UAE New Travel Rules: Passengers With Only Single Name On Passport Not Allowed

Indian airlines, including Air India Express, SpiceJet, and IndiGo, on Monday, informed travel agents about the change in naming policy and stated that passengers travelling to and from the UAE must ensure that their passports contain both their primary (first name) and secondary (surname) names.

Travellers without First or Surname will not be allowed to enter the Emirates effectively on November 21, 2022.

This new naming policy does not apply to people who have a valid residence permit or work visa, and the same name is updated in both the First and Surname columns.

“As per instructions from the UAE Authorities, effective 21st November 2022, passengers with a single name on their passports travelling on tourist, visit or any other type of visa shall not be allowed to travel to/from UAE.

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However, passengers with a single name on passports and in possession of a residence permit or employment visa shall be allowed to travel provided the same name is updated in the “First Name” and “Surname” columns.”
a trade circular issued by IndiGo reads

It should be noted that the preceding rules only apply to Tourist, Visit, or On-Arrival Visas and do not apply to existing resident card holders. This means…

All passengers travelling with a single name on passports on residence/employment visas shall be allowed to travel.
All passengers travelling with a single name on passports on a tourist/visit visa or any other visa shall not be allowed to travel.

As an example, a guideline issued by Air India Express states that if a passenger’s name in the passport is Praveen with the surname (blank) OR if his/her given name is (blank) with the surname Praveen, “such a passport will not be issued a visa and in case the visa was issued previously, he will be INAD (Inadmissible) by immigration.”