NRI Guide: How To Transfer A Family Visa From One Sponsor To The Other In The UAE

Did you know you can transfer your visa from one sponsor to another if you are on a family residence visa? Well, if you are a residence of Dubai and living there on your family residence visa, you have permit to transfer your visa from a family sponsor to another. You must be wondering how you could do that. 

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With the UAE government’s smart services, you could complete the process online as well as through immigration offices across the country. Before you transfer your family visa to a new sponsor, you must know about the following: 

• Firstly, changing the sponsor on a family visa is necessary in a number of situations. For example, if one loses one’s job, and the person’s children are on that individual’s visa, the person’s visa will not be cancelled until a visa cancellation is done for his dependents. In such a case, the individual’s spouse is working and eligible to sponsor their children, the children’s visa first requires to be transferred to the spouse’s sponsorship. When it is done, the individual’s visa can be sent for cancellation. 
• Secondly, you need to keep a check on the below documents before applying for the change in sponsorship of a family visa: 

1. A copy of sponsor’s tenancy contract or real estate ownership deed 

2. A copy of the employment contract of the new sponsor 

3. Recent photo with a white background of the individual being sponsored 

4. Sponsorship transfer request 

5. Emirates ID application form 

6. Passport copy of the person getting sponsored 

7. Medical fitness certificate 

• If you complete the process online through Dubai’s General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) website, follow these steps: 

1. Submit the required documents 

2. Check if the documents have been correctly uploaded 

3. Pay the fees 

4. Send the request 

5. Receive a text message with the request status 

• If you choose the offline mode: 

1. Visit an Amer centre and follow the same procedure 

• Before submitting your application request, keep these documents handy: 

1. Apply for medical fitness test (charges Dh 320 to regular applicants) 

2. Get the Emirates ID (Charges Dh 270 for two years) 

3. Get the visa stamped (will require Dh 460) 

If you face any problem, you can contact GDRFA by calling on 8005111.