I have been living in the UAE for the past 42 years and will retire from my banking job in November after I turn 60. I bought a property in Dubai Lagoon in 2007 as it was known then that I will be provided with a visa for owning a property in Dubai, a rule which was changed later.
Is there any rule to provide visa for a senior resident who has been staying in the country for 43 years? Can you give some suggestions to continue living here with my family?
Pursuant to the first part of your question, it may be noted that upon cancellation of your employment visa, you will have a grace period of 30 days to exit the country. And, in order to continue to reside in the country, your visa will have to be sponsored by a legal entity, as a partner if you become a partner in any legal entity incorporated in the UAE. Apart from this there are no specific rules of either the Federal Government of UAE or the Government of Dubai, by which a senior resident may be provided with a visa to reside in the UAE.
You have mentioned that you had purchased a property in Dubai Lagoon. Pursuant to this it may be noted that you still may explore the possibility of obtaining a property related residence visa upon its completion, subject to the regulations of the General Directorate of the Residency and Foreigners Affairs.
Alternatively, you may consider establishing or incorporating a corporate entity in the UAE. Pursuant to the same, the entity may sponsor visas for you and your family members. In view of this, you may either consider to incorporate a limited liability company or a professional licence. Otherwise you may also consider incorporating a company in any of the free zones in the UAE.
Ban can be lifted
I have been working as business analyst with an entity in Dubai drawing a monthly salary of Dh10,000 for the last four months. My employment contract is of limited duration and the company does not belong to free-zone. I hold a post-graduate diploma equivalent to Master of Business Administration. Will I be banned if I switch over to a new company before completing my employment contract? How can I avoid the ban?
Pursuant to your question, it may be noted that an employment ban may get imposed on an employee who may terminate his employment with his employer and thereafter seek to take up employment with another mainland entity, before the completion of the employment contract period with his first employer. During the pendency of the labour ban, a new work permit may not be issued to the employee by the Ministry of Labour of UAE for a period of up to six months.
Since you are working under a limited period contract, it may be noted that should you try to take up another employment before the completion of two years of continuous service or before the completion of your employment contract, a labour ban may be imposed on you.
However, it may be noted that if a labour ban gets imposed on an individual, the same may also be lifted in accordance with the provisions of Ministerial Order No. 1186 of 2010 on "Rules and Conditions of Granting a New Work Permit to an Employee after Termination of the Work Relationship in Order to Move from One Establishment to Another" (the "Ministerial Order").
In view of the provisions of the Ministerial Order, it may be noted that after the completion of two years of continuous service, an employee may not have to face an employment ban in accordance with Article 2 of the Ministerial Order, which states:
"The following two conditions must be met in order to grant the work permit mentioned in Article (1) of this resolution:
1. Agreement between the employee and the employer to conclude the work relationship.
2. The employee must have spent at least two years with the employer."
Pursuant to the foregoing, if you may secure a no-objection letter from your current employer, no employment ban should be imposed on you.
Further, it may also be noted that employment bans are not imposed, if after termination of an existing employment contract, one is subsequently offered a salary prescribed for one's professional qualifications. Since you are holding a post-graduate qualification equivalent to the degree of 'Masters of Business Administration', the minimum salary that should be offered by your new employer must be at least Dh12,000, so as to lift the employment ban, should it be imposed on you.
Further, it may be noted that employment ban issued by the Ministry of Labour may not be applicable for entities established and operating in free zones of UAE. Also it may be noted that individuals holding certain professional qualifications may not be imposed an employment ban. This is in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 of the "Ministerial Order No (13) of 1991 Resolution: The organisation of the transfer of sponsorships of non-national labours the rules governing same" which states as follows:
"Non-national labourers may be allowed to transfer one job to another and hence the transfer of their sponsorship if they fall under the following categories:
(a) Engineers
(b) Doctors, pharmacists, nurses (male and female)
(c) Agricultural guides
(d) Qualified accountants and account auditors
(e) Qualified administrative officials
(f) Technician operating on electronic equipment and laboratories
(g) Drivers who are licensed to drive heavy vehicles and buses
(in case of transfer of sponsorship from a private firm to another or from a private firm to another or to a government department)."
Among the other professions mentioned above, you may take note of 'qualified administrative officials'. And pursuant to the same, you may contact the Ministry of Labour, and enquire if your professional and academic qualifications would qualify you as a qualified administrative official. And based on this, you may also enquire if this would suffice to have a labour ban lifted in the event a labour ban is imposed on you.
