Updated Passport Name Rules for UAE Travellers

The UAE recently announced new travel rules, stating that travellers with only a single name on their passport will be unable to travel to/from the UAE beginning November 21.

These new rules sparked a significant amount of discussion among travellers, and we received hundreds of messages from readers who had questions about the new naming policy.

Guidelines from NAIC, UAE for passengers with a single name on their passport

To make it more indicative, we created a table with examples of what types of names in passports are permitted for travel and which are not.

For e.g., 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.

• Passengers holding passports with one name won’t be accepted by the UAE government for inbound/outbound flights.
• Passengers holding passports with one name and are in possession of a residence visa in UAE will only be allowed entry to/from UAE
• Passengers having two names on passports in any of the columns of the first page will be allowed entry.
• For passengers who already have Tourist Visas issued in the past with one name on their passport, acceptance can be cross-checked by sending an email to – [email protected]
• A newly issued Employment VISA in paper form with one name on the passport will not be acceptable.
• The UAE government will not issue a tourist visa to passengers holding passports with a single name.

Amended Guidelines

The guidelines have now been slightly modified, and the UAE will now allow travellers who already have their visas and have their father/family name on their passports. Furthermore, such visitors will be eligible for a Visa on arrival.

• Visa issued with more than one name; a passenger has father’s/family name mentioned on the 2nd page is accepted.
• Passengers are eligible for VOA if the father’s/family name mentioned on the 2nd page is accepted.