United Arab Emirates visa and entry requirements

The UAE government portal says passports must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of entry into the UAE.

• Yellow fever (International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (ICVP)) — WHO lists the United Arab Emirates as requiring proof of vaccination against yellow fever for travellers aged 9 months or over arriving from countries determined by WHO to be at risk for yellow fever transmission, including travellers having transited more than 12 hours through the airport of such a country.

ICP lists a valid health insurance policy within the UAE among the terms and conditions for issuing a visa, and GDRFA Dubai lists medical insurance valid in UAE among the terms for its single-entry tourist visa. No official source we could read requires insurance of visitors who receive a visa on arrival.

Dubai's tourism department lists a confirmed airline booking among the documents for a tourist visa, and the federal ICP lists a return travel ticket among its visa conditions. The UAE Embassy in Washington tells US citizens, who get a visa on arrival, that they must have a round-trip airline ticket or a confirmed ticket to another destination.

No official source we could read sets a proof-of-funds requirement for visitors who receive a visa on arrival or a standard tourist visa. The UAE government portal says that to obtain the multiple entry 5-year tourist visa, the applicant must have a bank balance of USD 4,000 or its equivalent in foreign currencies during the last six months.

Fine: 50 AED per day

The ICP says a fine of AED 50 is imposed for each day of overstay after the entry permit has expired or been cancelled, starting the day after the grace period for that type of entry permit ends. No official page we read states how long that grace period is for a visit or tourist entry permit.

• Tourism Dirham Fee (Dubai) — AED 7 to AED 20 per occupied room per night, by hotel classification (Dubai only). Paid at the accommodation.

  Under Dubai Executive Council resolutions, hotel guests in Dubai are charged the Tourism Dirham Fee for each night a room is occupied, for up to 30 consecutive nights, at a rate set by the establishment's classification.

• Dubai airports facilities fee — 35 AED per person per trip. Included in the air ticket.

  Under Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. 8 of 2016, every passenger departing the UAE from a Dubai airport, including transit passengers, pays AED 35 for using the airport's facilities, collected by airlines when issuing tickets.

  Exemptions: Children under two, crew on duty, and transit passengers whose arrival and departure flight number is the same.

  Verified Oct 12, 2026 · Source: dlp.dubai.gov.ae (opens in a new tab) · Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. (8) of 2016, Articles 1
• Tourism and municipality fees on hotel invoices (Abu Dhabi) — Tourism fee 4% and municipality fee 4% of the hotel invoice (Abu Dhabi only). Paid at the accommodation.

  Under Circular No. 9/2023 of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, from 1 September 2023 hotel establishments charge a tourism fee of 4% of the invoice issued to the customer, reduced from 6%, and the municipality fee continues at 4% of the invoice; the municipality fee of AED 15 per room per night was cancelled.

  Verified Oct 12, 2026 · Source: dct.gov.ae (opens in a new tab) · Abu Dhabi Executive Council Resolution No. (149) of 2023 regarding amendment of governm…
• Tourism fee on holiday homes (Abu Dhabi) — 6% of the total invoice (Abu Dhabi holiday homes). Paid at the accommodation.

  Under Circular No. 3/2025 of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi, a tourism fee of 6% of the total invoice collected from the customer applies to all units operated by holiday home owners and operators.

  Verified Oct 12, 2026 · Source: dct.gov.ae (opens in a new tab) · DCT Circular No. 3/2025 (citing Law No. 13 of 2006

Dubai Customs says all passengers arriving in the country are to declare cash amounts exceeding AED 60,000, or the equivalent in other currencies and traveller’s cheques, by filling in the declaration form. Passengers under 18 should not carry amounts exceeding that limit, and amounts they carry are added to the allowed limit of their legal guardian if accompanying them.

• Dubai Customs says passengers may bring into Dubai without paying customs duty gifts worth up to AED 3,000; cigarettes not exceeding 400, cigars 50 and 500 grams of tobacco; and alcoholic beverages and beers not exceeding 4 litres, or 2 cartons of beer of 24 cans each (not exceeding 355 ml per can). It says quantities above these are dutiable, and that passengers must be above 18 years of age to carry allowable cigarettes or alcoholic beverages.
• The Government of Canada says certain prescription and over-the-counter medications legally available in Canada, such as codeine and psychiatric medications, are controlled substances in the UAE and illegal to bring in, even in small quantities, without prior permission from the UAE Ministry of Health. The UK government says some products containing cannabidiol (CBD) are illegal in the UAE.
• The UK government says there is zero tolerance for drugs-related offences, that you can be arrested for carrying drugs, even residual amounts, and that the Emirati authorities count the presence of drugs in the blood stream as possession.