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To cancel a family visa in Dubai, the sponsor files each dependant's cancellation with GDRFA for AED 100 plus AED 10 and AED 10, online or at an Amer centre, and GDRFA lists 48 hours. Family visas must be cancelled before the sponsor's own. After that, GDRFA gives 60 days to leave or get a new visa, although the u.ae family page says 6 months.
Cancellation fees
| Fee | GDRFA Dubai | ICP (other emirates) |
|---|---|---|
| Cancellation, per person | AED 100 | AED 50 application |
| Knowledge and Innovation Dirham | AED 10 + AED 10 | Not listed |
| Smart services | Not listed | AED 100 |
| Exceptional cancellation | Not listed | AED 100 |
| Guarantee to cancel the sponsor without the family | Not listed | AED 5,000 |
| Deposit fee | Not listed | AED 20 |
| Processing | 48 hours | 2 days |
Source: GDRFA residence cancellation page and ICP residence cancellation page, checked .
Only one Dubai agency publishes a price for this service, so we show no market range. Ask anyone you use to list the government fee and their own charge on separate lines.
The order: family first, sponsor last
ICP and u.ae both say family permits are cancelled before the sponsor's own residence. The reason is simple. A dependant's visa hangs on the sponsor's file, and if the sponsor's visa goes, the dependants' visas must go too.
For a family whose sponsor is an employee:
- The sponsor cancels the spouse's and children's residence with GDRFA.
- The employer cancels the sponsor's work permit with MOHRE.
- The employer cancels the sponsor's residence. Our employment visa cancellation page covers this part.
Keeping the family while the sponsor's visa is cancelled
ICP's cancellation page lists a guarantee of AED 5,000 for cancelling the sponsor without cancelling the family. It does not explain who qualifies or when the money is returned. GDRFA's page does not mention this option. If you need it, for example because your spouse is about to take over as sponsor, get the route confirmed in writing before you cancel anything.
Grace period after cancellation
Three official sources give three answers.
| Source | Time after cancellation |
|---|---|
| GDRFA cancellation and family pages | 60 days |
| u.ae family residence page | 6 months for dependants |
| ICP, by category | 180 days for families of Golden, Green and Blue holders and for widows or divorced women of residents; 60 days for permits issued with a guarantor or host; 30 days for all other categories |
Source: GDRFA, u.ae and ICP pages, checked .
For a standard Dubai family visa, plan on the GDRFA 60 days. ICP charges AED 50 a day from the day after the grace period ends. Read more in our grace period after visa cancellation guide and the UAE overstay fine page.
Common situations
The whole family is leaving the UAE. Cancel the dependants, then the sponsor, and book flights inside the grace period.
Your spouse has a job offer. A plain cancellation is not the only way. A status change inside the UAE needs the new visa and the old permit cancelled, and GDRFA lists 48 hours, so your spouse does not have to leave.
Divorce or the sponsor's death. GDRFA's humanitarian page allows a widow or divorcee to get her own residence within 6 months of the divorce or death, if she is in the UAE, her husband was the guarantor and she is the legal custodian of the children she wants to sponsor. u.ae also mentions a one-year extension on her residence and her children's, renewable once.
Parents on a humanitarian visa. Their files carry a financial guarantee. The official pages do not state the refund terms. See family visa deposit refund.
Documents checklist
- Sponsor's passport copy.
- Passport copy of each dependant being cancelled.
- For the sponsor's own employment visa: the MOHRE work permit cancellation extract.
- Any fine receipts, if a visa has already expired.
Steps
- Check each family member's expiry date and any fines.
- File the dependants' cancellations on the GDRFA app or at an Amer centre.
- Wait for each file to show cancelled, 48 hours at GDRFA.
- Cancel the sponsor's visa, through the employer if you work.
- Leave the UAE or start a new visa before the grace period ends.
Processing time
GDRFA lists 48 hours and ICP lists 2 days. The Emirates ID is cancelled automatically with the residence, so there is no separate card step. Check the result on the Dubai visa status check before you fly.
Why a cancellation is refused or delayed
- Sponsor's visa cancelled first. Dependants' visas then have to be cancelled anyway, out of order. Do them first.
- Fines on the file. An expired visa past its grace period has fines to clear.
- Wrong person filing. The sponsor files, not the dependant.
- Missing documents. GDRFA cancels requests if papers are not added within 30 days.
How it works with us
Tell us on WhatsApp or the form on this page who in the family is leaving, who might stay on a new visa, and your own last working day. Send the passport copies and residence details. A visa adviser sets the order, checks for fines and works out the date each person must leave or switch by. You get one total price for all the cancellations, confirmed on WhatsApp before you pay. The team files each one, confirms the files show cancelled and tells you when the grace period runs out. DubaiVisaDesk.com is a private visa service, and GDRFA or ICP processes and decides every cancellation.
If a cancellation is rejected, government fees already paid are not refunded by the authorities. Before you pay, the adviser tells you in writing which part of our total, if any, comes back.
Tips
- Start the family cancellations a few weeks before your last working day, not after.
- Write down each cancellation date. The grace period runs from that day.
- If you will come back on a new job soon, ask whether a status change saves your spouse a trip.
Official sources
- GDRFA residence cancellation: AED 100 + AED 10 + AED 10, documents, 48 hours, 60 days.
- ICP residence cancellation: ICP fees, AED 5,000 guarantee, family first, grace by category.
- u.ae family residence: 6-month grace wording for dependants.
- u.ae general provisions: cancellation order, widow and divorcee extension.
- GDRFA humanitarian cases: widow and divorcee residence.
All checked .
