Dubai’s General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs says it cut average completion time for 18 government services from 51 minutes to 2 minutes through the Services 360 initiative. The authority also reported fewer steps, requirements and in-person visits.
Lieutenant General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, the agency’s director general, presented the results on October 7, 2026. He spoke during a panel at the 2026 Government Best Practices Forum.
Al Marri described a continuing redesign of residency-related procedures. The work aimed to make transactions faster and easier for customers.
The figures came as Dubai marked three years of the citywide policy. The forum was held at Jumeirah Emirates Towers.
Service times and steps fell across the redesigned transactions
The agency reported improvements in seven measures, including service steps, waiting time and customer satisfaction. Each figure compares performance before and after the redesign.
| Measure | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Average service steps | 49 | 15 |
| Average waiting time | 11 minutes | 1 minute |
| Service delivery time | 69 minutes | 4 minutes |
| Requirements | 8 | 1 |
| Service-completion time | 51 minutes | 2 minutes |
| Required visits | 9 | 1 |
| Customer satisfaction | 92% | 99% |
The average number of steps dropped by 68.7%. Waiting time fell by 10 minutes, while reported delivery time declined by 65 minutes. The authority reported one requirement and one visit after the changes, alongside a seven-percentage-point rise in satisfaction.
Completion time and service delivery time are separate measures in the authority’s comparison. The first fell by 49 minutes. The second dropped from 69 minutes to 4.
The rollout spread across three years, not one launch
The agency introduced the changes in stages. Seven services were improved in 2023, followed by nine in 2024 and two in 2025.
Al Marri called the sequence part of an ongoing effort, rather than a single reform. He said the authority redesigned procedures and simplified processes to turn residency transactions into faster, more efficient experiences.
The work also included training 111 employees from federal government entities. A further 2,618 employees took internal courses.
The authority linked the programme to environmental savings as well. It reported preserving more than 10,552 trees and reducing carbon emissions by 253,233 kilograms.
The forum placed the residency changes inside a citywide programme
The General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Dubai organized the forum under the theme “Services 360: From Vision to Impact.” Abdullah Mohammed Al Basti, the council’s secretary-general, delivered the opening remarks.
Al Basti said the wider programme developed 1,474 government services and produced approximately AED 6 billion in savings during its first three years. He described a shift away from measuring government work only by completed transactions.
Instead, he said, the assessment should include the effect on customers’ lives and whether services meet their needs and expectations. The wider approach emphasizes simplifying procedures, reducing the time and effort required, and making transactions easier to complete.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing director and chief executive officer of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, was among the government leaders listed as participants. The forum also looked ahead to more connected, proactive and customer-centred services, with stronger links between government entities and broader use of customer feedback.
Al Marri credited customer feedback and faster decisions
Al Marri said customers helped identify service problems and suggest solutions. He also pointed to cooperation across entities, quicker decisions and the use of effective government practices.
“The participation of customers in identifying challenges and proposing solutions was one of the most important steps that contributed to the development of services, in addition to quick decision-making and drawing on best government practices and applying them on the ground.”
He offered a short test of whether an initiative works: “A good project always convinces.”
A September survey asked residents and visitors to assess visa services
The authority announced a survey on September 29, 2026, seeking views on visa, residence-permit and entry-permit services. It asked residents and visitors to rate how easy those services were, identify procedural changes and describe their overall experience.
The questionnaire was available in Arabic and English and was designed to take approximately one minute. The outreach gives customers another route to flag problems as the agency continues to review its services.
Digital channels cover permits, status checks and establishment support
The authority’s digital portfolio includes entry permits, residence permits, visa-status checks, permit cancellations, Golden Residence services and establishment support. Its service portal also lists residence-permit issuance and cancellation for private-sector, government and semi-government applicants.
Customers can use the authority’s website or smart application. Sign-in is available through UAE Pass or a username.
The reported changes concern administrative service delivery, not a new residency category or a change to eligibility rules. They describe shorter processing journeys for the services included in the programme, rather than a change to who qualifies for Dubai residency.
