UAE Residency: Golden Visa & Investor Routes
UAE Golden Visa (10-year) for investors and entrepreneurs, 3-year investor visa via company formation, family sponsorship. Residency tied to entity.
What Immigration & Relocation includes in the UAE
What you receive
How it works
Helpful resources
Where to register and how we differ
Immigration & Relocation in the UAE — frequently asked questions
The UAE Golden Visa is a renewable 10-year residence visa under Federal Decree-Law No. 65 of 2021. It's granted to: investors from AED 2,000,000 in real estate or public investment; entrepreneurs with a UAE startup valued from AED 500,000; specialists (doctors, engineers, scientists, artists, athletes); and top students. The holder sponsors family directly, with no employer or UAE-national sponsor. We match the category to your profile.
Golden Visa processing takes 4–8 weeks from submission of a complete pack. Proof of eligibility — a real estate valuation report or an investment portfolio certificate — is obtained before filing. The application goes to the ICA (Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship) or the relevant emirate authority. INNOVA runs the whole process: ICA portal submission, the medical, and Emirates ID enrolment.
No. Registering a company doesn't grant residency automatically. But a UAE trade licence opens the right to apply for an investor visa (3 years, renewable) — a separate application after the licence issues. Free zones arrange the residence visa through the free zone authority; mainland companies go through the GDRFA. INNOVA files visas in parallel with incorporation. One flow, no idle gap.
Citizens of 49 countries — including every EU state, the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia — get a 90-day visa on arrival (extendable for a fee). GCC nationals have unrestricted access. Most other nationalities get a 30-day visa on arrival or arrange one in advance. A long stay calls for a residence visa or repeated exits and re-entries. Don't lean on visa runs — they get scrutinised.
The standard UAE investor visa is issued for 3 years (renewable) and requires an active trade licence and a minimum share capital of AED 72,000 in some emirates, or real estate from AED 1,000,000. The Golden Visa runs 10 years, needs no trade licence, and has higher entry thresholds but more flexibility. The investor visa is tied to the business: licence expires, visa expires. The Golden Visa doesn't depend on business status.