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A Nepali citizen working in Dubai needs a UAE employment visa that the employer applies for and pays for. It starts with a MOHRE work permit, then a GDRFA entry permit at AED 200 plus 5% VAT, then the medical test, Emirates ID and residence. Nepal also expects a foreign employment labour permit from its Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) before you leave.
If you are going for a holiday or to see family, read the Dubai visa for Nepali citizens page instead. This page is only about going to work.
Two permits with similar names
Workers often hear "permit" and think it is one paper. It is two.
| UAE work permit | Nepal labour permit | |
|---|---|---|
| Issued by | MOHRE, UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation | DoFE, Kathmandu |
| Who applies | Your UAE employer | You, or a licensed agency in Nepal |
| What it allows | The company to employ you in the UAE | You to leave Nepal for that foreign job |
| Where to check it | MOHRE inquiry site | DoFE |
The UAE never asks to see the Nepal labour permit. Nepal's departure checks do. Without it, your UAE visa can be valid and you still cannot use it properly.
What we could confirm about the DoFE side
We tried the DoFE website on and it refused the connection, as it had on earlier checks. So we cannot give you DoFE's current steps, fees or documents. Older reporting says DoFE issues the foreign employment permit, and for domestic workers only after the papers are attested at the Nepali embassy. Ask DoFE directly or a licensed recruitment agency in Kathmandu, and get the answer in writing.
Visit visa workers: why it goes wrong
Kantipur reported on that more than 150,000 Nepali women had gone to Gulf states as domestic workers on visit visas. On the same paper reported that about 5,000 Nepali workers who already held UAE work permits had been stopped from going to the UAE. The article we could read did not give the reason. The lesson is plain: a UAE permit in your phone is not the end of the process, and the Nepal side has to be in order too.
The UAE fee depends on the employer's category
MOHRE charges the employer for the two-year work permit, and the amount depends on how the company is rated.
| Company category | What it means | Two-year permit fee |
|---|---|---|
| Category 1 | Follows labour law and meets an extra target, such as high Emiratisation | AED 250 |
| Category 2 | Follows the law and the diversity policy, no extra target | AED 1,200 |
| Category 3 | Has broken labour law or the diversity policy | AED 3,450 |
Every new permit also has an AED 50 application fee. After the permit, the employer pays the GDRFA entry permit (AED 200 plus 5% VAT), the DHA medical test (AED 270 on the 24-hour service), the Emirates ID (AED 100 per year plus AED 100 smart service) and the residence permit (AED 200 plus AED 10, AED 10 and AED 20 delivery).
Source: MOHRE recruiting service page and company classification news (checked ), GDRFA, DHA and ICP fee pages, checked . There is no official total. The UAE work permit page covers the permit types.
A Category 3 rating is worth noticing. It means MOHRE has recorded violations against that company, and a careful worker asks why.
What Dubai agencies charge: Dubai PRO and setup firms publish about AED 3,500 to AED 8,000 per employee for a two-year mainland employment visa, everything included (4 providers, checked ). That is the employer's cost. You should not be paying it.
Your rights once you start
- Recruitment fees: illegal to charge job seekers in the UAE. The employer bears recruitment, travel and residence costs.
- Passport: the employer may not keep it. Confiscation is prohibited.
- Contract: the employer must file your MOHRE contract within 60 days of entry. Workers at skill levels 5 to 9 attend a guidance workshop.
- Probation: six months at most, with no extension. Moving to another UAE employer needs one month's written notice; leaving the UAE needs 14 days.
If the job ends, the employment visa cancellation page explains what happens to the residence, and changing jobs in the UAE covers a transfer.
Documents checklist
- Nepali passport valid for at least 6 months
- Photo with a white background
- MOHRE job offer, signed by you and the employer
- Attested certificate, only if the job is skilled
- Nepal labour permit from DoFE, before departure
- Copy of the work permit or transaction number for your own checks
Steps
- Get the offer on the MOHRE form and read the job title, salary and company name.
- The employer applies for the work permit. MOHRE states 2 working days.
- Check the permit yourself on the work permit status check.
- Sort the DoFE labour permit in Nepal.
- GDRFA issues the entry permit, stated at 48 hours. You fly in.
- Within 60 days: medical test, Emirates ID, residence and the MOHRE contract.
Processing time
The UAE side is quick on paper: 2 working days for the permit, 48 hours for the entry permit, about 24 hours for the medical result and 5 days for the Emirates ID. The Nepal side has no published timing we could read, so ask DoFE or your agency.
Why files from Nepal get stuck
- The company has no free quota for a new permit.
- The job title on the permit does not match the business activity of the company.
- The passport runs under 6 months.
- An old absconding case or overstay from an earlier UAE job.
- The worker travelled on a visit visa and the Nepal side has no record.
How it works with us
Send the job offer and your passport page on WhatsApp, or use the form on this page. A visa adviser checks whether the UAE permit exists, matches your offer and what stage it is at. For UAE employers without their own PRO, our team can file and follow up the MOHRE and GDRFA steps. You or the employer get one total price on WhatsApp before paying. We do not handle the DoFE labour permit, and we say so up front. DubaiVisaDesk.com is a private visa service, not MOHRE or GDRFA, and the authorities decide every application.
Government fees are not refunded by the authorities after a refusal. Before payment, the adviser confirms in writing what part of our total, if any, is returned if the permit or visa is refused.
Official sources
- MOHRE recruiting a worker from overseas: permit documents, skill levels, fees.
- MOHRE company classification: the three categories.
- MOHRE inquiry site: work permit and application status.
- u.ae labour rights: who pays, recruitment fees, passports.
- u.ae probation rules: notice periods.
- Kantipur report on stopped permit holders: permit holders stopped from travelling.
