Dubai Residency Residence for the wives and children of GCC nationals
A GCC national's family does not always share a GCC passport: a wife may have kept her own nationality, and a child may hold a foreign passport too. For that family Dubai's General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs has a service of its own: a residence permit for the wives and children of GCC nationals who hold foreign passports. It sits among the residence services without a work permit.
What it costs
The residence permit fee is AED 200, plus the AED 10 Knowledge Dirham and the AED 10 Innovation Dirham: AED 220. An application made by someone already inside the UAE costs AED 500 more, and delivery is AED 20. For a residence longer than two years, the issuance fee rises by AED 100 for each extra year.
What to bring
Three things: a recent colour photograph on a white background, a copy of the passport, and for anyone over 18, a medical examination approved by the authorities. The GDRFA lists no other conditions for the service.
Where to apply
Online, through GDRFA's smart services at smart.gdrfad.gov.ae, signing in with UAE Pass, around the clock. Or in person at a Customer Happiness Centre or an Amer centre, during their normal hours: take a queue ticket, hand in the application and pay.
When it ends
After the permit expires or is cancelled, the holder has a 60-day grace period to stay in the country.
The figure people miss is the AED 500. A wife or child who flew in on a visit visa and applies from inside the UAE pays more than three times the base fee, so if the family is still abroad and the timing allows, apply before they travel. For a long permit, do the sum before choosing the length: every year past the second adds AED 100 to a fee that starts at AED 220.
Source: GDRFA Dubai, Issuance of a residence for family members of GCC citizens checked against the source
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