How do you get a Dubai visit visa from Pakistan? (2026)

Do Pakistanis need a visa before flying to Dubai?

Yes. A Pakistani passport does not qualify for visa-free entry or a visa on arrival in the UAE, so your visa must be issued before you travel. Do not book a trip on the hope of sorting it out at Dubai airport.

Why the visa on arrival stories do not apply to you

You may have heard that holding a US visa or a UK residence permit gets you a visa at Dubai airport. That rule exists, but only for some nationalities. As of 15 September 2026, the UAE Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) says the route covers nationals of India, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Thailand, the Philippines, Kenya and South Africa.

Those nationals must also hold a valid residence permit from the United States, an EU member state, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand or Canada. The latest expansion was announced on 25 June 2026, and Pakistan is not on the list. So a Pakistani with a UK visit visa or a Schengen visa still needs a UAE visa in advance.

Lists change, so check near your travel date

The UAE government portal, u.ae, says the lists of countries eligible for a visa on arrival may vary from time to time. Check the ICP or u.ae website shortly before you travel, not a forwarded message or a travel page from last year.

Passport validity

The u.ae portal says passports must be valid for at least six months from the date of entry into the UAE. FIA’s Travellers’ Guide gives the same advice for any visit visa trip from Pakistan. If your passport runs out sooner, renew it before anyone applies for your visa.

If Dubai is one stop on a longer journey, the rules for Europe and Britain are separate. Read the Schengen visa guide and the UK visit visa guide for those parts of the trip.

Who can apply for a UAE visit visa for you?

UAE embassies do not issue tourist visas. The application goes to the visa authorities inside the UAE, through a sponsor or an approved channel. You cannot walk into a UAE mission in Pakistan for one.

UAE airlines, hotels and tourism companies

As of 15 September 2026, the u.ae portal says you can get a tourist visa through UAE-based airlines, hotels and travel agents, and it names Emirates, Etihad and flydubai. Airline conditions differ and change, so read the airline’s own visa page before you book a ticket.

For Dubai, GDRFA Dubai’s service page for a single-entry tourist visa says only accredited tourism offices in the emirate can issue this kind of visa. So a travel agent in Lahore or Karachi selling a Dubai tourist visa has to work through a UAE tourism company. Ask which company that is.

A relative or friend who lives in the UAE

A UAE citizen or resident can apply for a visit visa for a relative or friend. As of 15 September 2026, the ICP sets a minimum monthly income for the host, depending on the relationship:

• AED 4,000 for first-degree relatives;
• AED 8,000 for second and third-degree relatives;
• AED 15,000 for friends.

The host must prove the relationship and pay a security deposit. The visitor can choose 30, 60 or 90 days, and the ICP says the visa must be used within its 60-day entry validity. Check the host’s eligibility before anyone pays, because a low salary is a common reason these applications stop.

Applying online yourself

For the 5-year multiple-entry tourist visa, the u.ae portal lists online applications through the ICP and GDRFA Dubai, as well as airlines, travel agencies and hotels. You do not need a host for that visa.

Which UAE visit visa fits your trip, and how long can you stay?

Choose the visa by the purpose of your trip. A holiday, a family visit, a long run of repeat trips and a job search each have their own visa, with different lengths of stay and conditions.

Single entry or multiple entry

A single-entry visa lets you enter once. If you leave, even for a day trip to Oman, the visa is used up. The ICP lists both single-entry and multiple-entry tourism visit visas. If your plans include leaving and coming back, say so before the visa is applied for.

The days start when you enter

A visit visa has two different periods: the time you have to enter the UAE, and the days you may stay once you arrive. Check both on the e-visa. Your permitted stay is counted from entry, so book your return flight inside it.

Can Pakistanis get the 5-year multiple-entry tourist visa?

Yes. As of 15 September 2026, the u.ae portal says this visa can be issued for all nationalities. It suits people who visit the UAE several times a year and can show the required funds.

What you must show

The ICP and u.ae list these main requirements:

• a passport valid for at least six months;
• a bank balance of USD 4,000 or its equivalent in other currencies during the last six months;
• health insurance valid in the UAE, which u.ae says must be valid for 180 days;
• a return ticket or a ticket for your onward journey;
• a personal photo and proof of where you will stay.

The ICP service page says the health insurance must be issued within the UAE. A Pakistani policy is unlikely to be enough, so arrange UAE cover before you apply.

How long you can stay

Each visit can last up to 90 days in a row. The ICP says it may extend that by a similar period, as long as your total time in the UAE does not exceed 180 days in a year. The visa is self-sponsored, so you need no host, but it gives no right to work.

When I look at a bank statement for this visa, I look at the six months, not the closing balance. A balance that sits near the figure throughout reads very differently from a large deposit made a week before the application.

What documents do you need for a Dubai visit visa from Pakistan?

The UAE application itself is short: usually a passport copy, a photo and, for Pakistani nationals, a copy of the national identity card. The wider file matters too, because airlines and FIA may ask to see how the trip is planned and paid for.

For the visa application

• Passport. A clear colour copy of the data page, with more than six months of validity.
• Photo. A recent personal photograph, in the format the applying company or authority asks for.
• CNIC. GDRFA Dubai’s tourist and family visit service pages list an identity card from the country of origin for Pakistani nationals, among a few others. Send a clear copy of your CNIC.
• Insurance. GDRFA Dubai’s tourist visa conditions include travel insurance valid in the UAE. The 5-year visa needs health insurance issued in the UAE.
• Ticket. A return or onward ticket is listed as a condition for tourist visas.

For a family or friend visit

The host’s side carries more weight here. GDRFA Dubai’s service page for a relative or friend lists items such as the host’s salary certificate or employment contract, and a marriage contract or birth certificate where they prove the relationship. For NADRA documents, ask the host which translations or attestations the authority wants.

What to carry for the journey

As of 15 September 2026, FIA’s published FAQ lists these for visit visa travellers: a valid passport, a return ticket, a confirmed hotel booking with advance payment, and sufficient funds. If you are staying with family, carry your host’s address, a copy of their Emirates ID and residence details, and their invitation or visa application papers.

Bring your own bank statement, and if you are employed, a leave letter from your employer. If you run a business, carry something that shows it, such as registration papers. None of this is a published FIA list for family visits, but it answers the questions you are most likely to be asked.

How much does a Dubai visit visa cost from Pakistan?

There is no single price. The government fee depends on the visa type, the length of stay and the authority, and the company that applies for you adds its own charge. Get the full amount in writing before you pay.

Government fees vary by issuer

As of 15 September 2026, GDRFA Dubai’s service page for a single-entry tourist visa lists AED 200 for 30 days and AED 300 for 60 days, plus 5% VAT. Extra fees apply if the visitor is already inside the UAE. The ICP’s federal service pages set out their fees differently. These are official fee lines, not the price an agent in Pakistan will quote.

Security deposits

Some visit visas need a security deposit. For a single-entry visit by a relative or friend, both the ICP and GDRFA Dubai list AED 1,000, and the ICP lists AED 2,000 for multiple entry. The job exploration visa also carries a deposit. Ask the host or company how and when the deposit is returned.

What a written quote should show

• the visa type and number of days;
• the government fee, VAT and any deposit;
• insurance, if it is included;
• the company’s own service charge;
• what happens to your money if the visa is not issued.

Can you extend a visit visa, and what happens if you overstay?

Most visit visas can be extended from inside the UAE within set limits. If you stay beyond your permitted period without an extension, a daily fine starts, and you must pay it before you can regularise your status or leave.

Extension limits

As of 15 September 2026, the ICP says a tourism visit visa may be extended once or more, as long as the total stay does not exceed 120 days. GDRFA Dubai’s tourist visa extension page gives the same 120-day total. The ICP gives separate limits for family, friend and job exploration visits, and some visas cannot be extended at all.

Extensions cost money, and the company or host that applied for the visa usually handles them. Start the request well before your last permitted day, not on it.

Overstay fines

As of 15 September 2026, the ICP lists a fine of AED 50 for each day a foreigner remains after the permitted stay or visa has expired. The same figure appears on the ICP’s 5-year tourist visa page. Thirty days of overstay is AED 1,500 before any other consequences.

FIA’s Travellers’ Guide warns that overstaying abroad without permission can lead to deportation and charges under that country’s laws. Keep your own note of the date your stay ends.

Can you work or look for a job on a Dubai visit visa?

You cannot lawfully work on a visit or tourist visa. Employment in the UAE needs a work visa that the employer applies for. There is a separate visit visa for exploring job opportunities, but only some applicants qualify for it.

Work needs an employer-sponsored visa

As of 15 September 2026, the u.ae portal says the employer must apply for the standard work visa. GDRFA Dubai’s legal awareness page warns that recruiting a foreigner without giving them a job, or allowing them to work for others illegally, carries a fine of AED 50,000. A job that begins on a visit visa leaves you with no lawful status as a worker.

The job exploration visit visa

This visa lets you look for work without a host. As of 15 September 2026, u.ae lists these conditions:

• you are in skill level 1, 2 or 3 under MOHRE’s professional classification, or you graduated in the last two years from one of the top 500 universities in the world, under the Ministry of Education’s approved ranking;
• you hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent;
• you meet the financial requirement, which GDRFA Dubai lists as a security deposit.

The visa lasts 60, 90 or 120 days. The documents listed include a photo, a passport copy and an attested qualification certificate. Check where your occupation sits in MOHRE’s classification before applying, because not every job falls within levels 1 to 3.

Other options for skilled workers

If you are a graduate thinking about a job search abroad, compare routes before spending money on repeated Dubai visits. Germany, for example, has a points-based visa for job seekers, explained in the Germany Opportunity Card guide.

What happens at the Pakistani airport before you fly to Dubai?

FIA immigration officers check that your passport and visa are genuine and valid, and they may ask about your trip. Visitors should carry a return ticket, accommodation details and proof of funds. Anyone travelling for work needs emigration protection.

What FIA says it checks

FIA’s Travellers’ Guide says officers at the immigration counter check that your travel documents are authentic and valid for the journey. They ask appropriate questions to confirm your identity and the authenticity of your passport and visa. A second officer then re-checks the documents before you enter the departure lounge.

If you are offloaded

Being stopped from boarding is often called offloading. FIA’s guide says the shift in-charge will personally tell an offloaded passenger the reasons. It also says that if your passport and visa are genuine and valid, and there is no apparent misdeclaration of facts, immigration staff are not authorised to offload you.

If you believe you were treated wrongly, FIA says to raise it with the supervisory staff on duty, use the complaint box, or contact the airport immigration officers whose numbers are displayed. FIA’s helplines are 1991 and 051-111-345-786. Stay calm, and answer questions in line with your documents.

The protector requirement for work

Under the Emigration Ordinance 1979, every Pakistani going abroad on a work visa must be protected. The Overseas Pakistanis ministry explains that protection involves a Foreign Service Agreement between you and the employer or Overseas Employment Promoter, countersigned by the Protector of Emigrants. FIA’s FAQ lists a protector stamp among the documents for work visa travellers.

So a person who is really travelling for a job cannot fix that by holding a visit visa. As a lawyer, this is the point I would stress to any family: the story at the counter must be the true one.

Other practical checks

• Government employees need an NOC from their department, and FIA says it must be shown to the immigration officer.
• FIA says children under 12 travelling without their parents need a power of attorney from their legal guardian, or must travel as unaccompanied minors.
• FIA’s guide suggests keeping a cancelled or expired passport with your new one for at least two years.

How do you spot a Dubai visa or job scam?

The most damaging scam is a paid “visit visa with a job” that turns out to be neither. Treat any offer that ties a job to a visit visa, promises a sure visa, or asks to keep your passport as a serious warning.

Warning signs

• A job offer that says you will travel on a visit visa and “change status” after arriving.
• Promises that a visa is certain, or that the agent has contacts inside immigration.
• A request to keep your original passport, when a UAE visit visa application needs only a copy.
• Cash payments with no receipt, or payment into a personal account.
• Advice to tell FIA you are going on holiday when the real plan is work.
• An agent with no licence who charges you for a job abroad.

What Pakistani law says about paid job offers

Only a licensed Overseas Employment Promoter may recruit people in Pakistan for work abroad. Section 22 of the Emigration Ordinance 1979 makes it an offence for anyone else to take money for providing, or pretending to provide, a job abroad. Check the promoter’s licence with the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment before paying.

Check the visa and the company

FIA’s Travellers’ Guide advises that a visa obtained through an agent should have its authenticity verified with the destination country’s diplomatic mission in Pakistan well before travel. For the company itself, the guide to checking a visa consultant in Pakistan sets out the SECP, FBR and licence checks, and where to report fraud.

How do you apply, step by step?

The route depends on who applies, but the order below works for most Pakistani visitors. Settle the purpose and the applicant first, and the rest follows.

1. 1

   Decide the real purpose of the trip

   Write down why you are going, for how many days, and where you will stay. A holiday, a family visit and a job search each need a different visa, and working needs an employment visa arranged by the employer.

2. 2

   Choose who will apply for you

   For a family visit, your resident relative or friend applies through ICP or GDRFA Dubai. For tourism, use a licensed UAE tourism company, a hotel or a UAE airline. For the 5-year tourist visa, you can apply online yourself.

3. 3

   Prepare your documents

   Collect a passport valid for more than six months, a recent photo, a copy of your CNIC, a return ticket, your hotel booking or your host’s documents, and travel or health insurance where the visa type requires it.

4. 4

   Get every charge in writing before you pay

   Ask for the visa type, the length of stay, the government fee, any security deposit and the service charge, written on a receipt or letterhead. Pay by a traceable method, and keep your passport in your own hands.

5. 5

   Check the visa when it arrives

   Compare the name, passport number, visa type, entry period and length of stay with your passport and plans. If an agent arranged it, verify it through official channels before you travel, as FIA advises.

6. 6

   Carry your file to the airport and leave on time

   Take printed copies of the visa, return ticket, bookings, host documents and bank evidence. In the UAE, extend before your permitted stay ends or leave, because each day of overstay carries a fine.

What goes wrong most often?

Taking a visit visa for a job

This is the costly one. The traveller pays for a visa and a promised job, travels without protection, and finds no lawful work on arrival. The money is gone, and an overstay adds AED 50 a day.

A host who does not meet the income rule

A host earning AED 6,000 a month cannot meet the AED 8,000 threshold for second and third-degree relatives, or AED 15,000 for friends. Check the host’s salary against the relationship before anyone books flights.

Counting days wrongly

Travellers confuse the time to enter with the days they may stay, or forget that leaving the UAE ends a single-entry visa. Read the e-visa, and plan the return inside the permitted stay.

Arriving at the airport with nothing but the e-visa

FIA lists a return ticket, hotel booking and funds for visit visa travellers. A passenger who cannot explain where they will stay, or who is paying, invites longer questioning. Carry the file in paper form.

Handing over the passport

A UAE visit visa application uses a passport copy. An agent who holds your original passport controls your travel. Keep it yourself, and share copies only.

A realistic example

This is a hypothetical illustration, not a real client. Rukhsana is a retired school teacher in Faisalabad. Her son Imran works in Dubai and earns AED 7,000 a month. She wants to spend 30 days with his family for the birth of a grandchild.

• Six weeks before. Imran checks the ICP rule. A mother is a first-degree relative, so his salary clears the AED 4,000 threshold. He applies for a 30-day visit visa for a relative and pays the security deposit.
• Documents. Rukhsana sends a passport copy with eleven months of validity, a photo and her CNIC copy. Imran adds his employment contract and the NADRA documents that link them.
• The visa arrives. They check her name, passport number, the entry period and the 30-day stay, then book a return flight on day 28.
• At Faisalabad airport. She carries the e-visa, the return ticket, Imran’s address, a copy of his Emirates ID, her pension bank statement and some cash. Her answers match her papers.

Everything in her file tells one simple story, and it is the true one.

The version that goes wrong

Now imagine Rukhsana’s nephew, Danish, 24, also wants to go. An agent in the local bazaar offers a 60-day “visit visa with a warehouse job” for PKR 450,000, keeps his original passport and says the company will change his visa after arrival. There is no licence, no receipt and no protector. Danish is told to say he is going on holiday. If FIA’s questions uncover the real plan, he may not fly. If he does fly and works without a work visa, he has no lawful status as a worker, and once the 60 days end, the fine grows by AED 50 each day.

Key takeaways

Frequently asked questions