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Visitors to the United Arab Emirates must obtain a visa prior to travel unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries or one of the countries whose citizens are eligible for visa on arrival.
Citizens of member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council have freedom of movement in the UAE.
All visitors visiting the United Arab Emirates must hold a passport valid for at least 6 months. GCC nationals need to only show their government issued ID card.
Nationals of the following countries and territories may enter the United Arab Emirates without a visa or eligible to obtain a free UAE visa on arrival:[1][2]
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ID — May enter with an ID card.
1 — Not applicable to passports stamped "Article 17, paragraph 2".
2 — Also including holders of passports for public affairs.
3 — For holders of biometric passports only.
4 – Only applicable for British citizens, British Overseas Territories citizens and British Subjects who have a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode.
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Cancelled
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Citizens of 
India who are valid visa holders or residents of the United States, or who are residents of the European Union, are eligible to obtain a free 14 day visa on arrival.[1][17]
Government of UAE website lists Grenada on the list of countries whose citizens holding normal passports may obtain a visa on arrival valid for 90 days.[18] IATA and the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of UAE do not hold the same information.[19][20] Website of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates, London suggests that there has been a visa on arrival facility in place since 1 June 2018.[21]
Only IATA lists Liberia as a country whose normal passport holders are visa exempt.
In addition to nations whose all citizens are visa exempt, holders of diplomatic or service category passports of Albania, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Colombia, Congo, Cuba, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Georgia, Grenada, India, Indonesia, Liberia, Morocco, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu and Vietnam and holders of diplomatic passports of Armenia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Chad, Congo DR, Ethiopia, Guinea, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Uzbekistan also do not require a visa or can obtain a free visa on arrival.
United Arab Emirates has signed visa exemption agreements with the following countries that are not yet ratified or applied:
Thailand - on 9 December 2020 for diplomatic and service passports[22] Ghana - November 2020 Israel - visa free from 1 July 2021[23] Jamaica - on 23 September 2019[24] South Sudan - on 23 April 2019[25] Papua New Guinea – on 21 October 2017 for all passports[26] Kenya – on 25 February 2017 for diplomatic passports[27]Passengers on all international airlines may enter the United Arab Emirates for 96 hours after obtaining a transit visa at the airport. The time difference between the two flights must be over 8 hours and the passenger must continue to a third destination. Passengers also must have a hotel booking. This is not applicable to nationals of Afghanistan, Iraq, Niger, Syria, Somalia, and Yemen.[1]
All travellers in transit are exempt from entry fees for the first 48 hours; this brief entry may be extended for up to 96 hours for a fee of 50 AED.[28][29]
For all others nationals who are not granted visa-free or visa on arrival, UAE visas rules vary according to nationality, age and gender. For example, for Moroccans, Algerians, Libyans, Syrians, Mauritanians and Tunisians, the minimum age requirement to apply for a visa is 40. For other nationalities, the minimum age requirement to apply for a visa is 21 for men and 23 for women.[30][31]
Visitors normally require a sponsor but visas can also be arranged online through an airline if they are arriving on Air Arabia,[32] Air Astana,[33] Emirates,[34] Etihad[35] (and Air Baltic[36] and Air Serbia[37]), flydubai,[38] Turkish Airlines[39] and Indigo Airlines[40]
UAE visas or residence permits are accepted as substitute visas for national visas or they allow for simplified entry procedures in the following countries:
Armenia — Nationals of India with a UAE residence permit may obtain a visa on arrival valid for up to 120 days.[41] Azerbaijan — UAE residents can obtain a visa on arrival for a maximum stay of 30 days if they have a residence permit valid for at least 6 months from the arrival date.[42] Georgia — UAE residents and visa holders may enter and stay in Georgia without visa for 90 calendar days in any 180-day period. UAE visa and/or a residence permit must be valid on the day of entry into Georgia.[43] Kyrgyzstan — Nationals of Algeria, Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Tunisia who are UAE residents can apply for a visa on arrival valid for 30 days.[41]Most visitors[note 1] arriving to Emirate of Dubai were from the following countries of nationality:[44][45][46]
| Country | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| India |
1,970,000 | 2,032,000 | 2,073,000 | 1,800,000 | 1,601,000 |
| Saudi Arabia |
1,565,000 | 1,568,000 | 1,529,000 | 1,638,000 | 1,542,000 |
| United Kingdom |
1,200,000 | 1,212,000 | 1,265,000 | 1,245,000 | 1,188,000 |
| Oman |
1,030,000 | 829,000 | 862,000 | 1,037,000 | 1,002,000 |
| China |
989,000 | 857,000 | 764,000 | 540,000 | 450,000 |
| Russia |
728,000 | 678,000 | 530,000 | 240,000 | 211,000 |
| United States |
667,000 | 656,000 | 633,000 | 607,000 | 602,000 |
| Germany |
560,000 | 567,000 | 506,000 | 462,000 | 461,000 |
| Pakistan |
501,000 | 513,000 | 598,000 | 607,000 | 513,000 |
| Total | 16,730,000 | 15,920,000 | 15,790,000 | 14,900,000 | 14,200,000 |
Hotel guests[note 2] checking in hotels in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi were from the following countries of nationality:[47]
| Country | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|
| India |
450,000 | 416,000 | 360,000 |
| China |
396,000 | 401,000 | 372,000 |
| United Kingdom |
267,000 | 278,000 | 261,000 |
| United States |
204,000 | 194,000 | 164,000 |
| Egypt |
184,000 | 169,000 | 160,000 |
| Philippines |
175,000 | 183,000 | 181,000 |
| Saudi Arabia |
163,000 | 168,000 | 152,000 |
| Germany |
128,000 | 142,000 | 131,000 |
| Total | 5,100,000 | 5,043,821 | 4,852,405 |
