UAE launches new Visa policies

Officials in the United Arab Emirates have stated that fifty new projects and initiatives would be unveiled in the coming weeks to coincide with the country’s 50th anniversary, including new visas to attract residents and talented employees.

On Sunday, a UAE minister proposed a series of visa changes that would aid in the retention of skilled workers in the nation. Among the proposed changes are the creation of a “green” visa, the creation of a federal freelancing permission, and the extension of time for individuals to leave the country after losing their employment.

In an effort to stimulate the economy of the country, the United Arab Emirates has announced the introduction of a new visa for working professionals who arrive from other nations. According to sources, the introduction of this “green visa” would help to diversify the country’s economy and decrease its reliance on oil.

In most cases, the employees only have visas that are linked to their companies, which is standard practise. In addition, these employees have difficulties obtaining long-term residence in the United States. Foreigners will be allowed to work in the nation under the conditions of the green visa if they are not sponsored by an employer, according to the rules of the visa.

The new green visa, according to officials in the United Arab Emirates, would allow holders to sponsor their parents and children up to the age of 25, as well as to work in the nation without the need for an employer’s sponsorship.

These announcements came as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) unveiled the first batch of 50 new projects that will be inaugurated in September as part of the Year of the 50th.

In order to accommodate individuals who will not be working for any businesses, we have created a green visa. These visa holders will be self-sufficient and will be able to sponsor their parents and children up to the age of 25, according to Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade and Investment.

The government intends to increase its investment in sophisticated industrial areas as well as technological education. The Green Visa, which is intended to extend self-residency status for talented people and investors, as well as the Freelancers Visa, which will allow self-employed individuals to sponsor themselves, are examples of recently implemented reforms to the immigration system. The nation has previously implemented the 10-year Golden Visa programme, which is available only to highly qualified and chosen citizens and investors who meet certain criteria.

Visas are a vital part of the UAE’s economy, which is dominated by expats who account for almost 90 percent of the country’s 10 million people. Traditionally, if an overseas resident does not have a job, their visa is revoked; this was one of the factors that contributed to almost 10% of the country’s population departing during the first year of the coronavirus epidemic.

As a result of the epidemic, the oil-rich desert sheikhdom has been attempting to attract new money and people in an effort to assist its economy recover from the blows it suffered as a result of the pandemic, which caused its GDP to contract by 6.1 percent in 2020. For the first time late last year, the UAE introduced the remote worker visa, which enables people to live and work in the UAE for up to one year even if they are employed elsewhere in the world, as long as they earn a specific amount.

The introduction of the 50 projects, however, was devoid of specifics, as has been the case with many big announcements in the UAE, with no indication as to when each of the programmes would begin or what they will involve.

This effort comes at a time when the United Arab Emirates and neighbouring Saudi Arabia are becoming more competitive to be the region’s commerce and economic centre. The United Arab Emirates, and particularly Dubai, has long been regarded as the economic hub of the area, bolstered by sophisticated transportation and logistics infrastructure and strategically located at the crossroads of east and west trade routes.

Saudi Arabia has embarked on a liberalising economic reform programme in an attempt to attract more human capital and foreign investment during the last year. In addition, it stated in February that its government will stop doing business with any foreign businesses whose regional offices were not located in the kingdom by the end of the decade 2024. The move was generally seen as a direct challenge to Dubai’s position as the region’s economic leader.

After its neighbouring nation Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates has the second-largest economy in the Middle East. International visitors make for about 90 percent of the country’s 10 million inhabitants, according to available statistics.

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