UAE residence visas, golden visa facilitation, family sponsorship, and citizenship by investment programmes across multiple jurisdictions.
Most of our clients come to the UAE through a company they own, so residence is usually settled alongside the licence: a sponsored residence visa through the company for the owner and staff, family sponsorship for spouse and children, and the ten-year Golden Visa where property, capital or salary meets the published test. Citizenship by investment and second nationality are separate questions about passports, not residence, and we advise on them independently. This page compares the routes on the conditions the authorities publish so that you can see which applies before any application is filed.
A standard residence visa is sponsored. The UAE Government portal states that it can be for one, two or three years on a sponsored visa, or up to five or ten years on an unsponsored one. For a business owner the sponsor is the licensed free zone or mainland company, and the number of visas follows the facility leased from the authority; after the entry permit the medical test, biometrics and Emirates ID must be completed within 60 days of arrival. Two rules govern the life of the visa: it is nullified automatically after more than 180 days continuously outside the UAE, and overstaying after the grace period costs AED 50 a day. Health insurance is mandatory in every emirate.
The unsponsored routes remove the company from the equation. The five-year Green Residence is for skilled employees with a salary of at least AED 15,000 a month and for freelancers with at least AED 360,000 of freelance income over the previous two years, and for investors in a UAE business. The Golden Residency is issued by the ICP for ten years, with automatic renewal, without the need for a sponsor to investors, entrepreneurs, specialists, skilled professionals and other listed categories. The investor tests are a property or properties worth at least AED 2,000,000 registered in the applicant’s name, a deposit or company capital of the same amount, or a company paying at least AED 250,000 a year in tax; a salaried professional needs a degree and AED 30,000 a month. Golden holders are exempt from the 180-day rule and may sponsor parents as well as spouse and children of any age.
Family sponsorship is open to residents of either sex who meet the solvency test: a minimum salary of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation, with housing proportionate to the family and attested marriage and birth certificates. A sponsor may bring a spouse, unmarried daughters of any age, sons under 25 and children with special needs; parents come with Golden or Green status. Dependants’ visas run with the sponsor’s and must be cancelled before it, and every dependant over 18 passes a medical test. Dependants may work with a MOHRE permit without changing visa.
Citizenship is a different matter. UAE nationality is acquired only through the Rulers’ and Crown Princes’ Courts, the Executive Councils and the Cabinet on nominations from federal entities, with no application window; since 2021 a naturalised citizen may keep their original nationality, but a Golden Visa is residence, not a path to a passport. Caribbean and other citizenship-by-investment programmes are filed only through agents licensed by the issuing government: Dominica’s unit states that applications must be submitted through an Authorised Agent and that approval in principle takes at least three months. Polaris is not such an agent; our role is to assess which programme fits, prepare the source-of-funds and corporate file, check your current nationality law and coordinate the licensed agent. The table compares the five routes.
| Route | Validity | Key condition | Sponsor | Issuing authority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residence visa (company) | 1, 2 or 3 years, renewable | Licensed company with visa quota; medical and Emirates ID within 60 days of entry | Your free zone or mainland company | ICP; GDRFA in Dubai |
| Green Residence | 5 years, renewable | Salary of AED 15,000 with degree; or AED 360,000 freelance income over two years; or business investment | None | ICP |
| Golden Visa | 10 years, automatic renewal | Property, deposit or capital of AED 2,000,000; or salary of AED 30,000 with degree; or listed talent category | None; exempt from the 180-day rule | ICP; GDRFA; Dubai Land Department for property |
| Family sponsorship | Matches the sponsor’s permit | Salary of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus housing; attested civil documents; medical test over 18 | The resident spouse or parent | ICP; GDRFA |
| Citizenship by investment | Permanent | Contribution or investment set by each programme; due diligence and interview | Filed by a government-authorised agent | The issuing state’s citizenship unit |
Ten-year residence without a sponsor for investors with AED 2,000,000 in property or capital, entrepreneurs, specialists and professionals earning AED 30,000; family and parents included.
One- to three-year residence through your free zone or mainland company, the five-year Green Residence, property-owner visas, medicals, Emirates ID and the 180-day rule.
Spouse, children and dependant visas from a salary of AED 4,000; documents, attestation, medical tests, insurance and what happens on cancellation.
Independent advice on Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Vanuatu and Türkiye: thresholds, due diligence, interviews and the authorised-agent requirement.
How UAE nationality is actually acquired, what remains of the Malta route, citizenship by descent, dual nationality and the tax consequences of a second passport.
Answers drawn from the published rules of the UAE authorities and regulators. Each answer links to its official source. Last reviewed 5 November 2026.
Validity and who sponsors it. The UAE Government portal states that a residence visa can be for one, two or three years on a sponsored visa, or up to five or ten years on an unsponsored visa. A standard visa is sponsored by your employer or your own company and lapses if that sponsorship ends. The Green Residence is a five-year unsponsored permit for skilled employees, freelancers and business investors who meet the ICP’s income tests. The Golden Residency is a ten-year permit with automatic renewal and no sponsor, for investors, entrepreneurs, specialists and professionals, and its holders are exempt from the 180-day absence rule and may sponsor parents. We match your facts to the route with the cleanest evidence.
Sources: UAE Government portal (u.ae) — General provisions for the residence visa; Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) — Golden Residency Guide (accessed 3 November 2026)
Property worth at least AED 2,000,000 in total, registered in your own name. The ICP accepts one or more completed properties with a combined value of AED 2 million, or off-plan units of the same total bought from a developer approved by the local land authority, and allows a mortgage provided the lender is an approved local bank. The alternatives in the same category are a deposit of AED 2 million with a UAE investment fund or national bank, a company or partnership stake of AED 2 million, or ownership of a company paying at least AED 250,000 a year in tax, in each case with the capital owned outright and its source documented. Health insurance for the whole family is a condition.
Source: Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) — Golden Residency Guide (accessed 3 November 2026)
A minimum of AED 4,000 a month, or AED 3,000 where your employer provides accommodation. The UAE Government portal confirms that employees can now sponsor their families regardless of job title once they meet that figure, and the same test is applied by the ICP and by GDRFA in Dubai. You must also hold a valid residence yourself, show housing proportionate to the family and prove the relationship with attested marriage and birth certificates. The categories are spouse, unmarried daughters of any age, sons under 25 and children with special needs; parents can be sponsored by Golden Residency holders. Every dependant who has turned 18 passes a medical fitness test before the permit issues.
Source: UAE Government portal (u.ae) — Residence visa for families of employees (accessed 3 November 2026)
No. The Golden Visa is a long-term residence permit. The UAE Government portal states that citizenship can be acquired only through the Rulers’ and Crown Princes’ Courts, the Offices of the Executive Councils and the Cabinet, on the nominations of federal entities; there is no application form or window. Since the January 2021 amendments, investors, doctors, specialists, inventors, scientists, intellectuals, artists and people with creative talents may be nominated, and a naturalised citizen is allowed to retain their original nationality. A Golden Visa investor who owns UAE property already meets the published investor condition for nomination, so the two can be sequenced, but nobody can promise the outcome and we do not.
Source: UAE Government portal (u.ae) — Emirati nationality (accessed 3 November 2026)
No, and no adviser can. Each programme requires the file to be submitted by an agent licensed by that government: Dominica’s Citizenship by Investment Unit states that an applicant cannot submit directly and must use an Authorised Agent, and that applicants should expect to wait at least three months from submission to approval in principle, with a mandatory interview for everyone aged 16 or over. Our role is independent of any programme or agent: we assess which route fits your family and tax position, prepare the source-of-funds, corporate and civil documents, pre-screen against the programme’s published refusal grounds and nationality restrictions, and coordinate the licensed agent so the file is complete when it reaches the unit.
Source: Citizenship by Investment Unit, Commonwealth of Dominica — Frequently Asked Questions (accessed 3 November 2026)
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