UAE Visa on Arrival for Indians: Eligibility, Fees and How to Apply

The short answer: Most Indian nationals need a visa before they fly to the UAE. There is one well-known exception. GDRFA Dubai's own service page, read on 9 October 2026, grants a 14-day visa on arrival to Indian citizens with an ordinary passport who hold a valid US green card (the same page's conditions also accept a US visa), or a valid UK or EU residence visa, each with at least six months left to run. Separately, Emirates' and flydubai's own visa pages tell Indian passengers that a residence permit from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea or Singapore also qualifies, following a change the UAE's immigration authority announced in February 2025. GDRFA Dubai's own portal does not yet list those six countries, so which channel you use matters. The visa on arrival costs AED 253 through GDRFA Dubai and runs 14 days, extendable once for a further 14 days. If you hold none of these documents, the usual route is a standard tourist e-visa arranged in advance, by a UAE resident relative, by a licensed travel agency such as Holidayys, or by your airline.

A good number of Indian travellers already hold a document that qualifies them for the faster route without realising it: a US tourist visa used once years ago, a UK work permit from a previous posting, or a Schengen visa from a European holiday. Others assume the opposite, that any foreign visa helps, and find at check-in that it does not. Getting this right before you book matters, because an airline will check your documents at the gate, not just UAE immigration on landing.

UAE visa on arrival for Indians at a glance

Question	Answer (October 2026)
Does every Indian passport holder get a visa on arrival	No. Only those holding one of the documents below. Everyone else applies for a visa before flying
Documents that qualify, per GDRFA Dubai's own page	A US green card (the page's conditions also allow a US visa), or a UK or EU residence visa, each valid at least 6 months
Documents airlines also accept (Emirates, flydubai)	The above, plus a residence permit from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea or Singapore, valid at least 6 months
Passport validity needed	At least 6 months from the date of entry
Stay on the visa on arrival	14 days, GDRFA Dubai's page states
Extension	Once, for a further 14 days: 28 days in total
Fee for the visa on arrival (GDRFA Dubai)	AED 253
Fee for the extension (GDRFA Dubai)	Two GDRFA pages disagree: AED 250 plus 5% VAT and AED 20 on one, AED 600 plus 5% VAT (and AED 520 more inside the UAE) on the other. Confirm before applying
If you don't hold a qualifying document	A standard tourist e-visa, sponsored by a UAE resident relative, a licensed travel agency or your airline: 14, 30, 60 or 90 days

Who gets a UAE visa on arrival as an Indian national

The service is called, on GDRFA Dubai's own site, "Visa on arrival for citizens of the Republic of India residing in (America, Britain, European Union countries)". Its own description: the service lets an Indian citizen "who hold[s] an ordinary passport and ha[s] a permanent resident card (green card) issued by the United States of America or a residence visa in the United Kingdom or European Union countries" enter as a visitor for 14 days, extendable once for a similar period.

Read the page's own conditions closely, because they are not perfectly consistent with each other. The main description and the first requirement name a green card for the US. A further condition on the same page broadens this to "a visa or green card issued by the competent authorities in the United States of America, with a validity period of no less than 6 months", so a US visa, not only a green card, appears to qualify. For the UK and the EU, the page is consistent throughout: it asks specifically for a residence visa, not any tourist or visit visa. The passport itself must also be valid for at least six months, and the traveller must have no restriction preventing entry to the UAE.

Required documents, per the same page: a valid passport, the qualifying US green card or UK/EU residence visa, and a personal photo on a white background. GDRFA Dubai's page lists an expected completion time of 48 hours and says the service is available 24/7 through smart.gdrfad.gov.ae.

The 2025 addition: six more countries, but not yet on every official page

The UAE's Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security announced, in a statement carried by the state news agency WAM on 14 February 2025, that Indian citizens holding ordinary passports and a valid visa, residence permit or green card from Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand or Canada would also be granted a visa on arrival, starting 13 February 2025, in addition to the existing US, UK and EU route. The same report said a six-month passport validity and the prescribed fees still apply.

Emirates' and flydubai's own visa information pages, both read on 9 October 2026, confirm this for Indian passengers today. Both name the same six countries and both ask specifically for a residence permit from them, valid at least six months, which is narrower than "any visa". Emirates adds that a student visa does not count for Singapore, and that a Singapore employment pass needs clear issue and expiry dates.

GDRFA Dubai's own service page for Indian citizens, the one quoted above, does not mention these six countries at all, even though we read it on the same day. If you plan to apply directly through GDRFA Dubai rather than through an airline, confirm with GDRFA or ICP whether your document is currently accepted there before you rely on it. If you are booking with Emirates or flydubai, their own pages already apply the wider list.

Stay, extension and fees

On GDRFA Dubai's own portal, the visa on arrival runs 14 days and can be extended once for a further 14 days, 28 days in total. The fee listed on the service page is AED 253. For the extension, GDRFA Dubai's site carries two service pages that describe the same 14-day extension for this group and price it differently. "Extending visas for Indians residing in (US, UK, EU)" lists a AED 250 fee (labelled "work visa fee" on the page) plus 5% VAT, a AED 10 Knowledge Dirham and a AED 10 Innovation Dirham, about AED 282.50 in all. "Extending a visitor visa (upon arrival)" lists AED 600 plus 5% VAT, and a further AED 500 plus the same two AED 10 charges if the visitor is inside the UAE when the request is filed. We read both on 9 October 2026. Ask GDRFA which applies, or check the amount the portal shows before you pay. Both pages state 48 hours to process.

Emirates' own visa page lists a separate, Emirates-administered version of this same eligibility: a single-entry permit valid 14 days for USD 63, or a single-entry permit valid 60 days for USD 141.36, both inclusive of VAT on Emirates' table. Emirates' page does not state whether the 60-day version can be extended; GDRFA Dubai's own portal only offers the 14-day version, extendable once as above. flydubai's visa page lists the same eligibility criteria as Emirates but does not publish its own fee for this route: ask a flydubai Travel Shop for the current amount.

How to apply

• Flying into Dubai: apply through GDRFA Dubai at smart.gdrfad.gov.ae. Register, choose the service, fill in your details, pay the fee, and the visa is sent to your email, within about 48 hours on GDRFA's own page. Apply early enough that it arrives before you fly.
• Flying into another emirate (Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah or Fujairah): ICP runs an equivalent service, named on its smart services portal as the entry permit for holders of special visas. We could not independently confirm the current fee for this specific route on icp.gov.ae, so check the fee on the service card at smartservices.icp.gov.ae before applying.
• Through your airline: if you hold a confirmed Emirates booking, Emirates' own visa page lets you apply through Manage your booking at emirates.com, at the fees above. flydubai lists the same eligibility on its own visa page; apply through a flydubai Travel Shop.

If you don't have a qualifying document: the standard visa

Most Indian travellers fall into this group, since the routes above depend on already holding a specific foreign document. There are three ways to get a standard UAE visit visa instead.

• A UAE resident relative or friend sponsors you, through ICP if they live outside Dubai or through GDRFA Dubai if they live in Dubai. This route rests on the sponsor's own residence visa, Emirates ID and income. See our guide to UAE visas for parents for the full process, documents and official fees, and the family visit section of our visa services for the two routes side by side.
• A licensed travel agency books it for you. This is the visa Holidayys arranges: it does not depend on a UAE resident's salary or residence visa. See our UAE visa services for the 14, 30, 60 and 90-day options, including 14 days, 30 days, 60 days, 90 days and the 90-day multiple entry version.
• Your airline books it for you, when you have a confirmed ticket. Emirates' own fee table, read on its visa page: a 48-hour transit visa at USD 10, a 96-hour transit visa at USD 49, a 30-day tourist visa at USD 90 single entry or USD 136 multiple entry, and a 60-day tourist visa at USD 177 single entry or USD 231 multiple entry, each extendable for a further USD 230. flydubai's visa page lists the same range of tourist visa types, extendable twice, each extension adding 30 days, without publishing its own fee.

What airlines check before you board

Immigration is not the only check. The airline checks your documents at the gate, and will not board you without them, regardless of which visa route you used.

flydubai's own visa page states plainly: "Return ticket must be booked when travelling on a tourist or visit visa." Separately, flydubai requires its own "Ok to Board" approval for citizens of India flying from Delhi, but only in specific cases: a tourist or visit visa needs it only if the passport is an ECR (emigration check required) passport; an employment or residence visa needs it regardless of ECR status; a stamped visa or a valid Emirates ID does not need it at all. Getting the approval takes a minimum of 48 hours through a flydubai Travel Shop in India or the UAE, needs your original visa, a passport copy and your booking confirmation, and must be done before online check-in opens.

Emirates' own visa page lists, among the documents its visa application needs, a confirmed hotel reservation for your stay or a valid tenancy contract in a hosting family member's name, and a copy of your return Emirates ticket (or a codeshare starting with the code "EK"), with the travel dates matching your hotel booking. The same principle holds whichever airline you fly: carry proof of where you are staying and a return or onward ticket, in addition to your visa.

Where this goes wrong

• Assuming any US, UK or EU document qualifies. GDRFA Dubai's own page asks for a green card or, under its further conditions, a visa for the US, and specifically a residence visa, not any tourist visa, for the UK and EU. Emirates' and flydubai's own pages read the UK and EU criteria more broadly, including any valid UK visa (digital e-visas included) or any visa issued by an EU member state. The exact wording that applies to you depends on which channel issues the visa, so check it against your own document rather than assuming.
• Assuming the six added countries work everywhere. Confirmed on Emirates' and flydubai's own pages; not yet listed on GDRFA Dubai's own portal as of 9 October 2026.
• Booking the return leg with a different airline than the one you are flying out on, when that airline's own rule requires the return to be with them.
• Letting the passport or the qualifying document run under six months' validity by your travel date, which both GDRFA Dubai and the airlines check separately.
• Overstaying beyond the 14 or 28 days without extending or leaving. The general UAE overstay fine is AED 50 a day, per ICP's own fine page.

Frequently asked questions

Can Indian citizens get a UAE visa on arrival?

Only if they hold a qualifying document: a US green card or visa, a UK or EU residence visa, or, per Emirates' and flydubai's own pages, a residence permit from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea or Singapore. Everyone else applies for a standard visa before flying.

Does holding a US visa alone get an Indian national a UAE visa on arrival?

GDRFA Dubai's main service description names a green card, but a further condition on the same page allows a US visa too, as long as it is valid for at least six months. Confirm which applies to your own document before you travel.

Can Indians with an Australian, Canadian, Japanese, New Zealand, South Korean or Singapore document get a UAE visa on arrival?

Emirates and flydubai both say yes, for a residence permit from those six countries, valid at least six months, following a UAE announcement in February 2025. GDRFA Dubai's own Dubai service page does not list these six countries, so confirm with GDRFA or ICP if you are applying directly rather than through an airline.

How long does the UAE visa on arrival for Indians last, and can it be extended?

GDRFA Dubai's portal issues it for 14 days and allows one extension of a further 14 days, 28 days in total. Emirates separately offers a 60-day version of the same eligibility through its own booking tool; its page does not say whether that one can be extended.

How much does the UAE visa on arrival cost for Indian nationals?

AED 253 through GDRFA Dubai's own portal. GDRFA's two pages for the extension disagree, at about AED 282.50 on one and AED 630 or more on the other, so confirm the amount before you pay. Through Emirates, the fee is USD 63 for 14 days or USD 141.36 for 60 days. flydubai lists the same eligibility without publishing its own fee.

What if I don't have any of these documents: can I still get a UAE visa?

Yes. Apply for a standard tourist visa in advance, sponsored by a UAE resident relative, by a licensed travel agency such as Holidayys, or by your airline when you book with them.

Planning your visit

Whichever route applies to you, book the visa and the trip together, since both ask for the same return date and accommodation details. See our UAE visa services for the visa types we can arrange, or talk to us about which route suits your document and your travel dates. We help prepare the documents and book the visa, flights, hotels and packages, but we cannot guarantee or speed up a government decision on any visa.

Related guides

• UAE visa guide: types, rules and status check
• UAE visit visa extension: fees, rules, how to apply
• UAE visa for parents: how to sponsor a visit
• UAE transit visa: 48 and 96 hour permits

Last checked 9 October 2026 against GDRFA Dubai's service pages for the visa on arrival and its extension for Indian citizens residing in the US, UK or EU, Emirates' and flydubai's UAE visa information pages, and the UAE's Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security statement reported by WAM on 14 February 2025. This guide is general information, not immigration advice. Confirm the current requirements with GDRFA, ICP or your airline before you travel.