The UAE has quietly but significantly expanded its hugely popular visa-on-arrival programme. In a notice first published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 25 and updated in the early hours of June 27, authorities confirmed that ordinary-passport holders from Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Kenya and South Africa can now obtain a visa on arrival at any UAE port of entry provided they also hold an unexpired residence permit issued by one of nine ‘trusted’ jurisdictions (the US, UK, any EU member state, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand or Canada). Two visa options are on the table. Travellers needing a short stay for meetings, onward connections or brief family visits can choose a 14-day, single-entry visa for AED 100 (about US$27), extendable once from inside the UAE. Those planning a longer holiday, workation or preliminary relocation trip can buy a non-extendable 60-day visa for AED 250. Both options are issued at the immigration counter and can be paid for with credit card or UAE dirhams at dedicated kiosks.
![UAE adds six Asian and African nations to its visa-on-arrival scheme]()
Need help confirming whether you qualify or prefer to have documentation prepared in advance? VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) guides applicants step-by-step through the UAE’s entry rules, double-checks supporting documents and, when required, can arrange alternative e-visas or extensions—saving both time and last-minute airport stress.
Officials say the policy is designed to “strengthen bilateral relations, stimulate tourism and create new commercial opportunities.” It also aligns the UAE with neighbouring Saudi Arabia and Qatar, both of which have opened generous visa-waiver or e-visa channels for South-East Asian and African travellers this year. The Philippines’ foreign ministry quickly welcomed the move, noting that some 660,000 Filipinos already live and work in the Emirates and will benefit from simpler family-reunion visits. For companies, the wider pool of nationalities able to enter the UAE at short notice without advance paperwork is a boon: managers can bring in regional sales teams for training, start-ups can host potential investors during fund-raising rounds, and global HR teams can schedule exploratory relocation trips without waiting for pre-arranged visit visas. Hotels in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are already marketing 60-day “work-from-hotel” packages aimed at digital nomads from the newly eligible countries. Practically, employers should still remind visitors that the visa-on-arrival clock starts the moment the passport is stamped. Overstaying now incurs an automatic AED 50 per day fine. Travellers who need additional time should apply to convert their visa into a longer-term permit (for example, the new 90-day job-seeker visa) before the initial authorisation lapses.
Need help confirming whether you qualify or prefer to have documentation prepared in advance? VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) guides applicants step-by-step through the UAE’s entry rules, double-checks supporting documents and, when required, can arrange alternative e-visas or extensions—saving both time and last-minute airport stress.
Officials say the policy is designed to “strengthen bilateral relations, stimulate tourism and create new commercial opportunities.” It also aligns the UAE with neighbouring Saudi Arabia and Qatar, both of which have opened generous visa-waiver or e-visa channels for South-East Asian and African travellers this year. The Philippines’ foreign ministry quickly welcomed the move, noting that some 660,000 Filipinos already live and work in the Emirates and will benefit from simpler family-reunion visits. For companies, the wider pool of nationalities able to enter the UAE at short notice without advance paperwork is a boon: managers can bring in regional sales teams for training, start-ups can host potential investors during fund-raising rounds, and global HR teams can schedule exploratory relocation trips without waiting for pre-arranged visit visas. Hotels in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are already marketing 60-day “work-from-hotel” packages aimed at digital nomads from the newly eligible countries. Practically, employers should still remind visitors that the visa-on-arrival clock starts the moment the passport is stamped. Overstaying now incurs an automatic AED 50 per day fine. Travellers who need additional time should apply to convert their visa into a longer-term permit (for example, the new 90-day job-seeker visa) before the initial authorisation lapses.
