UAE to grant citizenship to skilled foreigners

Online Desk: The United Arab Emirates on Saturday announced major changes in their citizenship law, allowing citizenship for foreign investors, doctors, scientists, artists and talented people and their families, said a Gulf News report.

The decision to give people with exceptional talents and their families the Emirati citizenship aims to embrace them as members of part of the UAE society, ensure the social stability of these people in the country and boost the overall national development process.

The changes, taken upon the directives of UAE president Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, were approved by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice-president and prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, on Saturday.

The decision specified the categories of the people who can be granted the citizenship, under certain conditions.

In addition to granting the citizenship to them and their families, the law also allows them to keep their current citizenship, which is a major change to the previous rule that doesn’t allow the dual citizenship.

As per the new law, citizens will have the rights to establish and own companies in the UAE, and buy and own land and real estate property in the country, in addition to any other right extend to them by the federal bodies, with the approval of the Cabinet, or by local government bodies.

The decision also said that the UAE citizenship can be stripped from them in such cases like the violation of the legal commitment or losing at least one of the conditions upon which the person was granted the citizenship.

The new law specified the citizenship process, saying that those qualified for the citizenship would be nominated through the Emirates’ rulers court.

The decision represents a milestone in the Arab world, which usually restrict the naturalisation process to a very limited cases and mostly bans dual citizenship.

The UAE has taken several steps recently to ensure the social stability of those with long time residency in the country and the people who contribute to the wellbeing and development of the society through the introduction in 2019 of the permanent residency scheme which allowed for granting five and 10 year Golden Visas to certain categories of residents.

The new changes put the UAE on par with many developed nations that appreciate the talents of expatriates by awarding them the citizenship, ensuring in the process their social stability and secure a future for them and their families in the country.