Countries like UK, US, Canada and Australia have remained preferred destinations for South Asian professionals and students — especially from India — not because of the employment opportunities available in these countries, but also the fact that they provide residency and citizenship. One of the reasons why the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in spite of having numerous advantages – proximity to South Asia, a large South Asian expat population and reasonable quality of life – lost out for very long to the West was its visa system, whereby there was no concept of ‘residency’ or citizenship for expats . Apart from this, there was no substantial grace period for professionals who lost jobs and the focus of the Gulf state for long was on attracting businessmen, or individuals investing in real estate, and not professionals or researchers per se.
In recent years, UAE has focused on reducing it dependence upon oil and creating a new economic model for the future for which it would be important to attract talent from different parts of the world. While UAE had introduced changes to its visa system by introducing long term visas – such as the Golden Visa – before the covid19 pandemic, it has introduced some further changes/relaxations in order to attract not just entrepreneurs willing to invest, but also individuals who have excelled in R&D, the arts and even philanthropy.
Some important changes to the long-term UAE Visas came into effect on October 3, 2022. These include some significant revisions to the Golden Visa Residency Program (10 year residency), Green Visa and the introduction of new categories such as the ‘job exploration visa’. The Golden Visa and Green Visa are important, because they remove the requirement of a local sponsor for businesses. Amongst the latest revisions are a provision whereby the holder of the Golden Residency/Green visa can sponsor family members, and what is significant is that while earlier the Golden visa would be invalid if the holder stayed outside the UAE for a period of 6 months or more, now a holder of the Golden Visa can stay outside the UAE for an indefinite period. Another important change is that the Green Visa which was earlier 2 years has now been extended to 5 years. Interestingly, freelancers who meet certain criterion are eligible for the Golden Residency Visa and Green Visa.
Through the Golden Visa and Green Visa, UAE is trying to attract not just entrepreneurs, but individuals with specific skills such as scientists and researchers, and students, which clearly shows UAE’s objective of not just viewing immigration from the prism of investment into real estate or businesses. What is also interesting is that unlike earlier, UAE provides a grace period – of six months – after the expiration of the Green visa. Another interesting category is the ‘job exploration visa’ where by graduates from the top 500 universities of the world can visit UAE to explore job opportunities (those wanting to avail of this visa can apply for three durations – 60 days, 90 days and 120 days).
While in recent years, UAE has emerged as a favored destination for High Networth individuals (HNWI’s) from different parts of the world including India (especially after the second wave of Covid19). In 2022, UAE is predicted to draw a net inflow of 4,000 HNWI’s. With the changing geopolitical uncertainty arising after the Ukraine-Russia war, UAE is likely to attract even more expats.
The Golden Visa has made UAE an attractive destination not just for HNWI’s but also talented professionals and even students. It would be pertinent to point out, that over the past few decades, there has been a trend of many South Asians from the West relocating to the UAE, due to its geographical location but also the fact that it is home to top Multinational Corporations MNC’s and is also emerging as an important educational hub (home to a number of western campuses). South Asians account for over half of the total expat population, and this also makes it an attractive destination for individuals of South Asian origin.
The new visa rules could be a decisive push towards being a first choice for not just those seeking employment, but also students. Here it would also be pertinent to point out, that it is not just the west but even countries like Singapore — which are an attractive destination for Indian professionals — could lose out as a result of the recent revisions to the visa system.
In conclusion, countries like Australia and Canada which have emerged as alternative choices to UK and US for students from South Asia – especially India – and have of late been trying to tighten immigration can no longer take things for granted at least in the long run if the UAE is able to successfully deal with the new visa system.
