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BLOG SERIES – WORKING IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE) – PART 10

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How to apply for your family's visa in the UAE?

Let’s start with Dubai.

 

Dubai

Whether your family is already in the country on a visit visa or in another country, here is a step-by-step process of all you need to know and do to apply for their visa.

 

The visa process is managed by Amer services, by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA).  Once your Dubai employment visa is stamped, make sure you have the following documents and certificates:

 

Step 1 – Required Documents:

  • For sponsoring your spouse you require your marriage certificate attested by your home country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  • For sponsoring your children, original birth certificates of children attested by the relevant authorities.
  • Copy of valid passport of family members – The passport needs to be valid for at least 6 months.
  • Passport-sized photograph. NOTE: For visa and Emirates ID applications, the photograph needs to be taken on a white background, with ears, forehead to chin completely visible.
  • A copy of your registered tenancy contract.

For applicants who were already residents of the UAE and are simply changing jobs, it is important to keep old Emirates IDs that were issued to your family members as well.

 

Step 2 – Visit An Amer Centre:

Once you have all the documents in place, visit an Amer service centre with your (sponsor’s) original Emirates ID.  Branches of the Amer service centres can be found across the emirate, with many shopping malls also having centres that provide all the necessary information.

 

You can also access the services online via www.amer247.com, which is run by a semi-government organisation, providing services related to visa, Emirates ID and medical testing applications.  There is also an app for ‘Amer GDRFAD’ on Apple appstore and the Google Playstore.  If you have any questions related to Amer services, you can call the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs on 8005111.

 

Once the process is initiated by Amer services, it takes 48 hours to receive an e-visa, which will be sent to your registered email address.  Once the e-visa has been processed, there are three ways in which you can apply for your family’s residence visa.  

 

If your family is not in the country, the normal e-visa will be issued and your family can enter the country on the e-visa.  If they are already in the country, either on a visit visa or an old residence visa, you will need to exit the country and enter it using the e-visa.  Alternatively, you could place a request at the Amer centre for change of visa without exit.

 

Charges:

  • File opening charges – Dh269.
  • Normal e-visa (when the family is outside the UAE) – Dh500 entry permit.
  • If your family is in the country, entry permit is for Dh1,170 for each member you are sponsoring.
  • If you choose the third option, you will need to pay an additional fee of Dh670 per person for ‘change of status’.

Step 3 – Submit To A Medical Test:

When requesting the medical test application at the Amer centre, advise which Dubai Health Authority (DHA) medical fitness centre is closest to your home, or most convenient for you to visit as this will be mentioned in the application.  Take the application to the DHA health centre, where you will need to first get your blood test and x-ray done. Applicants are tested for HIV, tuberculosis, Hepatits B and in some occupations syphilis.

 

Charges:

  • Regular application – Dh320 (where the medical test results come within five working days).
  • Urgent – Dh410 (where the medical test results come within 48 hours).
  • VIP – Dh750 (where the medical test results come within four hours).

Once the medical test results are in, you will be notified via email on your registered email address.  For any medical test related queries, you can call the Dubai Health Authority on 800 342

 

Step 4 – Get the Emirates ID:

Take the Emirates ID application, which was typed at the Amer centre, to a Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship centre.

 

Take the following documents with you:

  • Emirates ID application of the family members.
  • Your original Emirates ID.
  • Photograph of your family members.

If you have never had your Emirates ID made, you will need to provide biometric data like your finger print and an iris scan. This is only applicable for people 18 years and above.

 

Charges:

  • Dh270- for two year
  • And Dh370 for three years

Step 5 – Get Health Insurance:

Health insurance is mandatory in Dubai and family members need to get at least a basic health cover – referred to in Dubai as the Essential Benefits Plan.

 

Step 6 – Get Visa Stamped:

The final step is to get your visa stamped on the passport. For it, you will need to visit the Amer centre with the following documents:

  • Medical fitness report.
  • Emirates ID application.
  • Original passport of the family members.
  • Health insurance papers.
  • Your (sponsor’s) original Emirates ID.

Charges:

  • Regular – Dh460 (You will get the passport with the stamped visa in three to four working days).
  • Urgent – Dh560 (Same day stamping, but the sponsor will need to go to the Immigration service).

Once an application is complete the applicant will receive a call from the authorised courier service – Zajel – for collection. You will also receive an SMS on your registered mobile number with the Zajel airway bill number.  Once the visa is stamped, the passport will be returned through the same courier service,”

 

Other Emirates:

The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs manages the visa application process for Abu Dhabi and all other emirates.

 

Step 1 – Get The Entry Permit:

In other emirates, the entry permit or e-visa is referred to as the tasheera.  To apply for the tasheera, you can either visit a typing centre or apply for the visa online. You will need the following documents:

  • For sponsoring your spouse, marriage certificate attested by your home country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  • If you are sponsoring your children, original birth certificates of children attested by the relevant authorities.
  • Copy of valid passport of family members. The passport needs to be valid for at least 6 months.
  • Passport-sized photograph. NOTE: For visa and Emirates ID applications, the photograph needs to be taken on a white background, with ears, forehead to chin completely visible.
  • Copy of your registered tenancy contract.

If you would like to apply online, visit https://echannels.moi.gov.ae and click on the ‘Individual Services’ option. Once you enter your email address, you will get an email with the link for registration.  Follow the steps required to apply for the tasheera or entry permit.  Once the application has been submitted, you will get the tasheera in two working days.

 

Charges:

  • Normal tasheera (when the family is outside the UAE) – Dh500 entry permit.
  • If your family is in the country, tasheera is for Dh1,170 for each member you are sponsoring. They will need to exit the country and enter on the tasheera.
  • Or, you can pay an additional fee of Dh670 per person for ‘change of status’ without the need to exit the country.

NOTE: Even though you have the option to apply online, the process can be quite detailed and if you prefer paying a little extra to get the application done by a professional typing centre, you can do so for a fee of Dh50.

 

Step 2 – Apply for Emirates ID:

To apply for the Emirates ID, you will again need to go to a typing centre to fill out the application.  Once the application is filled out, visit a Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship centre with the following documents:

  • Original passport of each family member.
  • Any old Emirates IDs issued to the members (for previous residents of UAE).

Past residents of the UAE simply need to provide their Emirates ID and do not need to provide biometric data.  New applicants will be scanned for biometric data like finger print and iris scan.

Biometric scan is not required for children under 18.

Charges:

  • Dh270- for two year
  • And Dh370 for three years

Step 3 – Medical Test:

If you are applying for the visa in Abu Dhabi, visit a Health Authority of Abu Dhabi Medical Fitness Centre.

Charges:

  • Dh250 per person

For all other emirates, visit a Ministry of Health and Prevention centre.

Step 4 – Health Insurance:

Health insurance is mandatory in Abu Dhabi. For other emirates, you can skip to step 5. However, it is advisable to get health coverage, even if it is a basic health insurance plan, as medical costs during emergencies can mount quickly.

 

For medical insurance in Abu Dhabi, visit a Health Authority of Abu Dhabi health centre or contact Abu Dhabi’s National Health Insurance Company – Daman on 800 432626 or visit damanhealth.ae

Charges:

  • Dh250 per person
  • Dh500 for same day processing

Step 5 – Get The Visa Stamped:

You will then need to visit a typing centre again with the following documents:

  • Your (sponsor’s) passport copy and visa copy.
  • Original passport of family members.
  • Stamped Emirates ID application.
  • Health insurance papers (for Abu Dhabi).

Even though more recently health insurance and Emirates ID systems have been linked to the immigration services, it is better to carry all copies in case they are requested for by the immigration department.

Charges:

  • Dh400 per person for stamping visa.
  • Dh500 for same day stamping (the sponsor will need to go to the immigration office to get the visa stamped on the passport/s).
  • Once the visa stamping application has been submitted, you will need to pay an additional Dh35 for Empost delivery service.

The passport, with the stamped visa will be delivered to you through the courier service.

 

If you are interested in working in the UAE Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

Want to apply for your family's visa in the UAE? This is the process.

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Boris is likely to end £30,000 immigration threshold post-Brexit

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Post-Brexit immigration regime likely to mean an end to the controversial £30,000 salary floor

Boris Johnson’s new post-Brexit immigration regime is likely to mean an end to the controversial £30,000 salary floor for skilled workers, government sources have confirmed.  The independent migration advisory committee (MAC) is expected to report shortly on whether the threshold should be retained.  Downing Street will then spell out more details of an “Australian-style points-based system” – of which salary is expected to form just one element.  Government sources said it would be more “nuanced” than an across-the-board salary floor.

The £30,000 limit is currently applied to those seeking tier 2 visas – the main entry-route to the UK’s labour market for skilled workers from non-EU countries. A lower limit of £20,800 is applied to younger workers.  “The £30,000 minimum salary threshold for tier 2 visas was unnecessarily and arbitrarily high. It would have strangled the pipeline of talented younger people at the start of their careers, especially in key economic sectors such as the NHS and the creative industries.  Family visas only require a minimum salary threshold of £18,600 to be able to bring some family members to the UK.

The Conservative manifesto omitted the promise to cap net migration below 100,000 a year – a pledge that had shaped the party’s policy since it was adopted by David Cameron in 2010.  Responding to news that the £30,000 limit was likely to be dropped, the shadow home secretary, Diane Abbott, said it showed that the UK economy needed a broad range of workers.  “We always said their plans were unworkable, as many employers in the private and public sector need what the government insists on calling ‘low-skilled workers’. But all workers need decent pay, reasonable conditions, a right to a family life and trade union rights, wherever they are from. We will continue to fight for them,” she said.

The MAC was asked by the government last June to examine the question of salary thresholds and how a points-based system might work. In 2018, it recommended the retention of salary thresholds.  The threshold is already waived in some sectors, including in the NHS.

Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

UK: Boris Johnson promises stricter immigration changes

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UK points-based immigration system ‘to be brought in by end of 2020

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Points-based immigration system could be in place two years earlier than originally planned

A points-based immigration system could be in place two years earlier than originally planned, according to reports.

Home Secretary Priti Patel is reportedly set to tell her cabinet colleagues that Britain should implement an Australian-style system before the end of the year – to coincide with the end of Britain’s transition period with the EU.  “We need to deliver change and businesses need to be prepared for uncontrolled migration of low-skilled workers to end this year.  “There is a clear drive for talented and skilled workers from around the world to come to the UK, but we also need to see a reduction in the number of unskilled workers entering the UK and that’s why this will be coming to an end.”

The reports come as Boris Johnson called for the UK to be the “investment partner of choice” for Africa and said his government would put “people before passports”.  He said: “Change is coming and our system is becoming fairer and more equal between all our global friends and partners, treating people the same, wherever they come from.  “By putting people before passports, we will be able to attract the best talent from around the world, wherever they may be.”

The prime minister announced an end to UK support in thermal coal mining and coal power plants overseas during a speech at the UK-Africa Investment Summit in Greenwich.  Far fewer of the continent’s 54 leaders are in attendance in London than went to the Russia-Africa event last year, or China’s recent investment summits.  Mr Johnson said the UK conference was “long overdue” and added: “We have no divine right to that business.  “This is a competitive world. You have many suitors.”

The UK’s existing immigration plan drawn up under Theresa May would have provided a temporary extension of EU rules after the Brexit implementation period, which comes to an end on 31 December 2020.  A change like this could impact businesses, as groups like the Confederation of British Industry previously said companies need “at least two years to adapt to any new immigration system”.

Diane Abbott, shadow home secretary, said: “This is an ill-informed and reactionary policy that will damage us all, damaging to everything from the NHS to other public services and some of our key private sector industries.  “Ministers talk about ending uncontrolled migration when they have been in office for 10 years. In reality this is just a new twist in the long Tory campaign against migrants, scape goating them for the terrible effects of Tory policies.”

Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Christine Jardine said: “Decisions like this make it loud and clear that this Conservative Government has no intention of ending the hostile environment. It’s a national embarrassment.  “For business and our economy, such draconian changes to immigration rules is utterly unworkable. To think the Home Office could implement the changes in the time given is a joke.”

Dr Alan Gamlen of Monash University in Melbourne said the Australian system is a “general skilled migration programme, where immigrants applying for a visa are typically selected based on ‘economically relevant characteristics’ like education, language skills and work experience”.  He said: “The exact way points are allocated changes depending on policy and the labour market but typically an applicant picks a ‘skilled occupation’ from a list and needs to score a minimum number of points.”

During the December election, Mr Johnson said the system would mean lower-skilled workers would come to the UK when there was a specific shortage.

Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

Points-based immigration system 'to be brought in by end of 2020'

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Australia’s Suite Of Regional Work Visas

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Plenty Of Opportunities With Australia’s Suite Of Regional Work Visas

There is an abundance of opportunities with Australia’s suite of Regional Work Visas and “Regional” means anywhere in Australia other than the capital cities Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.  What is left is some of the most beautiful and best places in the world to live, work and raise a family.  Here is a breakdown of the visas available:

Skilled regional provisional visas

 

Temporary skilled visas

 

Permanent skilled visas

 

Working Holiday Maker visas

 

Pacific and seasonal work visas

We have some fantastic opportunities in regional areas so check out the jobs page on our website and Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

Australian Immigration News Video December 2019 - Changes 491 visa & 494 visa Regional Rush & more!

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BLOG SERIES – WORKING IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE) – PART 7

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United Arab Emirates: Five-year Tourist Visa Scheme Announced

The UAE’s first multi-entry five-year tourist visa will encourage travellers to become ‘repeat visitors’ and spend more while they are in the Emirates, experts said.  Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, said the visa would be implemented in the next four months as part of a drive to establish the country as a ‘major global tourism destination’.  It will allow tourists multiple entries into the country over the five period, instead of having to apply for entry for each visit. It is not clear if there will be a visa application fee and no other details have yet been released.  At present, tourists can visit the UAE with a free multiple entry visa for up to 90 days, from the date of entry.

“Dubai will be on the radar as a longer term option especially in the winter months,” said Maggie Bootsman, general manager of Travel Counsellors UAE.  “This is a fantastic opportunity to allow people into the UAE for a longer period of time.”  Apart from tourists from India, Pakistan and the Philippines who can visit their family more frequently, it will attract visitors from Europe, Africa and South America who travel to the region.  “It gives tourists visiting the region a window of opportunity to experience all that Dubai and the UAE have to offer,” Ms Bootsman said.  “We have a lot of visitors from South Africa to the region. Australians too come here but for a very short period. Once they visit, they will understand there is more depth so they will be interested in staying longer.”

The new system will help streamline visa requirements. While South Africans apply before they arrive in the country and pay Dh380 for a 30-day visa, Australians are eligible for a free 30-day visa on arrival at the airport.  Citizens from nations including the US, UK, Canada, Japan and China do not require advance visas.  The Cabinet decision included a visa waiver for Mexican citizens that will be implemented along with the five-year visa in the first quarter of the year, according to Wam news agency.

While recent government figures show a drop off in numbers of Indian, British and Russian tourists, Dubai welcomed 12 million visitors in the first nine months of 2019.  The Cabinet decision could have wide-ranging benefits, Ms Bootsman said.  “When people know they can spend more time here, it could be an opportunity for them to look at holiday apartments in Dubai,” she said.  “This was blocked in the past because they couldn’t spend more time here but now they will be willing to invest more which will be a great boost.”

Premjit Bangara, general manager of Sharaf Travel in Dubai, said repeat visits would have a positive impact on the economy.  “The flexibility it provides is the defining change. It will encourage more travel. We are looking at people who will want to come again and again,” he said.  “After one visit, people now think that another visa costs too much. But a five-year visa will turn a first-timer into a second and third-timer.”  Longer visits will also prompt travellers to head to other emirates.  “When it’s a single entry, people visit another country. A multi-entry will draw people back again like a magnet,” Mr Bangara said.“  It’s not just Dubai and Abu Dhabi, tourists will have time to visit Fujairah and Al Ain as well.  They can space their visits out and get to know the country.”

Information about the visa fee and the duration of stay is awaited to analyse how the five-year tourist visa will stimulate tourism.  “It’s important for us to understand how long an individual will be allowed to stay in country,” said Marcin Kubarek, senior manager at Fragomen, an immigration services firm.  “After the Cabinet announcement, there will be a ministerial resolution issued giving the additional terms and conditions. Every facilitation of mobility into the country helps boost tourism, investment and business activity and this visit visa comes just at the right time.”  It would spark interest among visiting businessmen to return with family.  “As a tourism and business hub, Dubai and the UAE attracts people from South Asia, Africa, the Philippines,” Mr Kubarek said.  “This will open the markets of the UAE to potential partners doing business here who will want to spend their holidays in the country and explore the eastern and northern emirates.”

UAE Announced 5 Year Tourist Visa l Big News l For All Nationalities

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Australian Visas Designed To Assist Regional Employers And Regional Communities

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Employ or sponsor someone

The Australian government is assisting regional employers and regional communities through providing access to a wide range of visas tailored to meet their needs.

The new regional provisional visas will add to existing programs that provide a range of migration options to employers in regional Australia and people nominated for visas in regional Australia.

There will also be greater incentives for regional employers to nominate skilled workers, additional points for points-tested migrants who want to settle in regional Australia, and faster processing of skilled people nominated by employers in regional areas.

Australia gives some visa holders permission to work in Australia. You can:

  • employ or sponsor skilled workers who are already in Australia and have a visa that allows them to work
  • employ or sponsor other skilled workers who may be in Australia on another type of visa which does not currently allow them to work
  • sponsor skilled workers to come to Australia to work for you

Existing visa holders who are allowed to work in Australia might have work restrictions on their visas such as:

  • working for a specific employer or in a certain place – these visa holders may already be sponsored and employed by an employer in Australia
  • restricted to working for a specific number of hours per week such as an existing Student visa holder
  • restrictions on how long they may work for a particular employer such as a Working Holiday visa holder

Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

Australian Immigration News Video December 2019 - Changes 491 visa & 494 visa Regional Rush & more!

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Brexit: Australian trade minister ‘can’t imagine’ visa-free travel deal with UK

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‘Unfettered movement’ not likely to feature in post-Brexit talks, says Simon Birmingham

Australia has ruled out a post-Brexit trade deal involving visa-free travel and work arrangements with the UK.  The country’s trade minister, Simon Birmingham, said he “can’t imagine full and unfettered free movement” would be on the table during negotiations.

“We’re not into full negotiating mode and we will have to see what the UK aspires to, but noting that work rights and movement of people in the UK has been a big part of the European Union debate, I would be surprised if complete liberalisation around migration and labour rights was on their agenda,” Birmingham said during an interview in London with the Sydney Morning Herald.

His remarks follow suggestions by the UK international trade secretary, Liz Truss, during a visit to Australia in September of a deal to allow British citizens to live and work in the country visa-free.  Australia already has a free-movement deal with New Zealand.  About 120,000 Australians live in the UK, while 636,000 UK nationals were granted tourist, business or temporary visas in Australia in the last financial year.

Australians can visit the UK for less than six months without a visa but British tourists need one to enter Australia.

Senator Birmingham said he expected possible tweaks to existing immigration rules to allow “more flexibility”, but stressed his priority was trade.

“Negotiations for an FTA [free-trade agreement] between Australia and the UK will prioritise enhancing trade with a market that is already our eighth-largest trading partner.

“Work and visa settings may also form part of discussions but it is important to appreciate that there is a huge spectrum of grey between the black and white of no movement or unfettered movement.

“Once talks are launched with the UK we will work through all of these issues in the usual way,” he said

The UK is Australia’s eighth-largest trading partner, with two-way trade valued at A$26.9bn (£14bn) in 2018. Britain is also the second-largest source of total foreign investment in Australia.

We are keeping abreast with all things Brexit so feel free Contact us for a confidential discussion.

Brexit will 'lower trade barriers with the UK'

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What’s Happening With Immigration In New Zealand For 2020

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What can we expect to see regarding immigration in the year to come in New Zealand?

One of the first immigration announcements is expected to be the government’s new two-year residence programme. It already lowered the target band of new residents to 50-60,000 and that may be changed again – and a cabinet paper suggests that it’s looking at prioritising certain categories, possibly such as skilled migrants, and capping others – such as partnership visas.

The government is also rolling out new employer-assisted work visas and regional workforce planning. The government wants to find ways of getting industry to attract New Zealanders into those jobs immigrants are doing, in return for a streamlined visa process. The first negotiations to make that happen are expected to be with the residential care and meat processing sectors, as industries that employ many immigrants.

Another change we will see this year is the refugee quota increasing to 1500 in July. Six new settlement areas have been to the existing ones for refugees – Ashburton, Blenheim, Levin, Masterton, Timaru and Whanganui – and a lot of work is going on there in increasing housing supply in those areas, and with the community and health sectors.  Tackling worker and student exploitation and possible changes to Pacific immigration policies might also be looked at.

And apart from policy changes?

There’s a lot of operational challenges too: while the politicians may be focused on the future, the here and now will always raise its head. Last year it was the debacle of partnership visas, and visa processing delays caused by international branch closures.

How important a role will immigration play in this year’s election?

New Zealand has historically not had highly polarised debates about immigration.

Immigration came up at the 2017 election, after concerns that it was exacerbating housing supply and infrastructure problems.  New Zealand First and Labour to a lesser extent campaigned then on lowering immigration. Whether they delivered on that – and whether voters liked how they did it – may be crucial.  It can depend on how you cut the numbers – new resident numbers are the lowest since the turn of the century, while work visa numbers are higher than they have ever been, and net migration is still at historically high levels.

Labour may hope it can point to its work in tackling immigrant exploitation and reforming work visas. National has criticised the government on its record, including problems that visa processing delays have caused for the economy and businesses.  If last year is anything to go by, New Zealand First will continue to press on with immigration as a key way to help bring home the vote.  It claimed credit for high income restrictions introduced on immigrants’ parents and a tougher line on partnership applications.  NZ First Minister Shane Jones recently suggested it may consider a population policy, after getting into a war of words with the Indian community.

“I’m on incredibly fertile ground for the party I represent,” he told RNZ.  He said he was saddened by the “levels of verbiage that the Indian communal leadership have thrown at the party.”

If you are interested in migrating to New Zealand Contact us for a confidential discussion and refer family, friends and colleagues and be rewarded.

Visa changes to help end exploitation - Immigration Minister

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