Renewing your maid's visa: steps, costs and timing

You renew through MOHRE's renewal service, with her in the UAE, before her permit expires. As of September 2026, MOHRE's renewal fee table lists a resident employer at AED 5,215 under its one-year tier outside Dubai, and at AED 5,335.75 in Dubai, where it gives no term. Citizens, diplomats and investors have their own tiers.

MOHRE, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, issues domestic workers' work permits and runs the renewal service, Renewal of a Domestic Worker's Employment Contract (opens in a new tab). ICP, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, handles residence permits and Emirates IDs. 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.

What do you need to renew a maid visa?

As of September 2026, MOHRE's conditions for renewing a domestic worker's employment contract include that the worker is inside the UAE, with a passport valid for at least three months, a valid medical fitness result, a medical insurance policy and an Emirates ID renewal application. MOHRE's renewal service asks for the domestic worker's employment contract, signed by both parties. What each one means for you:

• She must be inside the UAE when you apply, so plan her leave around the date (see the timing below).
• Her passport. If it has less validity left than MOHRE asks for, she needs to renew it first.
• Her medical fitness result. MOHRE asks for a valid one. We found no official page that says whether she needs a new test for each renewal, so ask MOHRE on 600 590000.
• Her medical insurance. MOHRE asks for it in every emirate, and each emirate has its own rules (below).
• Her Emirates ID renewal application. MOHRE lists it among its conditions for a renewal.
• Her contract, signed by you both. Go through its terms with her, including her salary, before you both sign. Our domestic worker contract guide goes through it clause by clause, and our salary guide shows what helpers ask for.

Health insurance, emirate by emirate

MOHRE asks for her medical insurance whichever emirate you live in, and each emirate's own rule differs:

• 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.
• The 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.

One rule in the northern emirates matters most at renewal. In Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, employers must buy the health insurance policy to issue or renew a domestic worker's residence permit, and for a worker whose work permit is dated before 1 January 2025, it must be bought when the residence permit is renewed. Our health insurance guide covers what each emirate requires.

How do you renew a maid visa, step by step?

Check the dates, agree the contract with her, gather what MOHRE asks for, then apply and pay. Steps 1 to 3 get ready what MOHRE's renewal card asks for; step 4 follows the card's own process, as we read it on 29 September 2026:

1. Check the dates. Note when her permit expires and when her passport does, and make sure she will be in the UAE when you apply.
2. Agree the contract with her. You both sign it. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, it is on MOHRE's standard form, in Arabic with a translation into a language she understands, and she gets a copy.
3. Gather what MOHRE asks for: her valid medical fitness result, her health insurance under your emirate's rules (above) and her Emirates ID renewal application.
4. Apply to MOHRE and pay the fees. Log in with UAE PASS or a MOHRE username and password. 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. Then submit the renewal application through one of MOHRE's channels, and pay the federal fees. MOHRE says that, apart from federal charges, its domestic worker contract renewal is free on its website and smart app, and that its renewal fees exclude tax and collection charges. MOHRE's service cards for domestic workers cap business-centre commission at AED 72.

MOHRE's renewal card says the application is then sent electronically to ICP to check that it complies, you're told of anything missing, and the approval or rejection comes by text message and email. Its renewal service page (opens in a new tab) has the full list of conditions and documents. If anything on it is unclear for your helper, ask MOHRE on 600 590000.

How much does it cost to renew a maid visa?

As of September 2026, MOHRE's renewal fee table lists a resident employer at AED 5,215 under its one-year tier outside Dubai, and at AED 5,335.75 in Dubai, where it gives no term. For other sponsors, the same table lists these, among others:

MOHRE's table has no separate row for Golden Visa holders, so if you hold one, ask MOHRE on 600 590000 which tier and term apply to you.

MOHRE doesn't break these fees down, but its resident and investor fees appear to include ICP's yearly guarantee: 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. So don't add the guarantee on top of MOHRE's renewal fee when you budget.

Other costs, and what's published about each:

• ICP's residence renewal fees. ICP's page for renewing a residence permit, which isn't specific to domestic workers, lists an application fee of AED 100, a renewal fee of AED 100 for each year and a smart-service fee of AED 100. We found no official page that says whether these are included in MOHRE's renewal fee or charged on top.
• Her medical fitness test, if she needs a new one. Its fee isn't published on any official page we could read.
• Her health insurance, under your emirate's rules (above). We found a published price only for the northern emirates' basic package.
• Her Emirates ID renewal. Ask ICP, or whoever files for you, for its current fee.
• The dues insurance policy. 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. We found no official page that says whether it must be bought again at renewal, so ask MOHRE on 600 590000.

Our maid visa cost guide breaks down the government fees for a new visa.

How long does a renewed maid visa last?

It depends on who sponsors her. MOHRE issues a domestic worker's permit for one year when the sponsor is an expatriate resident without a Golden Visa. MOHRE's renewal fee table, quoted above, gives renewal terms for citizens, diplomats and, outside Dubai, residents and investors; we found no official page that gives a Golden Visa holder's renewal term.

If a recruitment office sponsors her rather than you, ask the office about her renewal. That's the case in MOHRE's Temporary and Flexible packages, where a worker registered with the office works for your family. And 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. Our guide to who can sponsor a maid has more on sponsors.

When should you renew a maid visa, and what if it expires?

Before her permit expires, and early enough to gather the documents. We found no official page that says how early you can apply. MOHRE's service card for renewing a domestic worker's employment contract states a processing time of 1 working day, but her medical fitness result, insurance and Emirates ID renewal application come first.

Plan her leave around the date. MOHRE's renewal needs her to be inside the UAE, so don't let a trip home run past her expiry date. Our guide to annual leave and flight tickets covers her leave.

What if you don't want to renew?

Then her contract ends when it expires and isn't extended, and you settle her dues. When a domestic worker's contract expires, the employer must pay the worker's dues within 10 days. A renewal needs a contract signed by you both, so it's her choice as well as yours.

Cancelling a domestic worker's work permit or entry permit through MOHRE costs AED 65, or AED 85.75 in Dubai, and our guide to cancelling a maid visa covers the steps and timing. Our final settlement guide covers her dues and the flight home.

If she wants to stay in the UAE with another family, agree the dates with her before anything is cancelled: ICP sets grace periods by category but doesn't say which covers a domestic worker. Our guide to hiring a helper who is already in the UAE explains the move from the new family's side, and if you're leaving the UAE yourself, see what to do about your helper.

Looking for someone new? Browse available helpers. Most helpers listed on MaidMatch are already in the UAE and ready to work.

What changes at renewal if she is Filipina?

Her renewal goes through MOHRE like anyone else's, and we found no official page that adds a Philippine step when she renews with the same family. Her trip home is what needs planning. A Filipino worker needs an exit clearance, such as an Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC), to leave the Philippines. MWO Dubai is the Philippines' Migrant Workers Office in Dubai, and DMW is its Department of Migrant Workers.

MWO Dubai's page says DMW's Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) exemption for returning Filipino workers is only for a worker going back to the same employer, with the same company name or sponsor, jobsite and position, and that a worker whose details differ is redirected to set an appointment. So if her position or where she works has changed, ask MWO Dubai what she needs before she books a trip home. MWO Dubai serves Dubai and the northern emirates; if you live in Abu Dhabi, check with the Philippine Embassy.

Our guide to hiring a Filipino helper covers the Philippine rules in more detail.

Can MaidMatch help with a renewal?

By connecting you with our visa partner, if you'd like help with the paperwork. Sponsorship is the employer's responsibility; families can manage the visa themselves or ask MaidMatch to connect them with its visa partners. Tap the WhatsApp button on this page to ask us, then check with the partner whether it handles renewals, and what it charges, before you commit.

MaidMatch's visa partner offers a two-year employment visa, with the visa, medical test, Emirates ID and insurance handled end to end. If your helper's visa came through the partner, ask it who sponsors her on that visa, what the two years cover and what happens when they end. Our partners page has the details and the current price.