Overview & Legal Context
- UAE citizenship is generally not granted automatically by birth or long-term residence; the law follows primarily the principle of jus sanguinis (citizenship by descent).
- However, in 2021, UAE revised its citizenship law to allow certain categories of foreigners — such as investors, scientists, creative talents, doctors, and other specialized professionals — to be nominated for UAE citizenship while keeping their original nationality.
- Citizenship grants in practice remain highly discretionary, often initiated by nomination from senior leadership entities (Rulers’ Courts, Executive Councils, Cabinet).
Paths to UAE Citizenship
Here are the main routes (or theoretical paths) under the UAE framework:
| Route | Key Conditions / Notes |
|---|---|
| By descent | A child born to a UAE father is typically eligible. Also, under certain circumstances, children of UAE mothers (especially when fatherhood is not legally established or stateless) may be eligible. |
| By marriage | A foreign woman married to a UAE national may become eligible after fulfilling conditions such as years of marriage, children, clean record, and nomination. |
| By naturalization / long residence | In theory, someone with 30 years of lawful, continuous residence in the UAE might be considered, along with Arabic fluency, good conduct, legal income, etc. But this path is rarely applied in practice and highly discretionary. |
| By exceptional merit / nomination | Under the updated law, exceptional professionals or talents (investors, inventors, scientists, artists) may be nominated. This path is used to attract high-value contributors. |
Requirements & Criteria
Some of the typical criteria considered include:
- Clean criminal record / good character
- Fluency in Arabic (in many cases)
- Legal / stable income or financial means
- Relevant professional achievements / patents / innovation (for merit-based routes)
- Long-term residence / integration
- Approval / nomination by high-level UAE authorities (Rulers’ Courts, Cabinet)
- Taking oath of allegiance and commitment to abide by UAE laws
Because citizenship is conferred not by general application but by nomination and approval, fulfilling criteria does not guarantee citizenship.
How Dogpay Can Assist in the Citizenship Process (Financial Support Perspective)
While the process of obtaining UAE citizenship is fundamentally administrative and legal, there are financial and payment flows along the way (application fees, legal/translation costs, document services, etc.). Dogpay can facilitate these flows:
- Paying Official & Application Fees If certain steps or supporting services require payments in UAE Dirhams (AED) or payments to UAE institutions, Dogpay enables seamless cross-border transfers with transparent exchange rates and minimized hidden costs.
- Legal / Translation / Document Service Payments Services often required include document translation, attestation, legal consulting. If those services are provided by UAE or foreign firms, Dogpay helps you pay them reliably.
- Supporting Investment / Merit Contributions In routes involving investor or merit nomination, there may be associated financial commitments. Dogpay can help you manage those cross-border investment payments.
- Receipts, Logs & Audit Trail Dogpay generates timestamped receipts, exportable logs, and transaction history. These records help you document legitimate expenditures in citizenship or naturalisation processes.
- Minimizing FX / Banking Leakage Traditional international transfers often incur spread markups and intermediate bank fees. Dogpay helps reduce that “leakage,” so more of your funds are effectively used for process-related costs rather than lost to fees.
