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UAE · Golden Visa · Last verified October 1, 2026
The UAE Golden Residency gives eligible applicants 10-year renewable residency without needing a sponsor. There is no single Golden Visa requirement that applies to everyone: investors, specialised professionals, entrepreneurs, scientists, exceptional talents, outstanding students and humanitarian categories each have different tests.
Quick answer
- Golden Residency is generally valid for 10 years and renewable when the applicable conditions continue to be met.
- It does not require a sponsor.
- Eligible holders can sponsor spouses, children and parents under the current framework.
- Real-estate investors generally need qualifying UAE property worth at least AED 2 million.
- Specialised professionals have a different route that currently includes a valid UAE employment contract/work permit, senior occupational classification, at least a bachelor’s degree and salary of at least AED 30,000 per month.
- Entrepreneurs, exceptional talents, scientists, outstanding students and humanitarian applicants have different criteria — do not apply the professional salary test to every category.
What does Golden Residency give you?
ICP describes Golden Residency as long-term residence for 10 years with automatic renewal, without the need for a sponsor. Holders can live, work, study and invest in the UAE.
Current ICP benefits also include the ability to obtain residence permits for spouses and children regardless of age, as well as parents, and to sponsor domestic workers under the applicable rules. Eligible applicants who are outside the UAE can receive a six-month multiple-entry visa, renewable for a further six months, to complete Golden Residency procedures.
Who can qualify?
ICP currently groups Golden Residency applicants into several broad routes:
- investors in public investments or real estate;
- entrepreneurs;
- scientists and specialised professionals;
- exceptional talents;
- outstanding students and graduates;
- humanitarian pioneers;
- front-line defence professionals and other specified categories.
Because the requirements are category-specific, the first step is to identify which route actually matches your profile.
Real-estate investor route: AED 2 million
ICP’s current Golden Residency guide says a real-estate investor can qualify by owning one or more UAE properties with a total value of at least AED 2,000,000, with ownership registered in the investor’s name.
The current framework allows financing through a loan when the financing comes from an approved local bank. It also recognises qualifying off-plan property purchases with a total value of at least AED 2 million when purchased from an approved local real-estate company authorised by the competent authority.
Health-insurance requirements also apply to the investor and family under the current ICP framework.
Public-investment route
For public investments, ICP lists routes such as a financial deposit of at least AED 2 million with an approved UAE investment fund or national bank, company capital/shareholding of at least AED 2 million, or specified tax-based business criteria.
For this route, ICP also states that the invested capital must be fully owned by the investor and not derived from a loan.
Specialised professionals: AED 30,000 is category-specific
The specialised-professional route is one of the most misunderstood Golden Visa categories. The current ICP page says it applies to skilled professionals in senior occupational levels under the MOHRE classification, including occupational-level-one chairpersons/chief executives and occupational-level-two specialists.
For this category, ICP currently requires:
- a valid UAE work permit under a valid approved employment contract;
- at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent;
- a monthly salary of at least AED 30,000 or equivalent;
- comprehensive valid health insurance for the applicant and family during the residency period.
This AED 30,000 threshold is not a universal Golden Visa rule. An investor, entrepreneur, student or exceptional-talent applicant qualifies under a different set of criteria.
Entrepreneur route
ICP currently lists several entrepreneur pathways. These include owning or partnering in a UAE-registered SME in an approved field with annual revenue of at least AED 1 million, obtaining approval for an entrepreneurial venture idea from an approved incubator/authority, or having founded one or more ventures previously sold for a combined value of at least AED 7 million.
You do not need to meet all of those examples simultaneously; they represent different ways the entrepreneur route can be satisfied depending on the case.
Outstanding students and graduates
The Golden Residency framework also covers high-performing students and graduates, but the academic thresholds depend on whether the applicant is a secondary-school student, a graduate of a UAE university or a graduate of an international university.
For example, ICP currently lists a minimum 95% secondary-school result for qualifying top students, while international-university graduates face university-ranking, GPA, attestation and recency requirements. UAE-university graduates have their own category-specific GPA and university-classification rules.
Exceptional talents and scientists
Exceptional-talent routes cover areas such as culture and arts, innovation/invention, sport, digital technology and other fields recognised by relevant government authorities. Scientists and leading specialists may need recommendations or approvals from the relevant UAE authority for their field.
These routes focus on documented achievement, recognition or government recommendation rather than one simple salary or property threshold.
How to check whether you qualify
Use ICP’s current Golden Residency eligibility checker and service pages for the category that matches you. The exact documents can vary substantially — for example, property-registration proof for an investor, an employment contract and degree for a specialised professional, or recommendation/recognition evidence for a talent category.
Our ICP Smart Services guide explains the broader federal residency portal, and our UAE PASS guide explains the digital identity commonly used with UAE government services.
Common Golden Visa mistakes
- Assuming AED 30,000 salary is required for every category.
- Using Dubai-only information as if it automatically applies to every federal ICP route.
- Relying on an agent’s old eligibility list rather than the current ICP category.
- Ignoring health-insurance or attestation requirements.
- Assuming owning any property automatically qualifies — the current real-estate threshold is AED 2 million and other conditions apply.
- Applying under the wrong category because the applicant fits more than one profile.
Official sources checked
Verification date: October 1, 2026. ICP’s Golden Residency guide was updated in September 2026. Category rules, required documents and local processing can change; confirm the live ICP eligibility result before paying fees or making an investment decision.
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