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Dependent Visa in Dubai

Dependent Visa in Dubai

Sponsor a spouse, child, parent or domestic worker onto your residence file. Who you can sponsor, the two eligibility gates, and the full cost.

Mir Ali Licensed PRO consultant · Amer & Tasheel partner

Updated 4 Sep 2026 Get a fixed quote

The short version

A dependent visa puts a spouse, child, parent or domestic worker on your residence file, sponsored by you.
The gate is AED 4,000 basic salary (or AED 3,000 with employer accommodation) plus a registered Ejari.
Not everyone can be sponsored. Adult sons, married daughters and extended family generally cannot.
Budget AED 2,500–3,500 per dependant, plus attestation, which is usually the longest part.

"Dependent visa" and "family visa" describe the same mechanism — you become the sponsor and someone else's residency hangs off yours. What varies is who you are sponsoring, because each relationship has different evidence and different limits.

Relationship	Position	Key condition
Spouse	Yes	Attested marriage certificate; names must match passports exactly
Sons under 18	Yes	Attested birth certificate naming both parents
Sons 18+	Restricted	Usually a student visa while in full-time education
Unmarried daughters	Yes	Generally without an age limit
Married daughters	No	Not sponsorable as dependants
Parents	Separate route	Higher income threshold, refundable deposit, enhanced insurance
Domestic worker	Separate route	Own permit category and income requirement
Siblings, in-laws, cousins	No	Not sponsorable as dependants
Newborn in the UAE	Yes	Birth certificate and passport first; act within the window

What it costs

Component	Typical range	Notes
Entry permit	AED 500 – 1,100	Inside or outside country
Status change, if already in UAE	AED 650 – 1,100	Avoids an exit and re-entry
Medical fitness test	AED 300 – 700	Adults; under-18s generally exempt
Emirates ID	AED 170 – 370	Per year of validity
Visa stamping	AED 500 – 1,000
Medical insurance	AED 650 – 2,500+	Mandatory
Attestation, per certificate	Country dependent	Start this first
Realistic per dependant	AED 2,500 – 3,500	Excluding attestation and insurance extremes

The two gates

Basic salary, not total package

The threshold is AED 4,000 per month, or AED 3,000 with employer-provided accommodation — and it is measured against the basic salary line on your attested MOHRE contract. Allowances are excluded. Someone on AED 11,000 total with AED 3,500 basic does not qualify.

The fix is a contract restructure through MOHRE, which costs the employer nothing. It must register before you apply.

The second gate is accommodation: a registered Ejari in your own name, minimum one bedroom, with the room count proportionate to the number of dependants. A studio is generally not accepted, and you usually cannot sponsor family into shared or company accommodation.

What you need

Document checklist

Sponsor's passport, residence visa and Emirates ID
Attested marriage certificate — for a spouse
Attested birth certificate — for each child, naming both parents
Salary certificate or attested MOHRE labour contract showing basic salary
Registered Ejari and a recent DEWA bill
Dependant passports with six months validity
Photographs to current specification
Medical insurance meeting the minimum cover

Attestation is the long pole

A certificate issued abroad must complete the full legalisation chain, and that chain starts in the issuing country. It routinely takes longer than the visa itself and cannot be accelerated once the file is running. See the attestation chain explained, or hand it to us with the visa.

How long it takes

Stage	Working days
Eligibility and document review	1
Entry permit	2 – 5
Status change or entry	1 – 3
Medical fitness	1 – 3
Emirates ID biometrics	1 – 2
Stamping	2 – 5
End to end, complete file	2 – 4 weeks

Common situations

Family already here on visit visas

Status change avoids an exit and re-entry. Watch the visit visa expiry — if it lapses mid-process, overstay accrues at AED 50 per day for each person.

Newborn baby in the UAE

Birth certificate and passport first, then add the baby to your file. There is a window before fines begin, and it is shorter than most parents expect.

Sponsoring parents

A materially harder route with a higher income threshold, a refundable deposit per parent and enhanced insurance. It is assessed on its own terms — do not assume the AED 4,000 rule applies.

Working wife sponsoring her husband

Permitted on the same threshold, subject to profession. These files are examined more closely, so present the documentation completely first time.

Dependent visa questions

What is the minimum salary for a dependent visa in Dubai?

AED 4,000 per month, or AED 3,000 with employer-provided accommodation, measured against the basic salary on your attested MOHRE labour contract rather than your total package.

Can I sponsor my parents on a dependent visa?

Parents fall under a separate route with a substantially higher income threshold, a refundable deposit per parent and enhanced medical insurance. The standard AED 4,000 family rule does not apply.

Can I sponsor my son who is over 18?

Sponsorship of adult sons as dependants is restricted. The usual route is a student visa while he is in full-time education. Unmarried daughters can generally still be sponsored without an age limit.

How much does a dependent visa cost in Dubai?

Roughly AED 2,500–3,500 per dependant covering entry permit, status change, medical, Emirates ID and stamping. Attestation of marriage and birth certificates is additional and varies by issuing country.

Do children need a medical test?

Children under 18 are generally exempt from the medical fitness test. Adult dependants do require it.

Can I sponsor a dependant from a studio apartment?

Generally not. A minimum of one bedroom is expected, with room count assessed against the number of dependants, and the Ejari must be registered in the sponsor's own name.

Hand it over