirates – in these cities or to another destination – you are not alone.
But moving abroad isn’t as simple as buying a plane ticket, packing up all of your things, and heading overseas. To make your move legal – find a place to live, obtain work, and everything in between – you will need a visa.
In the UAE, you have several options when it comes to visas. Perhaps you’ve heard people talk about the so-called golden visa that some residents of this Middle Eastern nation carry.
What is the Golden Visa?
The golden visa is just a nickname for the long-term residence visa given to those who move from another country to live in the UAE. Perhaps that’s why it’s considered “golden” – having this visa means you can stick around in the country for 5 to 10 years, which gives you a lot of stability as an ex-pat.
As you might imagine, though, not just anyone can apply for the golden visa. To be able to stay in the UAE for that long, you have to fit into a certain category of applicant.
Who Can Obtain the Golden Visa?
You can get the golden visa if, for starters, you are willing to make an investment in the UAE. With this option, you don’t need a sponsor for your visa, which is great news if your work or studies don’t qualify you for the visa you seek (more on those options later).
Investors
Investors must put at least AED 10 million into the UAE’s public sector, which roughly equates to £2.3 million as of July 2022. You have a number of options as to how to make qualifying investments.
For starters, you can show that you have accredited investment funds ready to use in the UAE. You can also want to show that you have an industrial or commercial licence as an investor with a notation that your entity has at least AED 10 million of capital paid already. If you don’t set up your own company, you can show that you have been made a partner in a company, so long as that company has given you at least AED 10 million in shares already.
When you apply for this visa, you will have to prove that none of the money you have invested has been loaned to you. You also have to maintain the money you’ve invested for at least three years.
If you opt to go the investment route, you get the added benefit of adding family members to your golden visa application. So, you can bring your spouse and any dependents — great news if you plan to start a new life in the UAE. You can also bring an executive director and advisor on your visa.
Multiple investors can apply under the same golden visa application, too. However, each one must show that they have AED10 million to invested, or that they have invested that much already.
In return, though, the pay-off is huge. You can get a 10-year residency visa if you go the investor visa route.
Entrepreneurs
If you’d like Dubai or Abu Dhabi to be the home of your start-up, you