- The UAE expanded visa-on-arrival access for Indian passport holders with residence permits from six additional countries.
- Eligible travelers can choose between a 14-day or 60-day visa directly at any UAE port of entry.
- Indian citizens must possess a valid third-country document and a passport valid for at least six months.
(UAE) – UAE expanded its visa on arrival rules for Indian passport holders on February 13, 2025, adding Indian nationals with valid residence permits from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, and Singapore to the list of travelers who can obtain entry at the border.
The move widened a pre-existing Recognised-Visa framework that already covered Indian nationals holding a valid visa, residence permit, or Green Card from the United States, the European Union, or the United Kingdom.
Eligible travelers can obtain either a 14-day visa on arrival for Dh 100 or a 60-day visa on arrival for Dh 250. The UAE said in November 2025 that the visa on arrival can be issued without prior online application at any UAE port of entry, provided the traveler meets the recognised-visa condition.
The expansion was announced by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New Delhi on February 19, 2025. The ministry said the policy had already taken effect on February 13, 2025.
Indian citizens seeking access under the rule must carry a valid ordinary passport. That passport must remain valid for at least six months on arrival.
They also must hold one qualifying document from a third country. The accepted documents are a valid U.S. visa or U.S. Green Card, a valid U.K. residence permit or visa, a valid EU residence permit or visa, or a valid residence permit from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, or Singapore.
At the border, the system removes the need for an advance online filing in cases that meet the requirement. A traveler who arrives with an Indian passport and a qualifying visa or residence document can be processed for visa on arrival at a UAE port of entry.
That practical change matters because the pool of eligible Indian passport holders is now broader than it was before February 13, 2025. Before the expansion, the route already existed for those tied to the United States, the European Union, or the United Kingdom; after the change, six more residence-permit jurisdictions were added.
The result is a wider entry channel for Indian nationals who already hold long-term status outside India. Travelers with residence permits from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, and Singapore now fall within the same visa on arrival structure used for Indian nationals with qualifying status linked to the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom.
The UAE now recognizes 12 third-country visa or residence categories as a basis for visa-on-arrival access for Indian travelers. The list includes the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, and Singapore.
In practice, the rule creates two distinct checks at arrival. Border officials must confirm the Indian traveler holds an ordinary passport that is valid for at least six months, and they must confirm the traveler also holds one of the qualifying visas, residence permits, or, in the U.S. case, a Green Card.
The fee structure is also straightforward. A short stay visa on arrival costs Dh 100 for 14 days, while the longer option costs Dh 250 for 60 days.
November 2025 brought an additional operational clarification. The UAE said eligible travelers do not need a prior online application to receive the visa on arrival, a point that places the decision and issuance process at the port of entry rather than before departure.
That clarification is likely to shape travel planning for Indian passport holders who live in, or maintain immigration status with, the recognized countries. A valid third-country visa or residence permit now serves as the basis for access at the UAE border, instead of requiring a separate online step before travel.
The policy also tightens the importance of document validity. A traveler may hold residence status in one of the recognized countries, but entry under the visa on arrival route still depends on carrying the right category of document and arriving with a passport that remains valid for at least six months.
Recognition under the Recognised-Visa system now extends across a broader mix of North American, European, Asia-Pacific, and U.K.-linked immigration statuses. That leaves Indian passport holders with qualifying documents from those jurisdictions able to use the same UAE border-entry mechanism, with the applicable choice of 14 days for Dh 100 or 60 days for Dh 250, issued at a port of entry without prior online application.
