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That confusion is universal in Dubai right now, and the answer depends on two things: which visa you actually hold, and whether MOHRE has issued you a separate work permit on top of it. This guide walks through every common visa type and what each one really lets you do.
Under Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 — the UAE Labour Law — residence and the right to work are two separate legal acts. Your residence visa, issued by GDRFA in Dubai or ICP in the other emirates, lets you live in the country. Your work permit, issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), is what actually authorises you to be employed by a specific UAE company.
Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024 — effective 31 August 2024, according to law firm DLA Piper — then sharpened the penalties. Employers who hire someone without a valid MOHRE permit now face fines of AED 100,000 to AED 1,000,000 (Article 60) — and Article 62 lets the fine rise with the number of workers involved, up to a maximum of AED 10,000,000. The Labour Law and the immigration law work together: residency does not equal employment authorisation. You almost always need both.
Whichever visa you hold, the work permit behind it is applied for at MOHRE or the free-zone authority by a PRO, not by the employee. Sarmat trains and certifies those people in Dubai: the Certified PRO Officer Program is KHDA-certified, runs three days and 15+ hours in person in Deira, and costs AED 2,890.
Don’t want to figure this out alone? Sarmat is a KHDA-certified training provider and registered typing centre in Deira, Dubai. Message us on WhatsApp — we answer questions like this every day.
The table below summarises the most common visa types Sarmat clients ask about. Read it side-by-side with the per-visa explanations that follow — the nuances matter.
| Visa type | Can holder work? | MOHRE permit required? | Who issues / sponsors | Process speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Visa | Yes — for the sponsoring employer only | Yes (issued first; visa follows) | Employer via Tasheel | MOHRE permit: 2 working days (service card); Work Bundle target for permit plus residency: 5 working days (Dubai first, announced March 2024) |
| Golden Visa | Yes — for any employer that obtains the permit | Yes — separate MOHRE permit per employer | Employer via MOHRE (Golden Visa holder permit) | 2 working days (MOHRE service card) |
| Investor Visa (company owner) | Yes — to manage your own company | Confirm for your setup — no official blanket exemption found | Self-sponsored via DET + GDRFA | Varies — no official figure |
| Investor Visa (real estate, 2-year) | Limited — does not grant employment rights | Yes, if employed by a separate UAE company | Real-estate-backed sponsorship | Varies — no official figure |
| Property Investor Visa (AED 2M Golden tier) | Yes — same as other Golden Visa holders | Yes — separate MOHRE permit per employer | Self-sponsored Golden tier | 2 working days (MOHRE service card) |
| Green Visa (skilled employee) | Yes — self-sponsored, work for any employer | Yes — MOHRE permit per employer | Self-sponsored; residence from ICP/GDRFA | Varies — no official figure |
| Green Visa (freelancer) | Yes — independent / freelance only | No employer permit — a MOHRE freelance or self-employment permit instead | Self-sponsored; MOHRE permit, ICP/GDRFA residence | Varies — no official figure |
| Family / Dependent Visa | Yes — only with a separate MOHRE permit | Yes — MOHRE permit for residents sponsored by their families | Employer via Tasheel | 2 working days (MOHRE service card) |
| Visit / Tourist Visa | No — working is illegal | Not eligible; status change required first | — | — |
For the wider context on UAE residency categories overall, our UAE visa types explained guide covers each visa in depth.
The employment visa is the most familiar path — a UAE company hires you, the company sponsors your residence, and the visa is tied to that one employer. The MOHRE work permit is issued first through the Tasheel portal; only after the permit is approved does the entry permit, medical, Emirates ID, and residence visa issuance follow.
You cannot legally work for any second employer on this visa unless MOHRE issues a part-time or temporary permit covering the second company. If you leave the sponsoring company, the residence visa is cancelled and you have a grace period to either find a new sponsor or exit the country — ICP sets it at 30 to 180 days depending on your category (90 days for skilled workers in levels 1–3; 60 days for residence issued with a guarantor or host; 30 days for all other categories).
Need a step-by-step walk-through of the MOHRE-Tasheel-GDRFA-Tawjeeh sequence? Our Dubai employment visa processing guide for 2026 covers each stage with timing and cost detail.
Here is where most people get caught out. The Golden Visa is a 10-year self-sponsored residence — you do not need a UAE employer to hold it, and you can sponsor your own family. It does not, by itself, authorise you to work for a UAE company.
If a UAE business hires you, your new employer must still obtain the MOHRE work permit for Golden Visa holders. It is quicker than a standard employment-visa flow because your residence, medical and Emirates ID already exist — MOHRE lists a completion time of two working days and a two-year validity — but the permit itself is mandatory. MOHRE issues it for full-time, part-time, temporary, flexible, remote and job-sharing contracts.
For full eligibility and application detail, see our UAE Golden Visa 2026 guide.
If you own a UAE company — whether a mainland LLC licensed by the emirate’s economic department (DET in Dubai) or a free zone entity — your investor visa is sponsored through that company's establishment card. That residence is issued on the strength of your stake in the company, not an employment contract. Whether your own role also needs a MOHRE work permit depends on how the company is set up — we found no official page that states a blanket exemption, so confirm it for your case before relying on it.
Where it gets interesting: if you also want to take a salaried role at a different UAE company, that second company must issue you a MOHRE work permit on top of your investor residency. Your investor visa does not transfer.
This is the source of one of the most common Sarmat consultation calls. According to a KPMG alert published in May 2026, Dubai's Land Department scrapped the previous AED 750,000 minimum property value for sole owners — a sole owner of a completed Dubai property can now apply for the 2-year residence visa regardless of its value, including a mortgaged one with a no-objection letter from the bank. (Joint owners must each hold a share worth at least AED 400,000.) The visa lets you live in the UAE, sponsor your family, and manage the property — but it does not by itself grant the right to work for a UAE company without a separate MOHRE permit.
A property investment of AED 2 million or more, by contrast, qualifies you for the 10-year Golden Visa tier. That tier is treated identically to other Golden Visas: you still need a MOHRE work permit if you take an employment role, but the flexibility and duration are far broader.
Either way, if you plan to take a salaried role on top of your real-estate-backed residence, the employer must process the MOHRE permit as a fresh filing — your residency does not auto-convert.
The Green Visa for skilled employees is a 5-year self-sponsored residence. Unlike the standard employment visa, you do not need to be tied to one sponsor — you keep the residence even if you change employers. To qualify, you generally need a bachelor's degree, a UAE employment contract in MOHRE skill levels 1, 2, or 3, and a monthly salary of at least AED 15,000.
The catch is the same as everywhere else: the visa grants residence, not work authorisation. Each employer who hires you must issue a separate MOHRE work permit through Tasheel. The advantage over a tied employment visa is that losing a job does not automatically cancel your residence — you have a longer runway to find the next role.
If your Green Visa is on the freelancer track, the work-rights model changes entirely. Instead of a MOHRE work permit issued by an employer, you hold a freelance or self-employment permit issued by MOHRE — ICP lists it as a condition of the freelancer Green Visa, together with a bachelor’s degree or specialised diploma and freelance income of at least AED 360,000 a year over the previous two years. Free-zone freelance packages such as GoFreelance (Dubai Media City, Internet City, Design District and Knowledge Park) are a separate free-zone product with its own permit; the visa is bought on top. The freelance visa cost breakdown itemises the fees.
This is also where many self-employed expats get confused. A freelance permit is not an employment permit: MOHRE issues it to individuals working independently, without an employer and without an employment contract, so it does not let you take a salaried role at someone else's company. If you are offered a payroll job in addition to your freelancing, that company must issue you a separate MOHRE permit — even though you already hold a freelance permit.
For a side-by-side breakdown of the two paths, see our Green Visa vs Freelance Permit guide and the freelance visa Dubai explainer.
Spouses and children sponsored by a UAE resident can absolutely work in the UAE — but only after the new employer obtains a MOHRE work permit. This is the work permit for residents sponsored by their families, and it does not replace the dependent visa — the residence stays as it is, with the work permit layered on top.
The practical sequence: employer and candidate sign the official job offer form, the employer applies to MOHRE with a passport copy, photo and the academic certificates required for the skill level, MOHRE issues the permit — it lists two working days, no quota needed, valid for two years — and the dependent can start working legally.
Working on a visit or tourist visa is illegal under UAE law, full stop. As Khaleej Times reported in March 2025, after the amnesty ended, inspections have intensified, employers face fines up to AED 1 million under Federal Decree-Law 9/2024, and travel agents told the paper that deportation is the consequence for anyone caught working on visit status.
If you are in the UAE on a visit visa and receive a job offer, the lawful path is an in-country status change to an employment visa. ICP charges AED 500 for a change of status inside the country, which completes the residency procedures without leaving the UAE, and under the Labour Law the employer may not pass recruitment costs on to you. Overstaying the visit visa costs AED 50 a day, so file before it expires.
For every visa above where a MOHRE permit is required, the application is filed by the establishment's authorised signatory through MOHRE's channels — Tasheel service centres, the MOHRE website or the app. The employer submits the signed job offer form, a copy of the candidate's passport, a photo and the academic certificates MOHRE requires for the skill level. MOHRE checks that the occupation fits the establishment's activity and that its licence is valid, then issues one of its 13 types of work permit.
For Golden Visa, Green Visa, investor visa, and dependent visa holders, the permit issues without a fresh medical exam, Emirates ID, or residence visa issuance — those steps are tied to residency, which already exists. That is why MOHRE lists a completion time of just two working days for a Golden Visa holder or family-sponsored work permit, while a fresh employment visa still has the residence steps to follow.
This is no longer a discretionary slap. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024, employer fines range from AED 100,000 to AED 1,000,000 for hiring a worker without a valid permit, and the fine is multiplied by the number of workers in fictitious-employment cases. Criminal liability now applies for fictitious recruitment.
For individuals — particularly those caught working on a visit visa — the official u.ae portal warns of fines and legal liability, deportation is the outcome reported by Khaleej Times, and overstay fines of AED 50 a day apply if the visit visa has expired. Khaleej Times reported that more than 6,000 violators were arrested in inspection campaigns in January 2025, the month after the amnesty ended.
The good news: switching is far cleaner than it used to be. Your residence is self-sponsored, so it does not cancel when you leave one employer. The new employer simply applies to MOHRE for a fresh work permit — no need to cancel your residency, no exit-and-re-entry.
The only friction is timing. If you still hold a MOHRE permit from a previous employer, expect that employer to have to cancel it first: cancellation is filed by the establishment, and MOHRE's service cards for family-sponsored and overseas permits state that the candidate may not hold an active work permit. Some employers stall. A KHDA-certified PRO Officer or a Sarmat PRO services team handles the cancellation-and-reissue choreography routinely. For a deeper walk-through of the options, see our guide to switching between investor, employment, and Golden visa categories.
Yes. The Golden Visa is a 10-year residence permit, not a work authorisation. If you take a job with any UAE company, that employer must obtain a separate MOHRE work permit for Golden Visa holders. Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 bars anyone from working, and any employer from hiring, without a work permit, and Article 60 as amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024 sets the fine for the employer at AED 100,000 to AED 1,000,000.
Only with a separate MOHRE work permit issued by that other company. An investor visa is tied to your own licensed entity. To take a salaried role at a different UAE business, the new employer must issue you a fresh MOHRE permit on top of your existing residency.
No. Residence and employment are governed by two different processes — GDRFA or ICP for residence, MOHRE for employment. Most residence visas (Golden, Green-employee, dependent, investor) require a separate MOHRE work permit before a UAE company can legally put you on payroll.
Yes, once a UAE employer obtains a MOHRE work permit for residents sponsored by their families. The MOHRE service card requires a valid family-sponsored residence, needs no quota, is open to all skill levels and is valid for two years. The dependent visa stays in place — the work permit is layered on top. Without the MOHRE permit, the spouse cannot legally be employed.
Employers face fines from AED 100,000 to AED 1,000,000 under Article 60 of the Labour Law as amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024; Article 62 lets the fine rise with the number of workers involved, up to AED 10,000,000. For individuals, the official u.ae portal says working on a visit or tourist visa results in fines and legal liability, and travel agents quoted by Khaleej Times in March 2025 said deportation is the consequence for anyone caught.
Your new employer applies for the MOHRE work permit for Golden Visa holders — through a MOHRE service centre, the MOHRE website or the app, signed in with UAE Pass. The application must come from the authorised signatory of the establishment, and your occupation must fit the activity of the establishment. MOHRE lists a completion time of two working days, and the permit is valid for two years.
No. Working on visit or tourist status is illegal under UAE labour and immigration law. The lawful route is for the employer to obtain your MOHRE work permit and residence first; ICP offers a change of status inside the country for AED 500, and under the Labour Law the employer — not the worker — bears recruitment costs. The official u.ae portal warns that working on a visit or tourist visa results in fines and legal liability.
If you are sitting on a Golden Visa, an investor residence, or a Green Visa and need to start a salaried role — or if you are an employer trying to onboard someone with one of these residencies — the MOHRE permit is the only step that stands between you and a legal start date. Sarmat's PRO services team — 12+ years in the UAE — handles this paperwork for clients every week and will run the Tasheel filing and any cancellation-and-reissue work cleanly.
If you would rather learn the entire process yourself — every visa type, every MOHRE permit category, every Tasheel step — our KHDA-certified Certified PRO Officer Program covers it across three days with three months of mentorship. Same answer either way: residence is one filing, employment is another, and getting both right keeps you on the safe side of Decree-Law 9/2024.
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