Ask The Law - May 24, 2002

Family sponsor
From: Rose Richard, Abu Dhabi
I am the owner of a foreign trading company in Abu Dhabi. Can I sponsor my husband and child on a residence visa? If yes, what is the procedure?

Only a wife who works as a doctor, a teacher or a nurse may sponsor her husband and children. She must also meet other legal requirements mainly salary and accommodation status.

Gambling
From: Charles Curtis, U.S.
What are the laws regarding gambling in the UAE? Is a private poker game allowed? Are there any limits on bets?

Gambling is totally prohibited in the UAE. The Penal Code incriminates gamblers and those who use their house to run gambling business even for fun.

Mother's visa
From: Saifee Para, Dubai
My brother and I work in Dubai. Our parents are in India. My mother requires constant attention due to ill health. Due to this, our families have to stay with her. Is it possible for me to sponsor my parents here as I have family status?

Yes, an expatriate who sponsors his family can also sponsor his mother on a residence visa. The Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department has permitted expatriate workers who meet legal requirements to sponsor their parents and dependent sisters and brothers who are under 18 years of age on residence visas.

The move has been taken on humanitarian grounds as of April 1.

These family members can be sponsored on residence visas for one year renewable, provided that a sponsor pays Dh5,000 for each member as a deposit and takes a health insurance policy from a private company. This is still under consideration and insurance companies have been urged to develop an acceptable scheme. The deposit is paid once and will be refunded when a member leaves the country for good or passes away.

Applicants for visa should spell out the grounds on which they want to call their parents or other family members in the UAE.

An expatriate should earn a salary that meets the criteria laid down by the Cabinet and has worked in the country for a long time. He should also be a sole supporter of his parents.

An applicant must submit a certificate from his embassy or the consulate proving that he is the sole supporter of his parents and the circumstances of the family, a salary certificate from the employer and a photocopy of the passport.

Illegal work
From: A Reader, Dubai
I am working in a four-star hotel in Dubai at the front office, but my work permit has been issued as a housemaid for my sponsor's house. Is it legal to work in a hotel with a work permit issued for a housemaid? I have heard that it is illegal, but my manager tells me it is legal.

If you hold a housemaid visa, you will not be entitled to join another job sponsored by another employer. Furthermore, you are not entitled to transfer your sponsorship because you are not among the exempt categories.

As such your work in a hotel on a housemaid visa is illegal.

Medical pay
From: George, Abu Dhabi
An employee proceeds on annual leave and is paid leave salary for one month. After three weeks, he has an accident in his home country for which he is advised rest for 30 days. Is he entitled to medical leave pay after the end of his annual leave since he is unable to resume duty?

If legal and medical evidence are established that the worker sustained injuries in an accident beyond his control and that he was advised to rest for 30 days, he will be entitled to a sick leave.

The medical report must be attested and approved by a medical authority.

Visa transfer
From: Katarina Suryova, Dubai
I got married a week ago. I want my husband to be my sponsor. He has the requisite salary to sponsor me. I am on an employment visa now. What documents do I need from my company to transfer sponsorship to my husband? Can my current sponsor refuse to give me an NOC or put a ban on me when I ask them to cancel my employment visa? I do not want to leave the company. I just want to transfer my visa. If the company puts a ban on my passport, is it possible for my husband to process my residence visa?

A wife who is sponsored by her husband can take on a job with any employer after obtaining a labour card.

If she is sponsored by a company, she can also transfer her sponsorship to her husband after obtaining the company's approval. If the employer refuses, she demands that her employment visa be cancelled.

To avoid the ban stamp, the husband should obtain a residence visa on his sponsorship and submit the visa to the authorities on having the employment visa cancelled.

Avoiding ban
From: Joanna, Dubai
I had taken my employer to court, but the case has stopped as he was absconding and the company had closed down. My local sponsor has given me the freedom to look for a new job. I have found a new job and the new company is willing to sponsor me. What procedure do I have to follow to be sponsored by the new company and not get a ban?

The reader should submit a complaint to the Ministry of Labour spelling out her dispute with the employer, the fact that he is absconding and the closing down of the company.

She should ask that her visa be cancelled or transferred to another employer after obtaining this employer's approval.

New restaurant
From: Karo Papadopolous, Germany.
I am Greek and I live in Germany where I own a restaurant. I would like to open a Greek restaurant in Abu Dhabi and would like to know what papers and licences I need.

This can be done in accordance with the procedures set by Abu Dhabi Municipality, Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Economic Department.

A restaurant can be sponsored by a UAE national or its capital can be shared by a national and foreign partner(s).

Readers can send their legal queries about labour, immigration and business to fax number 04-3421695