Divorced women may stay in UAE on husband's visa for a year

The government of the UAE proposed a one-year residence visa extension for divorced women and widows.

Q-I am a Muslim expat living in Dubai with my husband and two children. I am a homemaker. My husband and I intend to get divorced as things have not been working out between us. This will be a mutual decision. Once we are divorced, is there a legal provision for me to stay in the UAE under his sponsorship so that my children may continue to stay with me as they are going to a school here?
A-It should be noted that, recently, the government of the UAE proposed a one-year residence visa extension for divorced women and widows. This one-year period shall start from the date of the divorce or the date of death of the husband. On the date of filing for divorce or at the time of death of the husband, the wife and the children should be on the sponsorship of the husband.
Since you and your children intend to stay under the sponsorship of your husband upon divorce, you may remain in such residence status for one year from the date of the divorce. However, your children may continue to be sponsored by your husband as a father and this period of one year is not applicable to them.
Along with your application to continue to remain on the sponsorship of your husband, you should present your divorce certificate and other relevant documents to the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA). For further clarifications, you may contact the GDRFA and seek their advice.
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Divorced women and widows may stay under the sponsorship of their husband for one year, from the date of the divorce or the death of the spouse
Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom, Singapore and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. Readers may e-mail their questions to: news@khaleejtimes.com or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.