UAE work visa steps: The UAE work visa,
one dated step at a time.
The six steps to bring a new employee onto a UAE work visa, from the MOHRE work permit to the labour contract, plus renewal and cancellation, and what to track.
The short answer
A new UAE work visa for a mainland employee takes six steps in order: a MOHRE work permit, an entry permit valid for 60 days, a medical fitness test, the Emirates ID application, the residence visa and registration of the labour contract. A renewal takes four steps and a cancellation three. Each step produces a document with its own expiry date to track.
A work visa is not one application. It is six, in a fixed order, and each produces a document with its own expiry date. Most delays come from not knowing which step a person is on.
What are the steps for a new UAE work visa?
For a mainland company the process runs through MOHRE for the permit and the contract, and through the immigration authorities for entry, residence and the Emirates ID. Free zones follow the same shape through their own authority.
| Step | What happens | Plan for |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Work permit | MOHRE approves the offer letter and the permit | About 2 weeks |
| 2. Entry permit | The permit to enter the country for work is issued. It is valid for 60 days | About 10 days |
| 3. Medical fitness test | Blood test and chest X-ray at an approved centre | About 2 weeks |
| 4. Emirates ID | Application and biometrics | About a week |
| 5. Residence visa | The residence permit is issued | About 2 weeks |
| 6. Labour contract | The contract is registered with MOHRE | About a week |
The order matters. The medical cannot start before entry, the Emirates ID application follows the medical, and the contract is registered at the end. A late step moves every step after it, so re-date the rest of the plan from the day a step is finished, not from the day it was meant to be.
Does the Work Bundle change these steps?
The Work Bundle changes how many times you apply. It puts work permits, residence visas, the medical and Emirates ID fingerprinting on one platform. The UAE Government portal says it cuts 15 steps to 5, 16 documents to 5, seven in-person visits to two, and processing from 30 working days to 5.
A case run through it can move much faster than the planning figures above, though each document still comes out with its own number and expiry date.
What has to be in place before MOHRE issues a permit?
- The worker is at least 18, apart from juvenile and student permits
- The occupation fits the establishment's business activity
- The trade licence is valid and free of violations
- Any licence the profession requires is in place
- The application comes from someone legally authorised to represent the company
MOHRE may refuse, decline to renew or cancel permits if an establishment gives incorrect documents, is fictitious or does not carry on its registered activity, or does not comply with the Wage Protection System. A permit costs between AED 250 and AED 3,450 to issue or renew, depending on whether the company is classified A, B or C, and a history of violations puts it in C.
MOHRE has 13 types of work permit. The ones a new hire usually needs are a permit to recruit from outside the UAE, a transfer from another establishment, or a permit for a resident on family sponsorship. Each of those is valid for two years. Make sure the plan names the right one, because the steps above assume someone coming from abroad.
How is a UAE work visa renewed?
- Medical fitness test
- Emirates ID renewal
- Residence visa renewal
- Labour contract renewal
The portal gives a standard work visa two years, renewable, and the employer has to apply for it. Start a renewal well before the expiry date: an expired visa is not a filing problem, it is a person who cannot lawfully work.
How is a UAE work visa cancelled?
- The labour contract is cancelled with MOHRE
- The residence visa is cancelled
- The Emirates ID is cancelled
Cancellation is part of offboarding, and it is usually tied to the final settlement: the employee signs that they have received what they are owed before the permit is cancelled. Run the two together, not one after the other. To cancel a permit, the portal also asks the company to settle any fines for late issue or renewal, and to confirm that the worker has received everything due.
What should HR record at each step?
- The reference or application number
- The date the step was completed
- The expiry date of whatever the step produced
- A note of anything unusual, such as a repeated medical
The dates that catch companies out
Three documents come out of this process with expiry dates of their own: the Emirates ID, the residence visa and the labour card. Record each as the step is completed and they can be tracked from that day. Leave it for later and they end up in a spreadsheet nobody sorts.
What about the employee's dependants?
A sponsored employee's spouse and children have visas, Emirates IDs and passports that expire on their own dates, and often a place on the company medical policy. They are easy to forget because they are not employees. Keep them on the employee's file.
DenwaysHR lays out each visa as these dated steps, re-dates the plan when a step finishes late, and writes each Emirates ID, visa and labour card number and expiry to the employee record. It tracks the process; the applications are made on the government portals.
See visa processingSources
Official pages, as they stood on the date above. The law is the authority; check it, or ask your adviser, before acting on a figure.
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