The Department of Naturalization and Residency (DNRD – Immigration Department) has recently announced changes to the ‘visa on arrival’ regulations for European passport holders.

Holders of all European passports residing in the European Schengen countries will now receive a 90 day single entry visa on arrival into the UAE. This visa cannot be extended whilst the passport holder is inside the country, however it is possible to complete a ‘border run’ via land or air.

Passport holders from non-Schengen European countries will no longer receive the 30 day visa on arrival. Instead they will now be granted a 40 day multiple entry visa upon arrival. If the passport holder exits and returns to the UAE within this 40 day period a new visa will not be issued. Instead the time will be taken from the initial 40 day visa and they will be required to exit the country before the expiry of the initial visa. If the time inside the country exceed the 40 days granted, overstay fines will be incurred and charged upon exit of the country.

This visa can be extended inside the country at the Immigration Department for an additional 30 days.

Overstay fines for both scenarios will be as follows: AED 200/- for the first day and AED 100/- for each day that follows.

As both processes are fairly new to the immigration system, we would advise that employees or family members arriving into the UAE from any of the above countries that don’t hold a residency visa confirm with the immigration officer at the airport the status of their visa. It is also important to ensure that the immigration file number is clearly written in their passport along side the entry stamp.

Kindly note that passport holders of all other non European countries previously eligible for a standard 30 day extendable stamp on arrival will continue to receive this stamp when they enter the country.