The maid visa process, step by step: entry permit, medical test and Emirates ID

The process has two halves. MOHRE issues the work permit, which doubles as the entry permit for a helper abroad. After she arrives, MOHRE's employer guide lists her Emirates ID biometrics and medical fitness test, then her residence permit. ICP requires a foreign national who enters the UAE to complete the residence issuance procedures within 60 days of entry.

MOHRE is the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. ICP, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, handles residence: its general residence page describes the steps, and says that for domestic workers its service is provided through the Domestic Workers Package. The government's Work Bundle portal sends Dubai employers to the DubaiNow app for domestic-worker services, and links the other emirates to ICP's smart services.

This guide follows a helper recruited from abroad, with the steps as MOHRE's and ICP's pages listed them in September 2026. The main law for her job is Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 (opens in a new tab), the Domestic Workers Decree-Law. If she already lives in the UAE, her route is different, and our guide to hiring a helper who is already in the UAE covers it.

What are the steps in the maid visa process?

They run from your application to MOHRE to her Emirates ID card. First, check that you can sponsor her and that she meets MOHRE's conditions, including an insurance policy on your file (see the next section). Steps 1 to 4 are MOHRE's own, as its service card listed them on 29 September 2026; the rest follow MOHRE's employer guide and ICP's general residence page:

1. Log in with UAE PASS. UAE PASS is an app issued by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, and ICP says your digital ID can be used through it. MOHRE's card says you log in through one of its channels: its website, its app, a Tawseel centre or a domestic worker service centre (many are branded Tadbeer).
2. Submit the request. Enter the required information, review the information MOHRE retrieves automatically, and attach the required documents (see the next section).
3. Pay the fees. Review the request and pay the required fees.
4. Receive the permit. MOHRE's service card for a new domestic worker work permit states a processing time of 2 working days. MOHRE issues the permit once the request is complete and tells you if anything else is needed. MOHRE says that, for a helper abroad, the permit doubles as her entry permit.
5. She travels to the UAE. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker's wages are owed from the day the worker enters the UAE or changes status, so her pay starts when she arrives. Our salary guide shows what helpers ask for.
6. Apply for her Emirates ID biometrics and her medical fitness test. MOHRE's employer guide lists both after she arrives.
7. Arrange her health insurance. Dubai's health insurance law requires a policy when a residence permit is issued, and MOHRE says the same for the northern emirates: Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. For Abu Dhabi, see what MOHRE says below.
8. Complete her residence permit. ICP requires a foreign national who enters the UAE to complete the residence issuance procedures within 60 days of entry. ICP's general residence page ends with a notification that the residence has been issued, and the Emirates ID card follows by courier.

The Decree-Law also sets rules for her employment contract. A domestic worker's contract must be on MOHRE's standard form and state, among other terms, the nature and place of the work and the worker's total pay and how it is paid. It must be in Arabic with a translation into a language she understands, she gets a signed copy, and if the two versions differ, the Arabic one prevails. MOHRE's service page (opens in a new tab) has its four steps in full, and our guide to the domestic worker contract goes through the contract clause by clause.

Her home country may have its own rules and steps before she can leave, and some countries restrict recruiting domestic workers for UAE homes. Check with her embassy or labour office before you apply, and see which nationalities can work as maids.

Charges come at several stages, and we found no official page that gives a total. When we read MOHRE's new permit card on 29 September 2026, it listed fee categories but no amounts. Among the published charges, ICP charges foreign-resident sponsors AED 5,000 for each year of residence issued to a domestic worker, listed as a guarantee for the recruitment of domestic workers; ICP doesn't say whether it is refundable. If a visa service or a centre handles your application, ask for an itemised quote before you pay. Our maid visa cost guide breaks down what is published.

What documents do you need for a maid visa?

Proof that you can sponsor her, and a worker who meets MOHRE's conditions. As of 29 September 2026, MOHRE's service card lists these among others, the first two for expatriate residents and the rest for the worker:

• To sponsor a domestic worker, an expatriate resident needs a recent salary certificate showing a family income of at least AED 25,000.
• An expatriate sponsor must submit a marriage contract, the spouse's UAE residence visa and proof of housing (a tenancy contract or title deed).
• For a new domestic worker work permit, MOHRE requires that the worker does not already hold a valid work permit and has a passport valid for at least three months.
• A domestic worker must be at least 18, and MOHRE applies an upper age limit of 60 for a new work permit.
• MOHRE can exempt a domestic worker who is already in the UAE from its upper age limit if their domestic-worker residence was cancelled no more than three months earlier.

The card also requires her to be covered by an adequate insurance policy on your file. Before a work permit is issued, the employer must buy a domestic worker insurance policy that covers the worker's unpaid dues up to AED 20,000. It is separate from health insurance, which comes later (see below).

MOHRE's conditions ask for a valid passport from the employer, a valid original ID card from a UAE citizen employer, and a valid residence permit from a resident employer or investor. The card doesn't say whether a single, divorced or widowed resident can sponsor, so if that applies to you, check with MOHRE on 600 590000 first. Our guide to who can sponsor a maid covers income, housing and family rules in more detail.

What happens after your maid arrives in the UAE?

Her residence steps begin, and ICP's time limit runs from the day she enters. MOHRE's employer guide lists her Emirates ID biometrics and medical fitness test first, then her residence permit.

The medical fitness test

It's a test in the UAE that her residence requires, taken after she arrives. We found no official page that publishes its fee for a domestic worker, so we don't quote one. Ask for the price when you apply for it, and if a visa service or a centre handles the application, ask for an itemised quote.

We also found no official page that sets out what the test covers for a domestic worker. If a licensed recruitment office recruits her, the Domestic Workers Decree-Law gives the office a duty to arrange her medical examinations, so ask it which tests it arranges and when.

Her Emirates ID and residence permit

ICP's general residence permit page (opens in a new tab), which covers every type of residence, has no passport-stamping step: it ends with a notification that the residence has been issued, followed by the Emirates ID card, which authorised courier companies deliver.

The card is hers to keep. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, she keeps her passport and other official documents, and an employer may not hold them.

Her residence permit also depends on health insurance in Dubai and the northern emirates, and the rules differ by emirate:

• Dubai. Health insurance is required, and you pay. In Dubai, employers must enrol their employees in health insurance, and sponsors must enrol the people they sponsor who have no employer cover; employers and sponsors pay the cost, may not charge it to the insured person, and must produce the policy when a residence permit is issued or renewed.
• Northern emirates. In Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, health insurance for domestic workers has been mandatory since 1 January 2025, paid by the employer; the basic package costs AED 320 a year.
• Abu Dhabi. In Abu Dhabi, as in every emirate, the employer must pay for a domestic worker's medical care under the UAE health system or provide health insurance under the applicable health laws. MOHRE's renewal service says that in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, employers are required to provide adequate medical insurance to their domestic workers.

Our health insurance guide goes through each emirate in more detail.

How long does the maid visa process take?

We found no official end-to-end time, only a processing time and a deadline. As of September 2026, MOHRE's service card for a new domestic worker work permit states a processing time of 2 working days, and ICP requires a foreign national who enters the UAE to complete the residence issuance procedures within 60 days of entry.

MOHRE's figure covers the permit application only: finding her, her home country's steps, her journey and her residence steps all come on top. Our guide to how long it takes to hire a maid covers each stage.

How long is a maid visa valid?

It depends on who sponsors her. As of September 2026, MOHRE's card sets the length of a new permit by type of sponsor:

• MOHRE issues a new domestic worker permit for up to two years when the sponsor is a UAE citizen.
• MOHRE lets diplomats and Golden Visa holders choose a one-year or two-year new domestic worker permit.
• MOHRE's wording doesn't make clear whether Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) citizens get two years or the same choice.
• MOHRE issues a domestic worker's permit for one year when the sponsor is an expatriate resident without a Golden Visa.

So if an agency or a visa service advertises a two-year visa, ask who will sponsor her on it, and what the two years cover. When her permit is due to end, our guide to renewing your maid's visa covers the next steps.

What if your helper is already in the UAE?

Then her route is different. MOHRE's permit service covers workers already inside the country, and ICP changes her status there. When the worker is already inside the UAE, MOHRE asks for the worker's tourist visa, if they are on one, or for the cancellation of their previous visa.

Most helpers listed on MaidMatch are already in the UAE and ready to work. You can browse available helpers, and our guide to hiring a helper who is already in the UAE takes you through that route step by step, including whose consent is needed and the order of the paperwork.

How can MaidMatch help with the visa?

By helping you find her, and by connecting you with a visa partner if you'd rather not handle the paperwork yourself. MaidMatch is a free platform for families: they can browse every profile at no cost, with no registration or subscription required. Families contact helpers directly on WhatsApp, through the Hire button on each profile.

Sponsorship is the employer's responsibility; families can manage the visa themselves or ask MaidMatch to connect them with its visa partners. MaidMatch's visa partner offers a two-year employment visa, with the visa, medical test, Emirates ID and insurance handled end to end. Ask the partner who sponsors her on that visa and what the two years cover, since MOHRE's permit length depends on who sponsors her. Our partners page has the details and the current price.