Dubai: Eighteen passengers who flew into Sharjah from Lucknow in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh claim they are stuck in the airport because they have been told their documentation is not in order.
The passengers arrived on an Air Arabia flight in the wee hours of Monday.
Lasith Kayakkal, managing partner of a furniture factory company, said, “Eighteen of my staff have been stranded in the Sharjah airport. They have valid residence visas issued in Sharjah but have been denied permission to leave the airport.”
Kayakkal who is trying to help his staff get out of the airport, said, “I have been told they need to fill a form on the website uaeentry.ica.gov.ae and wait for their status to change. All this is very confusing. More clarity needs to be given.”
He said he was in the process of registering details of his workers in the system.
One of the stranded passengers, painter Chandrashekhar Nishad Lalchand, said his residence visa is valid till December 23, 2021, and is worried that he cannot get permission to leave the airport.
In another case, Indian expat Nandhini P was offloaded in the last minute at Trichy airport iN tamil Nadu of India. She was set to fly to Abu Dhabi on on Air India Express on August 15. “I have a valid ICA approval, it’s valid for 21 days until August 25. But I received a red coloured message which read “Dear Valued Customer we will consider the possibility of rescheduling your travel date after 60 days in order to preserve your safety. We thank and appreciate your understanding.”
Passengers said they are being told that they must furnish their information on the website for due verification.
Abu Dhabi International Airport has informed airlines that UAE residents stranded abroad are not required to get mandatory ICA travel permit if they land in Abu Dhabi. The revised travel rules came into effect on August 11.
But as a spokesperson for Air India Express told Gulf News: “In Abu Dhabi, we have been informed that passengers need to check their status by visiting website (uaeentry.ica.gov.ae) and this is mandatory."
Those holding Dubai resident visas are required to obtain permission from General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA).
