New Visa Terms and Conditions in the U.A.E. starting June 1, 2008! What do you think about this?

Question

May 30, 2008

from: http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Governmen...

Dubai: A recent Cabinet decision will soon see visit visa and other fees increase next month, Al Khaleej and Al Bayan newspapers reported on Friday.

The reports said His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, issued a Cabinet decision amending the 1994 Cabinet decision No. 6 in relation to additional fees on the Department of Naturalisation and Residency services rendered to the public, such as visit visa fees.

According to the reports, Article 2 of the decision stipulates that special entry visas and courtesy visa will be fees exempted.

Visas issued upon an invitation from an official UAE source will also be fees exempted.

Article 3 stipulates that all provisions contradicting the provisions of this decision are void.

And Article 4 stipulates that the decision will come into effect after its being issued in the official gazette.

Answer 1

Well, let's take a look at the UK visa fees:

http://www.britainusa.com/visas/articles...

And there is no taxfree salary, no free health care etc., etc.

Everytime prices for certain things raise in the UAE there is a loud outcry by expats. In other countries people are just used to it and accept it but here.............It's just time to negotiate a new salary package. Even IF Vat will be interduced, in which other country will you find that it's mandatory for a company to bear all health care costs for the employee + family (Abu Dhabi)?

People who get hurt by these hikes are the middle and low income employees/workers. But - if these people come here on such a tight budget that i.e. they have to send their kids home because the fees of school busses got raised...........

And.......like the article says: some European countries charge for non refundable funds just for processing the visa procedures.  Who's complaining about that?

Without being offending to any Nationality. Sometimes I just think that expats of certain Nationalities just do not know what to expect. To them it seems that the UAE is the country of milk and honey, they come here and then have to face reality.

Jan, you are mentioning the traffic jams and I agree with you (btw, nice to see you are still here:)). How many Indians are complaining about the traffic jams in Dubai. Where they never driving in Mumbai????? Why complaining about the host country which gave them the opportunity they did not have back at home?

Point is, whenever there is a price hike of anything, first all kind of people complain and after a while everybody got used to it.

The only thing I am concerned about is the inflation rate in the UAE.

Take care and thanks for the posting.

Answer 2

Just another way to make life difficult for expats

Answer 3

The increase in visa fees, coupled with a VAT (value-added tax), which will be implemented within a year, added to Salik (toll charges), in addition to mind-boggling increases in rents at all levels, and an exploding grocery bill - oh, and I don't want to forget traffic congestion that matches that found in New York or LA - all these combined are very rapidly making the UAE a very unattractive economic environment for everyone.  But for those of us who have choices - Western expats - the choice will increasingly be to go elsewhere to earn a living.  The UAE will soon be facing a shortage of skilled expat labor and it will be too late to lure them back.

Answer 4

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