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To get a spouse visa in Dubai for your wife, you need a salary of at least AED 4,000 a month, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation, a certified marriage contract and a lease registered on Ejari. GDRFA's fees are small, AED 200 plus 5% VAT for the entry permit and AED 200 plus small add-ons for the residence, but most couples pay AED 4,000 to 6,500 in the first year all-in.
Who can sponsor a wife
Any expatriate resident on a valid Dubai residence can sponsor his wife if the salary rule is met. The UAE government website u.ae says employees can sponsor family regardless of job title, which ended the old link to profession. Investors and partners can sponsor too: GDRFA asks a partner for a partnership agreement showing a share of at least AED 48,000.
Your wife's residence follows yours. It cannot run longer than your visa, and if your visa is cancelled, hers has to be cancelled as well. Holders of a golden visa sponsor on their own, wider rules.
Documents for a wife's visa
| Document | What GDRFA wants |
|---|---|
| Wife's passport | Valid at least 6 months, with a colour photo |
| Marriage contract | Certified; attested if issued abroad |
| Your employment contract | Shows the job and salary |
| Salary certificate | For government, semi-government and free zone staff |
| Housing | Tenancy contract on Ejari or a title deed |
| Medical result | Dubai medical fitness test, for anyone 18 or over |
Source: GDRFA family entry permit and family residence service pages, checked .
The marriage certificate is the slow part
A marriage certificate issued outside the UAE goes through a chain: the issuing authority or foreign affairs department in that country, then the UAE embassy there, then MOFA in the UAE. MOFA charges AED 150 for a personal document. If the certificate is not in Arabic or English, a legal translation may be needed, and price lists put that at about AED 80 to AED 200 per page. Our certificate attestation page explains the chain country by country.
One detail catches couples out: the names on the certificate should match the passports letter for letter. Check the spelling before the first stamp, because fixing it later means starting the chain again.
A few more points that decide how long the chain takes:
- Married in the UAE? The foreign chain is for certificates issued abroad. A UAE marriage contract still has to be the certified version GDRFA asks for.
- Keep every stamp page. Scan the certificate with all its stamps once the chain is done, so you have it ready for renewals and later family files.
- Market price. Published price lists put marriage certificate attestation at about AED 500 to 1,200 depending on the country, on top of MOFA's AED 150.
What a wife's visa costs
What GDRFA charges
| Fee | Wife outside the UAE | Wife already in the UAE |
|---|---|---|
| Entry permit | AED 200 + 5% VAT | AED 200 + 5% VAT, plus AED 500, AED 10 and AED 10 |
| Residence | AED 200 + AED 10 + AED 10 + AED 20 delivery | Same, plus AED 500 |
| Visa longer than two years | + AED 100 per extra year | + AED 100 per extra year |
Source: GDRFA service pages for the family entry permit and family residence, checked .
Medical test
Your wife takes the Dubai medical fitness test after she enters or her status changes: AED 270 for the normal service, or AED 700 and AED 1,020 for the faster VIP options. Centers and what the test covers are on medical test for a Dubai visa.
What a wife visa costs in total
Published price lists of Dubai typing centers, PRO firms and free zones, checked , put a wife's first year at about AED 4,000 to 6,500. That covers the entry permit, residence, medical, Emirates ID, health insurance and typing. Typing alone is about AED 100 to 300 per application. Marriage certificate attestation adds about AED 500 to 1,200, depending on the country.
The biggest swing is where your wife is when you apply. If she enters on the permit from abroad, you avoid the inside-the-country charges. If she is already here on a visit visa, price lists show the entry permit with status change at about AED 1,150 to 1,200, against about AED 500 to 600 from outside. Our visa change page covers that route.
Inside or outside: which route to pick
| Situation | Usual choice |
|---|---|
| Wife abroad, papers ready | Entry permit, she flies in, cheapest |
| Wife in Dubai on a visit visa with time left | Apply inside, no flight, higher fee |
| Visit visa about to expire | Apply inside early, or plan an exit |
| Certificate still at the embassy | Wait; do not file without it |
Once she enters on the permit, she has 60 days to finish the medical, Emirates ID and residence. Book the medical in the first week.
Where to apply
You can file on the GDRFA website or app with UAE Pass. You can also go to any of the 85 Amer centers on GDRFA's list or one of its 9 customer happiness centers. Our Amer centers near you page lists them by area. Emirates ID biometrics are done at an ICP center and the medical at a Dubai medical fitness center.
What gets a wife visa rejected or delayed
- Name spelling. The marriage certificate says one thing, the passport another. Fix it at the source.
- Salary on paper. Your certificate shows AED 3,000 and no housing. Ask HR to state the full package.
- No Ejari. The lease is in a friend's name or not registered.
- Your own visa ending soon. Her residence is capped at your expiry, so renew yours first. See visa renewal in Dubai.
- Overstay on her visit visa. Fines run at AED 50 a day once the stay is over, so file before it ends.
Children and the whole-family total are on the family visa page. If the wife is the sponsor, see the husband visa page, and for parents the parents visa page.
Doing it yourself
Many husbands file the wife's entry permit themselves on the GDRFA app in under an hour. It works when the certificate is already attested, the Ejari is live and your salary certificate is clean. The time goes on the attestation chain and the medical and biometrics bookings, not the form.
Sponsoring your wife: the team's part
Send your passport and visa, salary certificate, Ejari, your wife's passport and the marriage certificate. The partner team first checks whether the certificate needs attestation or legal translation, and whether the salary certificate and Ejari pass, since those decide most spouse files. Then it types and files the entry permit, or the status change if she is already here on a visit visa, books her medical, arranges Emirates ID biometrics and follows the residence until it is issued. You are not queuing at Amer. Before work starts you get one total price, with the government fees and the service charge on separate lines.
