October 31, Thursday, which was earlier announced to be the last day of the UAE’s amnesty programme saw a massive rush at immigration centres in the UAE, as people took advantage of the relief offered to regularise their residency status in the UAE. The deadline was later extended to December 31.
The amnesty, which started on September 1 and ran for two months, allowed people who were staying in the UAE on expired or cancelled visas to either to exit the UAE without facing an entry ban or secure a job in the UAE by rectifying their legal status. In all cases, overstay fines had been waived off for those who applied for the amnesty.
In an awareness post on its official social media channels on October 27, the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) Dubai said that for those who chose to leave the country, the exit permit would be valid for 14 days from the date of issuance, even if it extends beyond the amnesty period.
Over the past two months, authorities have made additional announcements to encourage those living in the UAE illegally to avail of the amnesty.
On October 12, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) announced that if the head of a family violates the residency laws, he can transfer the residency of the children to the mother, provided she is employed and holds a valid residency.
Similarly, in September, the ICP announced that amnesty seekers do not need to have a validity of six months on their passports any longer, reducing it to a validity of one month, to facilitate the process for those seeking amnesty. The business community, too, extended its support to the programme, with several businesses setting up stalls at the Al Awir centre or even at the Indian Consulate, to offer jobs to those who wanted to continue staying in the country.
