Dubai: If you recently became a UAE resident and are planning to ask your family to join you in the country, it’s time to apply for a UAE family visa.

As long as you have a residence visa issued to you – whether it is an investor or employment visa – you can begin the application process for your spouse and children, as a family sponsor. The family residence visa stays valid as long as the sponsor’s time is active – approximately two to three years. After this period, the visa can be renewed. If you are sponsoring your parents, they will be granted visas with one-year validity, renewable annually.

There are several aspects to note before you start the process of visa application, however, such as age limits and salary requirements.

Here are all the steps you need to take to complete the UAE family visa application process:

Step 1: Check eligibility

Before applying, it’s important to check whether you meet the criteria for a family sponsor.

Minimum salary for spouses and children: The type of profession you belong to, or your job title, is no longer a criterion for application. However, a family sponsor needs to have a minimum salary of Dh4,000, or Dh3,000 plus accommodation to apply for their spouse and children.
Requirements for sponsoring parents: If you are looking to bring your parents to the UAE, the process is subject to higher income thresholds, along with a security deposit and proof of dependency. A standard parent sponsorship in Dubai requires a minimum salary of Dh20,000, although the General Directorate for Identity and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) does offer a humanitarian residence route with a lower salary requirement of Dh10,000 through Amer centres, which provide residency services in Dubai.
Age requirements: Expats can sponsor unmarried daughters indefinitely, with no age restriction. Previously, the age limit for sponsoring sons was set at 18 years. As of 2026, sons can be sponsored up until age 25, provided they are enrolled in an accredited institution.

There are exceptions to the eligibility criteria in special cases:

Golden visa holders: If you have a golden visa, you can sponsor your spouse, children and parents for the same long-term residency (a period of five or 10 years) without any minimum salary requirements. The maximum age limit of 25 years has also been removed for golden visa holders who want to sponsor their sons (as long as they are unmarried).
UAE citizens: According to The Executive Regulation of the Law No. 29 of 2021 on Entry and Residence of Foreigners, a UAE citizen’s spouse, parent or child, who holds a foreign passport, can get a UAE residence visa for five years without having to work in the UAE. In this case, the sponsor is the UAE citizen. Moreover, a woman who is widowed or divorced, holds a foreign passport, and is a mother of a UAE citizen, can get a residence visa without having to work in the UAE. In this case, her sponsor is the oldest child.

Step 2: Gather all the required documents

Ensuring all your paperwork is in place, before applying, will save you time and streamline the process. Here are all the documents you require to sponsor your spouse and children:

Application form – Submitted online or through a registered typing office
Passport copies and recent pictures of your spouse, children, or parents
Family sponsor’s employment contract copy, Emirates ID and passport
Family sponsor’s salary certificate from the employer, stating the monthly salary
Attested marriage certificate (for spouse) in Arabic or a marriage certificate that has been translated into Arabic by a certified translator
Attested birth certificates (for children) in Arabic or birth certificates that have been translated into Arabic by a certified translator
Registered tenancy contract

When it comes to sponsoring parents, additional documents and procedures are required:

Medical insurance policies – Ensure your parents have health insurance coverage that covers their health conditions. These need to be renewed every year.
Security deposit – Along with income proof, family sponsors must pay a deposit as a guarantee for each parent. The amount is determined by the respective immigration department. This deposit is held as financial security, is refundable.
Proof of dependence – According to the Emirates Government Services Hub, sponsors must also provide an affidavit or equivalent document from their consulate, confirming that they are the parents’ sole support and that no one in the home country is available to care for them.

Step 3: Begin the application process

Once all the documents are in order, you can apply for an entry permit for your family. To do this, visit Amer centres in Dubai or typing centres across the UAE and submit your visa application request. Ensure you take all documents with you when you visit these centres, to complete the process.

Amer centres accept applications on behalf of the GDRFA, while typing centres have to be registered with the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP).

If you’d prefer to apply online instead, you can do so through any one of the following channels:

UAE PASS: uaepass.ae
ICP website: icp.gov.ae
The ICP UAE app
GDRFA website: gdrfad.gov.ae
The DubaiNow app

Step 4: Apply for a medical fitness test for each family member

A mandatory step in the application process, medical fitness tests are required at approved health centres for all family members who are above the age of 18. At the time of applying for the family visa, you can select which test centre you would prefer to visit, so ensure you pick one that’s convenient for your family to visit.

When it’s time for your family members to undergo the fitness test, they will need to take along the application form provided to them at the typing centre. If their applications were done online, their forms can be printed out. Medical fitness test results take between 24 to 48 hours to be delivered to you.

Step 5: Collect the Emirates ID

Once your family members have passed their medical checks, they will be able to receive their Emirates IDs. At the time of applying for the visa at the typing centre or online, you will be able to choose how you would like to receive this important identity card. You can request for it to be delivered to you through a courier service, or collect it from an Emirates Post office near you.

Step 6: Submit documents for visa stamping

Once the medical test and Emirates ID application is complete, you must submit all the documents to the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) for final visa stamping. It can be done online, through ICP’s website, or via an Amer centre. This is the final step in the process.

Step 7: Pay the fees

During the family visa application, there are service fees involved, along with medical test costs and delivery charges for the Emirates ID. Here are the average costs for 2026:

Entry permit fee: Dh548.90
Other service charges: Dh300
Emirates ID fee: Dh270 (for two years)
Medical fitness test fee: Dh320
Visa stamping fee: Dh580

The fees increase if your family is already in the UAE, since you would need to pay an additional Dh750 for visa status change. This status change is usually processed when a person moves to a residence permit without exiting the country, for example, by changing their status from visit visa holders to new UAE residence visa holders.

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