Traveling To UAE? Here Is How You Can Apply For Tourist Visa

The United Arab Emirates announced that it will resume issuing tourist visas for fully vaccinated travelers from all countries as of Aug 30, 2021.

The announcement comes given Expo 2020 in Dubai, which kicks off October 1 onward!

VFS Global Resumes Tourist Visa Services

As the UAE announced it would reopen its borders for tourists across the world including India, ahead of the Expo 2020 trade fair, VFS Global, the visa outsourcing company, has resumed UAE tourist visa services for Indians, starting August 30, 2021.

Travelers will be required to present a valid negative Covid-19 RT-PCR test certificate issued within 48 hours from the time of collecting the sample and from an approved health service, which uses the QR code system, as well as a rapid PCR test report conducted at the departure airport six hours before departure, provided with a QR code.

No Approval From GDRFA or ICA

It must be noted that UAE residents can now travel to Dubai without prior approval of the GDRFA or ICA which were previously required to grant permission for such visas — except for travelers coming from 10 Asian and African countries.

Residents traveling from the below-mentioned countries will need to take approval from the GDRFA and ICA before flying to the UAE, Emirates airline said;

• Bangladesh
• India
• Indonesia
• Nigeria
• Pakistan
• South Africa
• Sri Lanka
• Uganda
• Vietnam and
• Zambia

How To Apply For UAE Tourist Visa?

It is worth mentioning that currently, the service is available for Emirates Airlines and FlyDubai customers only.

“UAE is resuming tourist visas from customers from all countries. To apply for your tourist visa, visit: https://bit.ly/3hf8tf5 Please note: Customers would also need to undergo a COVID-19 PCR test on arrival in Dubai,” said VFS Global in a tweet.

Travelers can also apply for visas on emirates.com or at one of the Dubai Visa Processing Centres in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad, New Delhi, and Thiruvananthapuram, which are currently operating on limited days of the week.

Visa On Arrival For Indians?

UAE authorities have temporarily suspended the Visa-on-arrival facility for Indian passengers who are arriving from or have been in India in the past 14 days.

However, information sourced from Dubai-based airline Emirates shows that Indian nationals with a normal passport who are traveling to India via Dubai can obtain a visa on arrival in Dubai for a maximum stay of 14 days provided they have a visitor visa or a green card issued by the United States, or a residence visa issued by the United Kingdom or Europe Union.

It must be noted that the visa issued by the US, the UK, or European Union has to be valid for a minimum of six months.

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