UK Visa from Dubai: The ETA, the Standard Visitor Visa and the Fees for UAE Residents

The short answer: Emiratis, and most other Gulf passport holders, no longer apply for a UK visa to visit. Since 22 February 2024 they need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) instead: £20, valid 2 years, applied for online or through the UK ETA app, with a decision usually by email within a day and at most 3 working days. Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan passports are not on the UK's ETA list, so UAE residents who hold them still apply for a Standard Visitor visa: £135 for up to 6 months, applied for online with biometrics given at a visa application centre in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. Gov.uk's current target is a decision within 3 weeks of that appointment. British passport holders need neither. Since 1 July 2026 the Home Office no longer puts a sticker in anyone's passport: a visitor visa is now a digital eVisa, and the ETA was always digital.

The UK is one of the most visited countries from the UAE, for family visits, holidays, study trips and business. Which of the two systems above applies to you depends only on your passport, not on your UAE residence or how long you have lived here. Applying for the wrong one, or travelling with neither, causes avoidable delay at check-in. Here is what gov.uk's own pages say, read in October 2026.

UK visa from Dubai at a glance

Question	Answer (October 2026)
Emirati, Bahraini, Kuwaiti, Omani, Saudi and Qatari passports	UK ETA required, not a visa
Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan passports	Standard Visitor visa required
British and Irish passports	Neither a visa nor an ETA
US, Australian, Canadian, EU and most other Western passports	UK ETA required, since January or April 2025
UK ETA fee and validity	£20; 2 years or until the passport expires; unlimited trips
Standard Visitor visa fee, 6 months	£135
Visa application centre in the UAE	Dubai and Abu Dhabi, run by VFS Global for the UK government
Standard decision time	3 weeks from your biometrics appointment
Priority or super priority service	Extra £500 (5 working days) or £1,000 (next working day), where offered
Sticker or eVisa	eVisa only; passport vignettes stopped on 1 July 2026

Do you need a UK ETA or a Standard Visitor visa?

The Immigration Rules' Appendix ETA National List decides this, and it runs on passport alone.

Emiratis, Bahrainis, Kuwaitis, Omanis and Saudis need an ETA for travel to the UK on or after 22 February 2024. Qataris moved onto the scheme slightly earlier, for travel on or after 15 November 2023. A longer list of other nationalities followed: Australia, Canada, the United States, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Israel, New Zealand, Mauritius, Seychelles and dozens of Caribbean and Pacific states, for travel on or after 8 January 2025, then every EU state and a handful of smaller European countries, for travel on or after 2 April 2025. If a family member travels on one of these passports as well as holding UAE residence, the ETA applies to them too.

Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan passports do not appear on the Appendix ETA National List. Holders of these passports, the UAE's largest expat communities, still need a Standard Visitor visa to enter the UK, whatever their UAE residence status.

British and Irish passport holders need neither a visa nor an ETA, under gov.uk's ETA guidance.

If your passport is not named above, gov.uk's "Check if you need a UK visa" tool is the place to confirm which of the two systems applies to you.

The UK ETA: fee, validity and how to apply

For everyone on the Appendix list, the ETA replaces the visa for visits of up to 6 months. Gov.uk's ETA pages give:

• Fee: £20, paid online or in the UK ETA app, and not refunded once you apply
• Validity: 2 years, or until the linked passport expires, whichever is sooner
• Trips: as many as you like within that window, for any Standard Visitor purpose
• Decision: usually by email within a day, and up to 3 working days

Apply through the UK ETA app, or online if you cannot use the app. You need the passport you will travel on, an email address, a card, Apple Pay or Google Pay for the fee, and a photo of the passport and of the applicant's face, taken on the day you apply. Every traveller needs their own ETA, including children, and you must hold the confirmation email before you fly. Gov.uk warns that other websites may charge more for the same service: apply only through the official app or gov.uk.

An ETA lets you travel; it does not guarantee entry. Border Force decides at the airport, and you still need to meet the Standard Visitor eligibility rules below, whether you hold a visa or an ETA.

What the Standard Visitor visa covers

For passports not on the ETA list, the Standard Visitor visa covers tourism, visiting family or friends, most short business trips (meetings, negotiations, conferences), transit through the UK to another country, some paid engagements for recognised experts, short recreational or academic courses, and medical visits. It does not cover paid or unpaid work for a UK employer or self-employment, beyond the specific permitted paid engagements, and it does not let you claim public funds or make the UK your home through frequent visits.

The test a caseworker applies is the Immigration Rules' genuine visitor requirement, Appendix V rule V4.2. You must show that you intend to leave the UK at the end of your visit, that you will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, that your trip is for a permitted purpose, and that you have enough money to cover the visit, held in an account that meets the rules' own finance requirements. If someone else is paying, rule V4.3 says they must have a genuine relationship with you and must not themselves be breaking immigration law.

How to apply for a Standard Visitor visa from the UAE

1. Check you need a visa, not an ETA, on gov.uk's checker, and that your planned trip is a permitted activity.
2. Apply online, from up to 3 months before you travel. The form asks for your travel dates, where you will stay, your estimated trip cost, your current address and how long you have lived there, your parents' names and dates of birth if you know them, and your annual income if you have one, plus any criminal, civil or immigration offences. Depending on your circumstances you may also give a 10-year travel history, your employer's details, your partner's details, or who is paying for the trip. A stay of more than 6 months needs a TB test certificate, and any document not in English or Welsh needs a certified translation.
3. Book a biometrics appointment at a visa application centre as part of the online application. Gov.uk's own supporting documents guide, last updated 8 October 2026, sets out what else to send with your case.
4. Attend the appointment with your passport and documents. You give fingerprints and a photo, and hand over the paperwork that supports your application.
5. Get your passport back the same day. The centre may keep other documents while your application is processed.
6. Wait for the decision, usually within 3 weeks of the appointment, and watch for the Home Office's email.

The visa application centre in the UAE

Gov.uk names VFS Global as "our commercial partner... who operates our centres around the world." In the UAE this means centres in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. You choose a centre when you apply and cannot change it afterwards, so check gov.uk's "Find a visa application centre" page for current locations and booking before you submit.

Fees

Visa	Fee	Maximum stay
Standard Visitor visa	£135	6 months
Visitor in Transit visa	£74.50	Transit only
Standard Visitor for medical reasons	£234	11 months
Standard Visitor for academics	£234	12 months
Long-term Standard Visitor visa, 2 years	£506	6 months per visit
Long-term Standard Visitor visa, 5 years	£903	6 months per visit
Long-term Standard Visitor visa, 10 years	£1,128	6 months per visit

None of these fees are refunded if you are granted a shorter visa than you asked for, or if the application is refused.

Processing time and getting a faster decision

Gov.uk's visa decision waiting times page, last updated 9 September 2026, gives 3 weeks for a Standard Visitor visa applied for outside the UK, the same figure for every country: it does not publish a separate UAE waiting time. Processing times are based on the UK working week and UK public holidays, not holidays where you apply.

Gov.uk's priority and super priority services add £500 (a decision within 5 working days) or £1,000 (by the end of the next working day) to a visa, settlement or citizenship application. Ask when you book your appointment in Dubai or Abu Dhabi whether either service is offered for your application.

eVisas, not stickers

Since 1 July 2026 the Home Office has stopped issuing the passport sticker, known as a vignette, for any visa, Standard Visitor included. Gov.uk's eVisa guidance says eVisas "have replaced physical immigration documents": every new approval is a digital record linked to a UKVI account rather than a page in your passport. A sticker already in a passport stays valid until it expires. Before you travel, check that your UKVI account shows the correct passport and status, and make sure those details match what you give your airline when you check in. If a carrier cannot check your eVisa electronically, gov.uk's advice is to sign in and generate a share code, valid for 90 days, and show that instead. The ETA has always worked this way: it has never been a sticker.

Transit through the UK

Passing through the UK to another country is already a permitted Standard Visitor activity, so most transiting travellers do not need a separate transit visa. The dividing line is whether you pass through UK border control. Gov.uk's ETA guidance is specific: "You need an ETA if you're passing through border control at a UK airport before continuing your onward journey." Changing planes without clearing border control, airside, is a narrower case: check with your airline before you book a UK connection, since it depends on your airport and your specific flights.

Flights from the UAE

Emirates and British Airways fly non-stop between Dubai and London. Etihad flies non-stop between Abu Dhabi and London. Check the airlines' own timetables for your city, your London airport and your dates, since routes and schedules change by season.

Frequently asked questions

Do Emiratis need a visa for the UK?

No, but they need an ETA. Since 22 February 2024, Emirati passport holders apply online or in the UK ETA app for £20, valid 2 years, instead of a visa. A decision usually arrives by email within a day.

Do Indians in Dubai need a UK visa?

Yes. Indian passports are not on the UK's ETA list, so Indian nationals, including UAE residents, apply for a Standard Visitor visa online and attend a biometrics appointment at a visa application centre in Dubai or Abu Dhabi.

How long does a UK visa take from Dubai?

Gov.uk's current target is 3 weeks from your biometrics appointment, the same figure it gives for every country. A priority or super priority service, where offered, can bring this down to 5 working days or the next working day for an extra fee.

How much does a UK visa cost from Dubai?

A Standard Visitor visa is £135 for up to 6 months, with long-term options at £506, £903 and £1,128 for 2, 5 and 10 years. The UK ETA, for passports that use it instead, is £20.

Is the UK visa a sticker or an eVisa now?

An eVisa. The Home Office stopped issuing passport stickers for any visa on 1 July 2026, so a new Standard Visitor visa is a digital record linked to a UKVI account. An ETA is linked to your passport electronically and was never a sticker.

Can I work in the UK on a Standard Visitor visa or an ETA?

No. Both routes bar paid or unpaid work for a UK employer and self-employment, apart from a short list of permitted paid engagements for recognised experts. Get advice on the correct route first if work is any part of your trip.

Planning your UK trip

Once you know which route applies to you, see UK visa services for help with the paperwork, browse our holiday packages for flights and hotels, or talk to our visa desk about your situation.

Related guides

• Schengen visa for UAE residents
• US visa from Dubai
• Canada visa from Dubai
• UK tour packages from Dubai

Last checked 9 October 2026 against gov.uk's Standard Visitor visa and application pages, the Immigration Rules' Appendix ETA National List and Appendix V: Visitor, the ETA guidance and application pages, the visa decision waiting times and faster decision (priority and super priority) pages, the "Examples of UK visa vignettes" and online immigration status (eVisa) guidance, and the UAE visa application centre information page. This guide is general information, not immigration advice. Confirm the current requirements on gov.uk before you apply or travel.