UAE announces golden visas for humanitarian workers

Dubai: Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced on his Twitter account on Wednesday, that Charity and humanitarian aid workers in the UAE will now be eligible for the Golden Visa.

The announcement was made in the view of World Humanitarian Day. “We are proud of our country, which has provided more than Dh320 billion in aid since its establishment. We are proud of our cadres, institutions and international humanitarian organisations. We are not only an economic capital but a humanitarian capital,” Sheikh Mohammed tweeted on Wednesday.

The extension of Golden Visas to humanitarian and charity workers is the UAE’s tribute to the selfless heroes, Sheikh Mohammed said.

“Aid workers are ambassadors of the UAE and role models instilling pride in us all. Giving is embedded in the fabric of Emirati society and culture, and we aspire to be the most vibrant humanitarian destination in the next 50 years. The UAE has always led impactful humanitarian initiatives and empowered those implementing them, and in the year of the UAE’s Golden Jubilee, it aspires to become a world leader of humanitarian efforts in the next five decades,” he said.

The UAE implemented the Golden Visa system in 2018. It included granting a long-term residence visa, for 5 or 10 years, to people who fall into any of certain categories — from investors and entrepreneurs to doctors, scientists, creators, inventors, researchers, among others.

In 2011, the UAE established Dubai International Humanitarian City (IHC) as an example of its efforts to lead humanitarian causes.