The expected overhaul of the UAE visa residency system will “hugely benefit” the country's real estate market and bring a “significant influx in buyers”, brokers said.
The changes, set to come into effect by September, include parents being able to sponsor their male children until the age of 25, allowing them to remain in the UAE after school and university.
Skilled professionals on salaries of Dh30,000 ($8,100) a month or more will find it easier to gain a Golden Visa, while real estate investors can obtain Golden Residence when purchasing a property worth no less than Dh2 million. Investors can also obtain Golden Residence when buying one or more off-plan properties of no less than Dh2m from approved local property companies.
The UAE Government Media Office announced the changes, approved by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, on Monday.
The visa residency changes are set to provide further impetus to Dubai's property market, which along with the wider UAE economy, has bounced back strongly from the coronavirus-induced slowdown. The value of property deals in Dubai more than doubled last year and broke a 12-year record in terms of volumes, Property Finder said.
“Changes in residency requirements in Dubai have had a significant positive impact on the real estate market in the last two years,” Andrew Cummings, Partner – head of prime residential, Middle East at Knight Frank, told The National.
“[Monday's] announcement is a further step in opening up Dubai to foreign investors and will likely lead to a significant influx in buyers, bolstering an already active market.
“The changes to enable off-plan investors to also gain residency will have the biggest impact, and we are likely to see a increasing demand for off-plan properties, with buyers no longer being restricted to having to have a title deed of a ready property in hand.
“Whether or not this will lead to downward pressure on the resale market is more uncertain, with demand in this area predominantly being driven by end users rather than investors.”
Previous rules stipulated that parents could sponsor male children up to the age of 18, making it difficult for families to stay together in the same place once their male children had completed their education. A parent can sponsor an unmarried daughter indefinitely.
The changes encourage buyers to take a longer-term approach with a view to setting down roots in the UAE and enjoying the lifestyle.
“We have been speaking quite exclusively to C-suite level clients from around the world who are considering Dubai as a long-term residence rather than just a business or investment destination,” said Mark Castley, chief operating officer at LuxuryProperty.com.
“Our conversations often revolve around the idea that these executives want to set up their families in Dubai and have a plan that involves staying in the city indefinitely – with a view to eventually retiring here and watching their kids grow up in an environment that is buzzing with energy while providing tremendous levels of personal safety.
“This is, I believe, an excellent way to show the country's commitment to growth and diversity in a post-Expo timeline.”
Golden Visas were first approved in late 2020, and in the first year 44,000 visas were issued in Dubai alone. It enables foreigners to live, work and study in the UAE without the need for a national sponsor and with 100 per cent ownership of their business on the UAE’s mainland. These visas will be issued for five or 10 years and will be renewed automatically.
The property sector in the UAE will benefit hugely from the Golden Visa for real estate investors, according to Lewis Allsopp, chief executive of Allsopp & Allsopp.
The new rules open up the visa to a much wider market and is a huge encouragement for residents in the UAE to purchase a home, he said.
“Dubai and the UAE is no longer a temporary place to stay but rather a country to call home, to make a life for a family and to thrive in a professional capacity,” Mr Allsopp said.
“We are seeing more and more first-time buyers entering the market as a result of the loan to value increase that was introduced in 2020 by the UAE Cabinet. I predict the new visa overhaul will ramp up first-time buyers even more.”
Average Dubai residential property prices rose 11.3 per cent in the first quarter of this year, CBRE said. Yet properties are considered “relatively affordable", with prices 25 per cent to 30 per cent below 2014 levels.
In Abu Dhabi, capital values of villas and apartments rose to their highest level in five years in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to property consultancy ValuStrat. Sales prices recorded an average annual growth of 14 per cent last year, driven by existing communities on Saadiyat Island and Yas Island.
Andrew Covill, director at Henry Wiltshire International in the capital, said: “We can only expect a wider positivity and confidence in the UAE as it retains existing talents and brings fresh faces in on the back of the visa residency changes”.
The Golden Visa is attracting a lot of new real estate investors and retirees that may only spend three months or less in the UAE, which now is possible with the flexibility in the duration or frequency of coming in and out of the country, he said.
Since they are to keep their assets under their names, they are, therefore, more likely to continue their ties with the country through these initiatives, Mr Covill said.
“The Abu Dhabi property market is moving up strongly with the volume of transactions and prices both increasing and new communities springing up,” he said. “We feel confident it will continue on this upward trajectory in a controlled manner.”
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The biog
Siblings: five brothers and one sister
Education: Bachelors in Political Science at the University of Minnesota
Interests: Swimming, tennis and the gym
Favourite place: UAE
Favourite packet food on the trip: pasta primavera
What he did to pass the time during the trip: listen to audio books
if you go
The flights
The closest international airport to the TMB trail is Geneva (just over an hour’s drive from the French ski town of Chamonix where most people start and end the walk). Direct flights from the UAE to Geneva are available with Etihad and Emirates from about Dh2,790 including taxes.
The trek
The Tour du Mont Blanc takes about 10 to 14 days to complete if walked in its entirety, but by using the services of a tour operator such as Raw Travel, a shorter “highlights” version allows you to complete the best of the route in a week, from Dh6,750 per person. The trails are blocked by snow from about late October to early May. Most people walk in July and August, but be warned that trails are often uncomfortably busy at this time and it can be very hot. The prime months are June and September.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
