Dubai visa for Indians (2026): apply before you fly

Rules checked against official sources in October 2026. Rules change; we confirm them again when we plan your trip.

Most Indian passport holders need a UAE tourist visa arranged before they fly to Dubai or Abu Dhabi. A visa on arrival does exist for Indians, but only for those who already hold certain other visas or residence permits.

This guide explains who qualifies for the visa on arrival, how everyone else gets a tourist visa, what to carry and the mistakes that cause trouble at check-in. For the one-page summary, see our UAE visa guide.

Do Indians need a visa for Dubai?

Yes, in most cases, and it has to be in place before you travel. The UAE Government portal and ICP list visa on arrival for Indians only when they hold a qualifying document from another country.

Who qualifies for the Dubai visa on arrival?

ICP expanded eligibility on 25 June 2026. The visa on arrival is for Indian ordinary passport holders who have one of these:

• A valid visa, residence permit or green card issued by the United States
• A valid visa or residence permit from an EU country or the United Kingdom
• A valid residence permit from Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Singapore or New Zealand

Read the last line carefully. For those six countries the list names a residence permit, not a visa. A tourist visa you used for a Japan or Australia holiday is not on the list.

How long can you stay, and what does the visa on arrival cost?

ICP lists two visa on arrival options for eligible Indians:

• 14 days, extendable once. Issuance fee AED 100.
• 60 days, not extendable. Issuance fee AED 250.

Service fees are added on top of the issuance fee. Your passport needs to be valid for at least 6 months to use the visa on arrival.

How to get a Dubai tourist visa if you don’t qualify

UAE embassies do not issue tourist visas, so there is no point queuing at the embassy in India. The visa is arranged in one of these ways:

• Through a UAE-based airline
• Through a licensed travel agent
• Through a hotel
• Online through ICP or GDRFA Dubai

How long you can stay depends on the visa issued. The official pages we checked do not give a single fee or processing time for the tourist visa arranged in advance, so we confirm both for your dates when we plan your trip.

Documents for a Dubai visa

• Passport, valid for at least 6 months if you are using the visa on arrival
• A personal photo
• For the visa on arrival: a copy of your qualifying visa, residence permit or US green card

Depending on the route your visa is arranged through, more may be asked for. We tell you the exact list once we know who is travelling.

Travelling with children or parents

Eligibility for the visa on arrival depends on the documents each person holds. If one parent has a valid US or UK visa from a work trip and the rest of the family does not, that parent may qualify on arrival while the others still need a tourist visa arranged in advance.

So check every traveller separately, grandparents and children included. Our Dubai and Abu Dhabi trip includes the UAE tourist visa fees and travel insurance, and we go through each passport before anything is booked.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Applying at a UAE embassy. Embassies do not issue tourist visas.
• Assuming a Japan, Australia or Canada tourist visa gets you a visa on arrival. For those countries only a residence permit counts.
• Relying on a qualifying visa that has expired. The list says valid.
• Flying on the visa on arrival with less than 6 months left on your passport.
• Overstaying. It costs AED 50 per day.

If you want an easier visa

If nobody in the family qualifies for the visa on arrival and you would rather skip the paperwork, Thailand is visa-free for Indians for up to 30 days from 15 September 2026. See our Thailand visa guide and the Thailand trip.

Dubai visa questions