The UAE government has launched a two-month amnesty starting from 1 September 2024, allowing non-citizens with irregular immigration status to regularise their status without penalties.
According to the UAE Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs, and Ports Security, the amnesty will apply to four categories of individuals with irregular status, including:
- Those with expired residence permits.
- Those with expired visas.
- Foreign nationals born in the country whose guardians failed to register their residency within four months of birth.
- Individuals with absconding cases filed against them.
Individuals who entered the UAE irregularly are not eligible for the amnesty.
The Federal Authority added that the amnesty will not include those whose status became irregular after September 1st. Additionally, individuals who have previously been deported or have deportation cases against them by the UAE or other Gulf Cooperation Council states are also excluded.
Furthermore, it added that those who take advantage of the amnesty will not face re-entry bans, and fines in five categories will be waived. These include:
- Administrative fines for irregular stay in the country
- Establishment card fines
- ID card fines
- Fines for failing to submit an employment contract to the Ministry
- Fines for failing to renew an employment contract with the Ministry
Under the amnesty regulations, private sector and domestic migrant workers can either return to their previous employer or join a new one. Visit visa holders can also move to a new employer, who must then issue a work permit for them.
Those wishing to exit the country must apply for an exit permit from the Federal Authority. This permit allows them to leave without paying fines and is valid for 14 days from issuance. If they do not depart within this period, all previous fines and restrictions will be reinstated.
Local media in the UAE reported that irregular migrants benefiting from the amnesty, who had accumulated fines up to AED 115,000 (US$ 31,310), are now finally able to return to their home countries. This includes individuals who have been waiting for years and enduring homelessness. Among them is a Filipina domestic worker who had escaped her employment due to facing sexual harassment and was subsequently charged with absconding by her employer.
The UAE, along with other Gulf countries, periodically launches amnesty campaigns to help regularize or facilitate the exit of irregular migrant workers. These campaigns are often presented as a gesture of goodwill towards migrant “violators”. The UAE government has framed this current amnesty as part of its commitment to “mercy and tolerance.” However, these campaigns overlook that many migrants do not end up undocumented by choice but rather as a result of the Kafala labour migration system, which can easily push them into irregular status.
For more information on amnesty campaigns in the Gulf, read our previous report on this topic here.
