Do I need a visa for Dubai?

Most visitors do not. Around half the world’s passports get a Dubai visa free at the airport, stamped in a few minutes with no application beforehand. Which half you are in depends entirely on your nationality.

The short answer, by passport

• GCC nationals — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman — need no visa at all. A national ID is enough.
• Most EU and Schengen passports get 90 days on arrival, free, within any 180-day period.
• UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, China and others get 30 days on arrival, free, usually extendable once inside the country for a fee.
• Most other passports — including many African, South Asian and Arab ones, Egyptian among them — need a visa arranged before travelling.

If you need one arranged in advance

You do not normally apply at an embassy. The usual routes are your airline (Emirates and flydubai both run visa services when you book with them, and this is the most common way), your hotel, a licensed UAE travel agency, or a relative or company inside the country sponsoring you.

Budget roughly AED 250–400 for a 30-day tourist visa, and allow three to five working days for processing.

What you will need

• A passport valid for at least six months from your arrival date
• A passport photograph on a white background
• A confirmed return or onward flight
• A hotel booking, or your host’s details

The one that catches people out

The six-month passport rule is enforced at the gate, not at the border. Five months and three weeks of validity is a refused boarding, and airlines check it before you fly.

Where to confirm

Visa rules change often enough that no article should be your final word — including this one. The authoritative sources are the UAE’s Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICP) and GDRFA Dubai. Your airline’s website will also state the requirement for your exact route and passport, and that is usually the fastest practical check.

For the full picture — sponsored visas, extensions, transit visas and what happens if you overstay — see our complete Dubai visa guide. Planning the rest of the trip? Start with first time in Dubai.

Written August 2026. This page is orientation, not authority — confirm with ICP, GDRFA or your airline before booking. See our editorial policy.