No more visa page on your passport, you can use these options instead
UAE residents will soon have no sticker on their passport to prove their residency status. After an announcement was made last month that visa stickers on passports will be replaced by Emirates IDs, you may be wondering how you can provide proof of your residency.
While earlier, residents were required to submit copies of the ‘visa page’ on their passport as a standard requirement for most official paperwork in the UAE, how do you provide details of your residency status once the sticker is no longer being issued? Here are the options the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security (ICP), provides UAE residents:
1. Emirates ID:
From April 11, ICP has started replacing the residency visa sticker with Emirates IDs. In the announcement made, ICP confirmed that Emirates IDs would be used as primary proof of an expatriate’s residency. Last year, ICP announced the launch of a new generation of Emirates IDs, with a service life span of 10 years. The advanced version not only includes all the information that was previously contained on your residency visa sticker, it also holds additional information like your personal and professional data, issuing authority and population group and ‘non-visible data’, which is secured through an enhanced protection system and can be read through the ICP’s ‘e-link’ system.
2. Digital visa sticker
The familiar pink-coloured sticker is something you can still access, but digitally, through the official UAE ICP app. To access the digital visa sticker, follow these steps:
1. Download the ‘UAEICP’ app, which is available on Apple and Android devices.
2. Log in using your UAE Pass account, or register a new account with ICP.
3. Once you have registered, the app will provide the details of your residency.
4. If you are sponsoring your family member or a domestic worker, the dependents on your sponsorship will also have their accounts linked to your account, and you will be able to access their details.
5. At the bottom of the screen, you will see an icon which looks like a document wallet. Tap on the icon and you will be able to access the digital copy of the Emirates ID as well as the residency sticker.
6. Tap on your residency visa sticker and tap on download.
7. The app will then allow you to download the visa sticker or share it with someone through Whatsapp, Email or other platforms.
3. Printed residency document
You can also get your residency details printed through ICP’s website. This service provides a residency report with the authority’s stamp.
To get the residency report, follow these steps:
1. Log in to your account on icp.gov.ae
2. Click on ‘Department’ and select the immigration department that has issued your visa (Dubai GDRFA, Sharjah, etc.)
3. In the ‘Module’ section, select ‘Other services’.
4. In the service section, select ‘reports’.
5. In the sub service section, select ‘Residence details’.
6. Select ‘print’ under service action.
7. You will then need to select the individual whose residency report you require. If you have dependents under your sponsorship, they will also be listed as options you can choose. If not, select your residence file.
You can select the residence file by clicking on the print icon on the right of the file.
8. Confirm the individual’s details as listed on the ICP system.
9. Make the payment.
10. Once you make the payment, you will receive the residency report from ICP.