UAE Golden Visa (Golden Residence): categories, thresholds and how it works

In plain terms, the Golden Visa is the UAE's way of giving people it wants to keep a long, secure stay. The UAE Government portal describes it as "a long-term residence visa which enables foreign talents to live, work or study in the UAE", with four benefits: a renewable residence of 5 or 10 years, no sponsor, the freedom to stay outside the UAE for longer than the six months that would normally cancel a residence visa, and the right to sponsor your family "including spouses and children". The ICP Golden Residency Guide says the same in slightly different words and adds "automatic renewal".

One point of vocabulary: ICP, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security, calls the visa the Golden Residency or Golden Residence; u.ae calls it the Golden visa. They are the same thing, issued under Federal Decree-Law No. 29 of 2021 on Entry and Residence of Foreigners and its Executive Regulations. The category detail on this site comes from the ICP guide and u.ae, not from the regulation text, which was not readable on the legislation portal when we checked.

This table follows the category order and wording of the ICP guide. The duration column is what the ICP guide and the u.ae table say on the review date, not what private websites say. The threshold column is the amount or credential the guide names; where the guide names only a letter and no number, the cell says so.

Most people who ask about the Golden Visa are not sure which category to apply under, and the categories are not interchangeable. The evidence differs, the issuing body of the key letter differs, and in some cases the duration differs. Use this table to narrow it down, then read the category page.

The UAE has one federal immigration law but two front doors. ICP handles visa and residence services for Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs – Dubai (GDRFA Dubai) handles Dubai files. Both issue Golden residencies; the forms, fee lines and appointment systems differ.

Four things, on the official wording: residence without a sponsor, renewable and described by ICP as automatic; exemption from the rule that voids a residence after 180 continuous days abroad; the right to sponsor a spouse and children; and a route to employment through a two-year Golden visa holder work permit that an employer obtains from MOHRE. The benefits page sets out each with its condition and lists the benefits people assume that are not on any official page.

If you are employed or self-employed in the UAE and do not meet a Golden threshold, the Green residence is usually the route to compare. It is also self-sponsored and also exempt from the 180-day absence rule. The table below uses the ICP Green Residence Guide and the ICP Golden Residency Guide, both updated 20 August 2026.

Start with the Golden Visa eligibility checker, which asks the same questions the category table above does and points you to the right page. Then read requirements and documents for the checklist by category, and the application process for the sequence inside the UAE and from abroad. If you would like a consultant to look at your evidence before you file, use the form below.