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Dubai family visa requirements start with you, the sponsor: a monthly salary of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation, and a home that fits the family. Then come attested marriage and birth certificates, passports valid 6 months, a medical for adults and health insurance for everyone. GDRFA processes each of the two stages in 48 hours.
Most delays come from one weak document rather than a missing rule. This page goes through what each paper must show.
What GDRFA checks about the sponsor
| Requirement | What the official pages say |
|---|---|
| Salary | AED 4,000 a month, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation |
| Job title | No rule: any employee who meets the salary can sponsor |
| Company partner | Share of at least AED 48,000 in the partnership agreement |
| Housing | Adequate for the family, owned or rented |
| Where the family lives | With the sponsor, the head of the family |
| Your own residence | Valid, since the family permit cannot run past it |
Sources: u.ae family residence page, ICP issuing residency page, GDRFA family entry permit page, checked .
GDRFA's own wording on salary is less clear than ICP's. It joins housing and the two salary figures in one sentence. ICP spells it out: AED 3,000 when the employer provides housing, AED 4,000 when it does not. If your housing is an allowance in cash, make sure the salary certificate shows it as a separate line. The family visa salary requirement page has more on this.
Documents for the entry permit
- Personal photo
- Passport copy, valid at least 6 months
- Your employment contract
- Salary certificate (government, semi-government and free zone employees)
- Partnership contract, if you sponsor as a company partner
- Attested birth certificate for each child
- Certified marriage contract
- No objection letter from the father, if the mother is the sponsor
Source: GDRFA family entry permit service page.
Documents for residence stamping
- Recent colour photo with a white background
- Passport copy
- Medical fitness result for anyone over 18
Source: GDRFA family residence issuance service page.
ICP's list for the same service, used outside Dubai, adds a water or electricity bill, an employment certificate showing family income and housing, and valid health insurance. Expect a Dubai counter to ask for the insurance as well.
Attestation rules
Certificates issued abroad need two layers. First, the issuing country and the UAE embassy there. Then MOFA in the UAE, at AED 150 per personal document. GDRFA's humanitarian page states that all international documents must carry the UAE embassy and MOFA attestation. Children born in the UAE follow their own birth certificate steps, covered on the newborn visa page. See marriage certificate attestation for a visa.
Fees tied to each stage
| Stage | Government fee |
|---|---|
| Entry permit | AED 200 plus 5% VAT |
| Residence permit | AED 200, AED 10, AED 10, AED 20 delivery |
| If already inside the UAE | AED 500 plus AED 10 and AED 10 |
| Medical, 24-hour service | AED 270 |
| MOFA attestation | AED 150 per document |
Source: GDRFA service pages, Dubai medical fitness charges and the MOFA FAQs, checked . The full list is on family visa cost in Dubai.
Dubai typing centres and agencies publish about AED 100 to AED 400 per application for typing or service fees, government fees extra (published prices of 4 Dubai firms, checked ).
The procedure, abroad or inside the UAE
Family member abroad. File the entry permit, send it to them, and they fly in. From the day of entry they have 60 days to do the medical, give biometrics and get the residence. Miss that and overstay fines of AED 50 a day start.
Family member already in the UAE. You still file the entry permit, but from inside the country, and the in-country fees apply. If they hold another residence, such as an old employment visa, that must be cancelled first. GDRFA's status amendment service asks for the cancelled permit and the new entry permit together.
Processing time
GDRFA: 48 hours for the entry permit and 48 hours for the residence. ICP: 2 days. A file with a gap waits until the gap is fixed, so the real time depends on how ready your papers are. See family visa processing time.
Why family files get sent back
- The salary certificate shows the basic only, below AED 4,000.
- The marriage certificate carries the home country stamp but not MOFA's.
- A child's name is spelt differently on the passport and the birth certificate.
- The tenancy contract has expired or is in someone else's name.
- The father's no objection letter is missing when the mother sponsors.
- A son has turned 25, which moves him to the humanitarian route.
How it works with us
Send scans of your residence, salary certificate, tenancy contract and the family's passports and certificates on WhatsApp, or upload them with the form on this page. A visa adviser checks every document against the GDRFA list and tells you what to fix, such as a missing attestation or a salary letter that needs the housing line. You get one total price before paying. The team then files the entry permit and the residence and follows both through. DubaiVisaDesk.com is a private visa service, and GDRFA or ICP makes the decision.
Government fees are kept by the authorities if a permit is refused. Before you pay, the adviser confirms in writing what share of our total, if any, would be returned.
Official sources
- GDRFA family entry permit: sponsor documents, salary wording, partner share, 60 days.
- GDRFA family residence issuance: stamping documents, medical age, housing.
- ICP issuing residency: ICP document list, salary with or without housing.
- ICP renewal of residency: renewal documents.
- u.ae residence visa for family members: job title rule.
- MOFA FAQs: attestation fee.
Checked . Look at the GDRFA page again before you file, since document lists change.
