People who are in UAE on a tourist or visit visa can now extend their visa for another 30 days. This applies to tourists on a 30 or 60-day visit visa. An important feature is that now, there is no need to leave the country in order to apply for an extension. Therefore, people can apply by staying within the country. Also, the maximum visit visa extension period is 120 days. Earlier there was a grace period of 10 days after the visa expiration so that they can apply for the extension. But now there is no such grace period.
Documents
- Original visa
- Applicant’s passport with minimum 6-month validity
How long is the visa extension period?
UAE visit visa holders can now extend their original visa period for 30-days through GDRF, ICP website or travel agencies. You can extend the visa twice for 30 days and it can be done via the same travel agency that issued your original visa. But keep in mind one thing that the maximum extension period is 120 days and the agency must be authentic.
Procedure & Duration
To extend the visit visa, the applicant must contact an authorised travel agent or the sponsor who is issuing the visa. With the required documents, you need to submit an online application and pay the service charges. Both ICP & GDRFA helps to initiate the process of visa extension with the assistance of authentic travel agencies.
The procedure takes a few days depending on the agency. Meanwhile, in the case of ICP, the entry permit will be issued electronically within 48 hours after submitting the application. It is always advised to apply for the process before the visa expiry to avoid any complications.
Visit visa extension through GDRFA
For those who want to extend their visit visa of Dubai need to access the General Directorate of Foreign Affairs Residency (GDRFA). They need to submit the documents and information to authorised or accredited tourism offices or agencies in Dubai.
It is possible to submit the extension application through GDRFA website. But you need to process the application through a recognised agency that issued your original visa.
- Visit GDRFA website
- Under Services, select Entry permits
- Click Visa Extension
- Choose the visit visa type
- Click on Start Service
- Login to the service through UAE Pass or username
- Fill in the application
- Pay the fees
- Submit
Extending tourist visa via ICP
Similarly, anyone who has a tourist visa for Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman or Fujairah needs to use the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) for visa-related matters such as an extension. According to ICP, the extension procedure can only be done by tourism companies in UAE. The eligible applicant must submit an online application to these companies with the relevant documents.
- Go to the ICP website
- Login to your account
- If not, register and create an account
- Apply for visa extension
- Pay the fees
- Submit
What is the cost of extension?
For the extension of the visit visa via the ICP website, it costs around AED600 including all the service fees. At the same time, the Dubai GDRFA portal charges an amount of AED600 for extending visas and it can vary depending on the sponsor. If the sponsor is inside the country, it costs an extra Dh500. Apart from these online platforms, one can apply for visa extension through travel agents and that costs between AED800-AED1000.
With the new amendments in visit visa services, one can easily extend their visa one or more times by staying inside the country itself. If you have the required documents, the visa extension process in UAE is simple. All you need is a recognised travel agency that can guide you throughout the procedure. By submitting the online application to the agent, with the help of GDRFA & ICP portals, one can get the visa extension.
