
Do you need a visa for Dubai?
In this article you can find everything whether or not you need a visa to visit Dubai, regardless of your nationality.
Attention! Don’t be fooled by some sites that want to sell you a visa unnecessarily! The rules regularly dare to change, so we check them every month at the official UAE site.
Last update: January 17th 2020
Types of visas
You need a visa to travel to Dubai or another Emirate of the United Arab Emirates. There are different types of visas for the United Arab Emirates depending on the purpose of your visit, business, tourist, ..
If you have a passport that is valid for at least another 6 months upon arrival, you do not need an additional visa for most nationalities, you will receive a free “visa on arrival” stamp in your passport on site.

Visa on arrival
You will receive this free visa on arrival at the airport in Dubai with a stamp in your passport. The conditions are that your nationality belongs to the list of countries for which this is possible.
Tourist visa
If you are traveling to Dubai or another Emirate as a tourist and your country is not eligible for “Visa On Arrival” you need a “Tourist Visa”. For more information, we kindly refer you to the official UAE website for Tourist Visa.
Transit Visa
If you have to transfer to another flight in Dubai you can take a Transit Visa that is free for 48 hours and you can extend for 50 AED to 96 hours. This visa is not necessary if you have a Visa On Arrival, so only if your country is not eligible for a Visa On Arrival, for example Turkey or Morocco.
Work visa
If you want to work in Dubai or one of the other Emirates you need a Work Visa, we will not go into this here because this website is about going on vacation and the last thing you want to think about is working. Through this website you can consult all information regarding working in the UAE.
Visa-free entry
Residents of the GCC countries (Gulf Cooperation Council) do not need a visa. These countries are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar & Oman.
Entry permit visa
This is a visitor visa. Eg you have a friend who lives in the UAE and invites you to come there, this can also be a company, hotel, airline as long as they are located in the United Arab Emirates.
Free visa on arrival – 90 days

Visa on arrival – group 1
Residents of the countries below do not need to arrange a visa in advance to have access to the United Arab Emirates.
Conditions:
- Residents of these countries can obtain a visa with their regular passport upon arrival that is valid for 90 days from the day of arrival.
- A passport must be valid for at least 6 months. (a regular ID of the country itself is not valid, children also need a passport)
- Visa is valid for 90 days in the United Arab Emirates, for these 90 days you have 180 days until the visa expires.
- This visa cannot be extended.
90 days valid
Free on arrival.
Visa cannot be extended!

Austria

Barbados

Brazil

Belgium

Bulgaria

Chile

Costa Rica

Croatia

Cyprus

Czech Republic

Denmark

Estonia

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Grenada

Hungary

Honduras

Iceland

Italy

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malta

Montenegro

Netherlands

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Seychelles

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Ukraine

Uruguay
Free visa on arrival – 30 days

Visa on arrival – group 2
Residents of the countries below do not need to arrange a visa in advance to have access to the United Arab Emirates.
Conditions:
- Residents of these countries can obtain a visa with their regular passport upon arrival that is valid for 30 days from the date of arrival.
- This type of visa can be extended for 30 days!
- A passport must be valid for at least 6 months.
30 days valid
Free on arrival.
Visa can be extended for 30 days!

Andorra

Australia

Brunei

Canada

Hong Kong

Ireland

Japan

Kazakhstan

Malaysia

Monaco

New Zealand

China

Russia

San Marino

Singapore

South Korea

Ukraine

UK

USA

Vatican City
Tourist visa
If you do not qualify for a free visa on arrival you must arrange a tourist visa in advance.
Whom is a tourist visa for?
Tourist visa can be obtained for eligible individual tourists from around the world. Females below the age of 18 are not eligible to apply for this type of visa unless they are travelling with their parents.
According to a Cabinet resolution passed in July 2018, children under the age of 18 years who are accompanying adults, can get a free visa for their visit from 15 July to 15 September each year.