UAE’s Golden Visa

In News

Recently, a Bollywood actor  received a golden visa from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government.

Golden Visa 

• It is a long-term residency programme that was announced in May 2019.
  • In 2019, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) implemented a new system for long-term residence visas, thereby enabling foreigners to live, work and study in the UAE without the need of a national sponsor and with 100 per cent ownership of their business.
• It provides a rainbow of benefits to cardholders and their families and creates an attractive environment for business and growth.
• The Golden Visa system essentially offers long-term residency (5 and 10 years) to people belonging to the following groups like investors, entrepreneurs, individuals with outstanding talents the likes of researchers, medical professionals and those within the scientific and knowledge fields, and remarkable students.
• The main benefit of the visa will be security as through the issuance of the Golden Visa, the UAE government has made it clear that they are committed to providing expatriates, investors and essentially everyone looking to make the UAE their home an extra reason to feel secure about their future.

Eligibility

• 10-year visa eligibility requirements for investors
  • A deposit of at least AED (United Arab Emirates Dirham) 10 million worth of public investment, either in the form of an investment fund or a company.
  • 60% of the total investment must not be in the form of real estate.
  • The invested amount must not be loaned, or in the case of assets, investors must assume full ownership.
  • The investor must be able to retain the investment for a minimum of three years.
  • This 10-year long visa may be extended to include business partners, providing that each partner contributes AED 10 million. 
    • The long-term visa can also include the holder’s spouse and children, as well as one executive director and one advisor. This visa may also be renewed.

• Eligibility for a 5-year visa
  • The investor must invest in a property of a gross value of not less than AED 5 million.
  • The amount invested in real estate must not be on a loan basis.
  • The property must be retained for at least three years.

• For individuals with specialized talents
  • The category includes doctors, researchers, scientists, investors and artists.
  • These individuals may be granted a 10-year visa following accreditations granted by their respective departments and fields. The visa also extends to their spouses and children.

• People in the aforementioned specialised talent group must fulfil certain criteria to be eligible to apply for residency.

• While scientists must be accredited by the Emirates Scientists Council or holders of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Medal for Scientific Excellence, creative individuals in culture and art must be accredited by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development
• Besides these, exceptional talents must be documented by patents or scientific research published in a world-class journal.

• Doctors and specialists must meet at least two of the following conditions: a PhD degree from one of the top 500 universities in the world, an award or certificates of appreciation in the field of the applicant’s work etc.

• Entrepreneurs
  • This category includes those having an existing project with a minimum capital of AED 500,000, or those who have the approval of an accredited business incubator in the country.

• Outstanding students
  • Outstanding students with a minimum grade of 95% in public and private secondary schools.
  •  University students within and outside the country having a distinction GPA of at least 3.75 upon graduation.

Reasons Behind the Move

• The economy of the UAE has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and low oil prices have prompted many expatriates to leave. 
• The decision intends to bring them back now and keep the “talented people and great minds” in the Gulf country and help in nation-building.
• It will also increase the UAE’s competitiveness and reaffirms the country’s position as a global incubator.
• It will attract talented professionals from various domains and further encourage innovation, creativity and applied research which will help the nation in its recovery of crawling industries and economy.

 Benefits for India

• It would attract more Indian professionals and businessmen to the Gulf nation and strengthen the India-UAE Relations.
• It will also facilitate the return of Indians who want to resume work after the relaxation of Covid-19-related restrictions, for which India had requested the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in early November 2020.

Source: IE