More than 2m UAE visa transactions in 2007

Abu Dhabi: Last year alone, over 7 million entry and residency transactions were completed by naturalisation and residency departments across the country, Gulf News has learnt.

According to statistics provided by the Ministry of Interior, five million of these transactions were related to the issue of entry permits.

More than two million transactions were related to granting residence visas.

In 2006, numbers show that more than 25 million people entered and/or left the country. Official sources believe that this figure has grown by 10 to 20 per cent in 2007 due to a rapid growth in the tourism sector as well as the economic boom experienced by the country.

As the numbers of transactions are expected to keep increasing, the departments have geared up their services and increased their working hours.