Passport and documents
while you work in the UAE

1. 1
   Report it to the police

   At the nearest station or through the emirate police website or app. In Dubai they issue an official lost-passport certificate — your consulate will ask for it.

2. 2
   Go to your country’s consulate

   Bring the police certificate, a copy of the passport and your Emirates ID. The consulate will issue a new passport or, if you must fly home urgently, a travel document.

3. 3
   Transfer your residence visa

   Once the new passport is ready, the visa and Emirates ID records must be updated: in Dubai through GDRFA, in other emirates through ICP. Your employer’s HR usually helps with this.

4. 4
   Tell your employer and your manager

   While the replacement is in progress you have no passport in hand — that matters for work and travel.

Keep scans of your passport, visa and Emirates ID in the cloud — everything moves faster with copies.

1. 1
   Start six months ahead

   Your residence visa and Emirates ID are tied to the passport, and a new passport from a consulate takes from a few weeks to a few months.

2. 2
   Book an appointment at the consulate

   Check on the consulate website whether it issues passports locally and what photos and documents are needed. Some countries only issue passports at home.

3. 3
   Do not hand over the old passport too early

   Until the new one is ready you need the old one for work, banking and travel — ask the consulate how it is handled.

4. 4
   Update the visa and Emirates ID

   As soon as you have the new passport, transfer the records through GDRFA (Dubai) or ICP. HR will tell you how it works at your employer.

1. 1
   Do not try to fly with it

   With a torn page, stains on the photo or water damage you may be refused boarding or entry at the border.

2. 2
   Apply for a replacement at the consulate

   Take the damaged passport with you — it is normally surrendered when the new one is issued.

3. 3
   Move the visa to the new passport

   As with a lost passport: GDRFA in Dubai or ICP in the other emirates, through HR.

1. 1
   Certificates and powers of attorney at the consulate

   Many consulates issue powers of attorney and certificates and accept applications for authorities back home. The list is on the consulate website.

2. 2
   A document from home needs legalisation

   The UAE is not party to the Hague Apostille Convention. A birth or marriage certificate or a diploma for use in the UAE is attested in a chain: your country’s foreign ministry → the UAE embassy in your country → the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

3. 3
   A translation is needed

   For UAE institutions documents are usually translated into Arabic by a licensed translator — check what the particular organisation requires.