UAE visa amnesty explained: No ban, fines, exit fees for illegal residents; who can apply?

There will be no ban and no fines levied against those who will avail the two-month amnesty period that will start on Sunday, September 1, the Federal Authority For Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP) said in a press conference on Wednesday.

The ICP also clarified that the amnesty programme covers all types of visas, including tourist and expired residency visas. Those who were born with no documents can also avail of the amnesty and rectify their status.

This is the best opportunity for those who are staying illegally in the UAE to either regularise their residency status or leave the country without fines,” the ICP said, underscoring that those who will opt to leave the country can return any time with the right visa. The ICP added that there will be no overstay fine or exit fee collected.

This will be the fourth amnesty programme by the UAE government since 2007. The last one was six years ago. It started on August 1, 2018, and was supposed to run for only 90 days until October 31, 2018, but the federal government extended the amnesty scheme for two more months until December 31 that year to allow more residency violators to rectify their status or leave the country with no penalties.



Khaleej Times