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To get a maid visa in Dubai as an expat, you need a family income of at least AED 25,000 a month, shown on a salary certificate and on three months of bank statements. The worker must be 18 to 60 years old. MOHRE issues the domestic work permit in 2 working days, and published price lists put a 2-year visa package at about AED 8,500 to AED 17,000.
Who can sponsor a maid
The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) handles domestic worker permits and approves the contract. For an expat sponsor, its service page asks for:
- A valid UAE residence visa and your passport.
- A salary certificate showing family income of not less than AED 25,000.
- Bank statements for the last three months, each month showing at least AED 25,000 coming in.
- Your marriage contract and your spouse's visa, if you are married.
- A tenancy contract or title deed for the home.
Some websites still quote lower income figures. MOHRE's own page says AED 25,000, so plan on that. If you want more than five domestic workers, MOHRE asks for a written explanation for each extra worker.
How long the permit runs depends on who sponsors. Residents get 1 year. UAE citizens get 2 years. GCC citizens, diplomats and golden visa holders get 1 or 2 years.
Rules the worker must meet
| Rule | What MOHRE requires |
|---|---|
| Age | 18 to 60 |
| Over 60 exception | Already in the UAE, previous domestic residence cancelled within 3 months |
| Passport | Valid for at least 3 months |
| Other permits | Must not hold a valid work permit |
| If inside the UAE | Tourist visa copy and cancellation of the previous visa |
| Medical | Valid medical fitness result before the contract |
The worker's documents are a passport copy and a colour photo. MOHRE accepts 19 domestic occupations, from housemaid and cook to driver, gardener and home nurse, so the same process covers most household staff.
What a maid visa costs
The clearest official figure is on MOHRE's domestic worker renewal page: AED 5,335.75 for a resident employer in Dubai, before tax and collection charges. MOHRE's new permit page shows fee rows for Dubai too, but its amounts could not be read in full on the live page in , so take the renewal figure as the best guide to the government part of each year. Blogs that quote one exact "government fee" for a new maid visa disagree with each other.
What is official is the medical test. Dubai charges AED 270 for the normal 24 hour service, AED 700 for VIP in 6 hours and AED 1,020 for VIP in 2 hours, and domestic workers add AED 50 for the pregnancy test. See the medical test for a Dubai visa page for where to go.
What families usually pay in total:
| Route | Usual total |
|---|---|
| Domestic worker visa package, sold as "2 years" | AED 8,500 to 17,000 |
| Package from a domestic workers center, as reported in press guides | AED 8,000 to 12,000 |
| Direct sponsorship, first year | AED 8,800 to 17,000, incl. a refundable AED 2,000 deposit |
| Worker medical insurance | AED 700 to 1,500 |
Source: published price lists of Dubai typing centers, PRO firms and free zones, and UAE press guides, checked . Which term each figure covers: the first two rows are 2-year packages as the sources publish them, and the direct sponsorship row is year one only. MOHRE issues a resident sponsor a 1-year permit, so ask any provider quoting a 2-year package who sponsors the worker and what happens at the 1-year renewal. Agency recruitment fees and the worker's salary are extra. Prices vary between centers, and some ask for a guarantee cheque.
Domestic workers centers (Tadbeer)
MOHRE lists 42 domestic workers services centers in Dubai. People still call them Tadbeer, although MOHRE's current pages use the generic name. They recruit workers, process domestic worker visas and prepare contracts. You do not have to use one: the permit can also be filed through the MOHRE website or app with UAE Pass, or through Tawseel. A center makes the most sense when you recruit from abroad and want the agency to stand behind the hire. Our list of Tadbeer centers in Dubai shows every center on the MOHRE list by area, with map links.
Tasheel centers handle company labour work, not household staff, so skip them for this. Our guide to Tasheel centers explains what they are for.
The contract and your duties as employer
Every hire uses the MOHRE standard contract. It must name both parties, the workplace, start date, type of work, duration, salary, payment method, leave, probation, rest and termination terms, and the worker gets a copy. The rules that catch families out:
- Pay the salary within 10 days of the due date.
- Give one paid rest day a week and 12 hours of rest a day, 8 of them in a row.
- At least 30 days of annual leave a year.
- A return ticket home every 2 years.
- The worker keeps their own passport and Emirates ID.
- Provide adequate medical insurance. Employers in Dubai must.
Agencies may not take a commission from the worker. If the agency breaks its side, it must replace the worker or refund the recruitment fee. Sick leave is capped at 30 days a year, but sources disagree on pay: MOHRE's guidance pages say 15 days full pay and 15 unpaid, while a law text extract mentions half pay. Check the current MOHRE guidance before you write it into the contract.
Where applications go wrong
- One short bank statement. A single month under AED 25,000 can sink the application.
- The worker still has a permit. A worker with a valid work permit elsewhere must be cancelled first.
- No medical result. MOHRE will not issue the contract without a valid fitness result.
- Old passport. Less than 3 months left means a renewal at the embassy first.
Choosing a domestic workers center or agency
Before you pay anyone, check three things. The center should appear on MOHRE's list of domestic workers services centers, which you can search by name on the MOHRE website. The quote should say what it covers: permit, medical, Emirates ID, insurance, residence and the deposit. And the agency must not ask the worker for money, because MOHRE bans commissions from workers. A quote that is far below AED 8,000 usually leaves something out.
Renewing and cancelling later
The permit for a resident sponsor runs 1 year, so renewal comes round quickly. MOHRE lists AED 5,335.75 for a resident employer's renewal in Dubai, and full-service renewals in price lists run AED 5,000 to 7,000. Some guides quote a "lean" renewal far below MOHRE's own fee; that figure leaves the MOHRE part out, so do not budget on it. The medical test is repeated, and maid visa renewal walks through the steps. If the worker leaves your household, cancel the permit and residence through MOHRE and GDRFA, see visa cancellation, so a new sponsor can take her on.
Doing it yourself
You can file the permit yourself on the MOHRE app with UAE Pass, book the medical online and walk into an ICP center for biometrics. It works if you have the time and your documents are clean. You can check progress on MOHRE's inquiry service under the domestic worker options, and the residence on our visa status check guide.
What the partner team does for a maid visa
Send the worker's passport copy and photo, your Emirates ID, salary certificate and the last three months of bank statements. The partner team checks the AED 25,000 income rule month by month, the worker's age and passport, and whether she still holds a permit elsewhere, the points where maid files usually fail. Then they type and submit the MOHRE permit, book the medical and pregnancy test, arrange Emirates ID biometrics and follow the file to the residence. You skip the domestic workers center visit and the MOHRE app. One total price is confirmed first, with the MOHRE fees and the service charge on separate lines. Hiring a nanny? See the nanny visa or, for dependants, the family visa page.
