Adventures In Obtaining A Visa

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One would think that getting a visa would be easy. You fill out a form and submit it with your passport and “voila!” … you have a visa. Bah hahahaha!! Not in the UAE and not in Dubai. When entering the country you are giving a stamp in your passport (and it’s all about the stamp) that provides a 30 day tourist visa. That is nice for most tourists, as many don’t stay that long. If you are looking to become a resident, the process can be pain staking and challenging, especially if you don’t know what you are doing.



The visa process for me could not start until Jennifer had her visa and we received an Ejari Certificate. The certificate is an official stamped document from the government stating that you have a place to live. Since this would put me over my 30 days, I would need to extend my tourist visa. This sounds easy enough. All you need to do is leave the country and come back. This is not that difficult but does cost money. You can try to do this yourself but it would probably take a lot of time if you don’t know what you are doing. Therefore, you have companies that provide “visa runs”. Allow me to introduce you to Best Visa Run…a company that takes about 8 people in a van (you could get a private ride but it’s expensive) and a driver across the border into Oman. You get picked up at the mall because EVERYTHING happens at the mall…especially in the summer. The cost is AED 150 for the service, AED 35 to leave UAE, and UAE 50 to enter/exit Oman. The journey is about 2-1/2 hours both ways. We stopped for gas and the bathroom once on the way to Oman. The driver then ushers you across the border into Oman. He however was not allowed to go into Oman, so we did that ourselves with his credit card to charge the fees. It was pretty painless and we were back on our way to Dubai within about an hour. All in all it takes about half a day but it gives you another 30 days on your tourist visa to get things done for your residence visa.



Now onto the residence visa. First you need a sponsor for a visa. Most that come here to work have their employers sponsor them. If that is the case, they handle everything from the cost to all the running around that is involved. This is taken care of by someone called a PRO and they handle all the government documents and paperwork that needs to be processed. The employee has no idea what is actually taking place. The way to find out what actually happens is to be a spouse of someone who has his or her employer handle everything. The spouse (me) is not sponsored by the company but by my spouse. The company, in this case, has nothing to do with it. You have to figure it out on your own. You could, and most do, get a PRO to handle everything but it’s expensive and you would miss the actual experience to getting a residence visa. Here is a list of things needed to get a residence visa:



- Marriage certificate

o Authenticated by the US Government, The UAE Government through the embassy, AND the UAE Government in Dubai

- Ejari Certificate

o This is an official document from the government that says you are “officially” renting property in Dubai

- Copy of sponsors passport and visa page

- Sponsors Emirati residence ID

- Salary Certificate

o Your sponsor needs to make a certain amount of money to actually be your sponsor. This is an official document written in Arabic that is signed and stamped

- Passport

- Color picture (headshot)

- Most recent utility bill (DEWA bill)

- Finally - lots and lots of money



With a list like this, what could possibly go wrong? All of these documents are then taken to a Typing Center. This is basically a place where people, who speak in accents I cant understand, sit behind a counter with a computer and tell you what you are missing or what is wrong with your documents meaning you cannot get your visa. Of course, everything has a price and with a little money, it can be resolved. Our marriage certificate needed another stamp (again, everything here needs a stamp) so they offered to take care of this…for a price…and it was totally worth it. Our first trip to the typing center involved turning over all the documents we had. We had just moved into our apartment so we did not have a utility bill. That was resolved with a copy of the email saying the deposit was made for the utility service. The one missing piece was a salary certificate. Not only a copy of the signed employment contract, but an “official” stamped document stating the salary. In order to be a sponsor, you have to make a certain amount of money and the government requires documented proof. We were actually able to obtain that within a day. The document was emailed to the Typing Center and we went back the next day for trip #2. After this trip all the documents are uploaded to a government website. You wait to receive a text saying that all the documents have been received and are in order. After that, it is time for trip #3 to the Typing Center. This was to request a change in status from tourist to resident…and more money-changed hands. Now we once again we wait to receive a text saying the status has been changed…AND another trip (#4) to the Typing Center. The status has been changed and now it is the adventure of the medical exam. That is right. You need to have a blood test checking for HIV and an X-ray to determine if you have tuberculosis. If any of these come back positive, you are ask to leave the country immediately. Finally is the fingerprinting that needs to be done along with a picture for your ID.



We scheduled the medical for the next day. We decided to “cheap out” on paying the VIP rate (AED 750), which would have made life easy, plus it would have been a trip to two different places (one for medical and another for fingerprinting). The cheaper way was only AED 320 and had both services within walking distance. We were told to arrive early upon opening (730am) which we did. Jennifer told me I should dress nicely as sometimes your appearance could get you special treatment. The line was already out the door. Most were men and I could not find what appeared to be another American in site. Jennifer wanted me to have the pure UAE experience so we started out waiting in line. Passing the express office, I was waved in. The woman at the counter asked if I wanted the “express” treatment for AED 210. I told her we would wait. Rejoining the line we were finally ushered into the building were we were now standing in two parallel lines waiting again. I could see the line when around the corner where people were waiting still. This was only a line for men. The women went in quickly as there were not as many. While waiting in line, we were asked by a professional gentleman wearing a sports coat and slacks if we wanted to express service. Jennifer asked how long this line would take and he said 1/1/2 to 2 hours. At first we just thought this was a “line” they used to get people to pay extra so we continued to wait…and wait…and wait. Finally Jennifer said “let’s do it!”. Right away we were usher through the door and asked to wait while we handed over my documents. Apparently this was the place where everything was checked for accuracy. After a couple of minutes we followed our new friend onto the elevator and went up one floor. At the first counter we were asked to pay our AED 210. After paying, we were taken to the next counter where many people were waiting for their blood test. We were given a number and then bypassed everyone waiting and went right to the next room for the blood draw. This took about 2-3 minutes. Upon coming out, I followed our new friend to the x-ray counter. Again, there were many people waiting. We went right to the front by the door leading to the changing room. I was sent in right away to one of the 4 changing rooms where you removed your shirt. This area was totally smelly…apparently these people don’t like to use deodorant. I was immediately called next and stood in from of a board where my passport was checked and an x-ray we taken. We were done the medical portion and our express service had concluded…the best AED210 ever spent. It was now onto fingerprinting.



Fingerprinting did not have an “express” service available. At first I thought it would take a lot of time. There seemed to be a lot of people waiting to be fingerprinted. There were about 5 people doing the fingerprinting and it was all digitalized. We found someone to help us. Without a smile on his face, he looked closely at all the paperwork he was handed and gave us a number. Looking at the board listing the number being served, it didn’t seem we would have to wait long. After about 10 minutes my number was called. The gentleman doing the fingerprinting did not seem to speak English. He took each hand and finger and placed it accordingly on a computer pad. He even did printing of my palm. Once completed, he gestured me back which meant it was time for a picture. I smiled pretty and had my picture taken. I was done! Everything was completed for the medical and all the copies we had were stamped. It was now time to wait for the results and see what is next.



After about 1 week, we received an email with the results. “FIT” is what the document said…and of course it was stamped. We printed out copies and scheduled our next trip to the typing center. At the typing center (trip #5) we were told I need proof of health insurance before proceeding. The funny thing was the hospital said I can’t get health insurance until I have my visa….hmmmm. The solution…the application for health insurance…and of course it needs to be stamped. We turned in these documents on a Thursday and were told to come back on Saturday evening, as everything would be completed. Upon returning (trip #6) we had to wait for about 20 minutes as we got there during evening prayer. Once our “handler” returned, he told us the documents hadn’t been delivered yet (for some reason unbeknownst to us, they had to be sent out) and it would be another 15 minutes. We asked if that was “actual” 15 minutes or “Dubai” 15 minutes at which he said, “OK, maybe 30 minutes”. Then his co-worker said something to him in Hindi and he said “45 minutes”. We decided to go back the next day. Which is what I did (trip #7). The documents were finally picked up as the final step at the typing center. I shook the gentleman’s hand as I hopefully walked out for the final time.



Now the FINAL step. Getting the stamp in the passport. Jen decided to play like she was confused about what to do next when in fact we knew we have to go to the immigration center. She asked the PRO at the hospital about it and he said he would take care of it for us. Excellent!



One day later, seven (7) trips to the typing center, and nearly a month…Tada!! Now I need to get my Emirates ID – UGH!

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Comments

[Eric Beller]

Enjoyed the read
Larry, thanks for the blog entry. I look forward to reading your future stories and experiences