UAE: Does husband need to sponsor wife’s residence visa after divorce?

Question: I have been living in the UAE with my husband and three children for the last 18 years. My visa is sponsored by my husband. However, we are heading towards a mutual divorce. If finalised, what happens to my residency status? Can my husband be compelled to sponsor my visa and that of our children? What if he says he will only sponsor our children’s visas and not mine? 

Answer: As your UAE residency visa is sponsored by your husband, the provision of Cabinet Resolution No. 65 of 2022 Issuing the Executive Regulations of Federal Law by Decree No. 29 of 2021 Concerning the Entry and Residence of Foreigners is applicable.

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In the UAE, when a woman is divorced while residing in the country on her husband's sponsorship, she is entitled to apply for a one-year extension of her UAE residency visa.

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Furthermore, this extension commences from the official date of divorce. Once a divorce is finalised, the husband should not continue to sponsor the former spouse’s residency visa.

There is no legal provision under UAE law that allows a court to compel a former husband to sponsor his ex-wife’s residency visa after divorce. Furthermore, your husband may continue to sponsor the residency visa of the children. 

You may consult a legal counsel in the UAE to understand your rights which may arise due to the divorce with your husband with regards to maintenance for children, alimony and child custody in accordance with the prevailing personal laws of the UAE (UAE Federal Law No. 28 of 2005 on Personal Status and/or Federal Law No. 41 of 2022 on Civil Personal Status law applicable to non-Muslims).

For further clarifications you may contact the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs and seek their advice on this matter.

Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom 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.