The UAE Golden Residency is one of the best-known long-term residence programmes in the region. To be clear: it is residence, not citizenship. Its holder does not get a UAE passport. The information in this article comes from the Golden Residency guide of the UAE Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) and the golden visa page of the official UAE government portal (u.ae), checked on 24 October 2026.
Groups and thresholds
According to the ICP guide:
- Investors in public investments: a deposit, company capital or partnership share of at least 2 million dirhams, or a company that pays at least 250 thousand dirhams a year in federal tax. The capital must be wholly the investor's own, not borrowed.
- Real estate investors: ownership of one or more properties in the UAE with a total value of at least 2 million dirhams, or off-plan units of the same value from an approved developer.
- Entrepreneurs: a small or medium business with annual revenue of at least 1 million dirhams, or the founder of businesses sold for a combined total of at least 7 million dirhams.
- Scientists and specialists: for the specialists' route, a monthly salary of at least 30 thousand dirhams.
- Outstanding students and graduates: with academic conditions, such as a 3.5 grade point average.
- Exceptional talents, humanitarian pioneers and frontline workers.
Duration: 5 or 10 years
The two official pages do not agree on this point:
- The ICP guide gives 10 years with automatic renewal for all groups.
- The u.ae page (updated on 28 July 2026) gives 5 years for real estate investors and entrepreneurs and 10 years for some other groups.
Before deciding, ask ICP or the residency office of the emirate concerned about your group's duration.
Benefits
- No sponsor: the residence is granted to the person themselves.
- Family: according to ICP, residence can be obtained for the spouse, children of any age and parents.
- Staying outside the UAE: according to u.ae, a Golden Residency holder can stay outside the UAE for longer than the usual six months without the residence being cancelled.
- If the holder dies, according to ICP the family members they sponsored can stay in the UAE until their own residence expires.
- For eligible applicants who are outside the UAE, ICP provides a six-month multiple-entry visa, extendable for another six months, to complete the process.
Golden Residency or a second citizenship
- The Golden Residency gives the right to live in the UAE and suits people who want to live or work there.
- Citizenship by investment, such as Dominica's, gives nationality and a passport and has no requirement to live in the country.
- Some families plan both together. The article "Citizenship or residence by investment" explains the differences.
At the time of writing, the UAE Golden Residency is not in Royal Golden's list of services. This article is for information only.
This article is general information and is not legal or financial advice. Decisions on residence rest with the UAE authorities.
Sources
- ICP UAE, Golden Residency guide — https://icp.gov.ae/en/services/uae-golden-residency/ (checked on 24 October 2026)
- Official UAE government portal, golden visa (updated on 28 July 2026) — https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/visa-and-emirates-id/Types-of-visas/golden-visa (checked on 24 October 2026)