What this area covers: investor visa in the UAE
Investor visa is one of 6 parts of our “Immigration & Relocation” practice. It covers the full cycle from initial scoping to operational launch, run by a single named partner from our UAE practice.
What it covers: UAE · Portugal · Spain · Greece.
How we handle investor visa
The “Investor visa” project in the UAE is structured as a 4-stage process run by a single named partner.
Entrepreneur visas, employment passes, investor residency — sequenced with the corporate setup so neither blocks the other.
The same desk that runs investor visa handles your banking, bookkeeping, compliance and — where needed — your wind-down.INNOVA · Operating model
Why the UAE
The UAE is a strategic hub with a 9% corporate tax, Free Zone relief on qualifying income, and residency tied to the company structure. We work with every key zone, know the real banking onboarding timeline, and know how to avoid getting stuck on KYC requests.
A reliable regulatory environment
Banking ecosystem
Corporate tax 9% (0% on qualifying Free Zone income)
INNOVA represented on the ground
Why INNOVA
Operational differences that hold up on the 2nd, 5th and 10th project — not just at first impression.
One partner — the whole cycle
Registration, banking, tax, compliance, immigration — run by one team from start to finish.
14 years of practice
Working since 2012 through several regulatory cycles — including FATCA/CRS, the tightening of banking, and the introduction of UAE CT.
Regulator-grade documentation
Every output document is ready for audit and investor scrutiny — whatever the size of the deal.
Multi-jurisdiction within the group
Cross-border work is handled inside the group — no chain of external subcontractors.
How the work is structured
A 4-stage process led by a single named partner — from the intro call to the operational hand-over.
Route assessment
Routes and realistic timelines
Document gathering
Certificates, financial documents and references
Submission
Filing with the embassy or online
Decision and relocation
Approval, biometrics, entry and settling in
What we need from you · what you get from us
What we need from you to begin — and what you walk away with. We won't pester you with needless questions: we already have most of the answers.
- Passport + biographical dataall family members
- Education + qualificationswhere the route requires
- Police clearance certificatesper jurisdiction
- Financial evidenceto thresholds
- Health and insurancewhere required
- Visa / residence permitissued
- Resident cardbiometric
- Tax-residency application supportdocumented
- Family-member visaslinked
- Renewal calendarset up
Four ways to work together
We don't quote a fixed price without understanding your situation — cost depends on the complexity of your case. Start with an initial call, then we pick the right format.
Intro call
A 30-minute online consultation. We discuss your situation, define the project scope, and propose a structure and timeline.
Written analysis
A written consultation with a full review of the business — tax positioning, structure options, jurisdiction comparison, banking path. Turnaround: 5 business days.
Operating roadmap
For complex situations — multi-jurisdiction structures, regulated activity, founder relocation. A full plan with stages, dependencies, deliverables and timing.
Direct execution
You know what you need — we execute. No advisory mark-up and no discovery phase.
Fill in the questionnaire
Complete the online questionnaire: it creates your account on the portal, where your structure, renewal reminders and documents will live.
Fill in the questionnaire
4 steps · creates an INNOVA portal account · 24h review.
Once you submit the questionnaire we create a portal account. Inside: your live structure, a renewals calendar (annual returns, register updates, tax filings), a document vault (certificates, share register, bank letters), a partner chat and project status. A single place for your entire operational life.
From a client
A review from a client who went through a comparable project. Verified, the engagement is ongoing.
Frequently asked questions
The questions we're asked most often. If yours isn't here, an intro call is the fastest way to get an answer.
Most “Investor visa” projects in the UAE run 2–8 months start to finish. The fastest stage is document filing; the longest is post-registration onboarding (banking, tax registration). A single named partner runs the project throughout.
From US$ 4,500 + government fees. The lower bound is for clean, standard profiles; the upper bound is for complex ownership structures, multi-jurisdiction projects or regulated activity. A fixed quote follows a 30-minute scoping call.
In most cases, no. The entire process runs remotely under a notarised power of attorney. A handful of jurisdictions require an in-person visit (typically biometrics for a residence permit) — we plan those as efficiently as possible.
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.
No. Tax residency is determined by domestic tests in the origin and destination country, not by visa status. We coordinate the visa and tax sides specifically to keep the position consistent.
Investor visa in other countries
The same service — in every jurisdiction we run. One desk, one standard.
