UAE investor and partner residence visa, property-owner residence and the retirement residence

Company owners and partners whose stake is below the Golden Visa thresholds, owners of a completed UAE property who want to live in it, and retirees with UAE property, savings or a pension. Each route is self-funded and each carries a condition that the official pages state precisely. If your investment is larger, the Golden Visa for investors and the property-investor Golden Visa run for five or ten years without a sponsor.

Free zone company owners get their residence through the free zone's own visa allocation; the official pages we read state no federal threshold for that route. See investor and partner visa through company formation.

The ICP card's condition: "The investor's contribution to the company must not be less than AED 1,000,000 in cash or its equivalent in foreign currencies, whether at the time of establishing the company or when contributing to an existing company." Where the capital is in kind, "the Ministry of Economy shall evaluate these shares." Documents are the passport, a photograph, the trade licence and the partnership or investment agreement. Families of investors carry a financial guarantee of AED 3,000 per member up to AED 15,000.

In Dubai the equivalent card is the Green visa for an investor or partner: the share "cannot be less than one million paid Dirhams", and the company must be one of the legal forms listed on the card (in its wording: public shareholding company, private joint stock company, limited liability company, "Simple recommendation company" and "Solidarity Company"). The Green residence runs five years, needs no sponsor and allows family sponsorship. A separate GDRFA Dubai rule applies to a partner sponsoring family on a smaller stake: "the partner's share must be at least 48 thousand Dirhams, as stated in the partnership agreement."

The ICP card lists four conditions: "The property must be fully constructed and does not include owners of vacant land." "The property ownership must be registered with the competent real estate registration authority." "The property must be fully owned by the applicant and suitable for residence." "The applicant must have a monthly income of at least AED 10,000 ... or prove financial solvency throughout the residence period in the UAE."

What the card does not state is the duration of the permit or a minimum property value. Private websites quote a two-year Dubai property visa at AED 750,000; that figure is not on any official page we read and we do not publish it as a rule. GDRFA Dubai lists a "Renewal of a residence permit for a property owner" service, which confirms the route exists in Dubai without stating its terms on the list page we read. Ask the authority for the duration and any value threshold before buying for residence purposes; for property that reaches AED 2 million, the property-investor Golden Visa has published conditions.

The retirement route is verified, but the two official pages disagree on two points. We quote both.

ICP: application AED 100; issuance AED 100 per year; smart service AED 100; status adjustment AED 500; investor family guarantee AED 3,000 per member up to AED 15,000. GDRFA Dubai Green investor entry permit: AED 200 plus VAT, AED 10 and AED 10, AED 500 inside the country. GDRFA Dubai retired permit: AED 200, AED 10 and AED 10, AED 500 inside the country, AED 20 delivery, and "the issuance fee increases by AED100 for each year whenever the residency is more than two years". Medical, Emirates ID and licensing costs are separate.

Tell us which of the three routes you are considering, the emirate, and the figures behind it: the paid-up share, the property and its registration, or your age, service and income. We will say which official condition applies, where the pages disagree, and whether a Golden Visa category is within reach instead. The Golden Visa eligibility checker is a quick first screen.