Widows, divorcees, their kids get residency extension

Widows and divorced women and their children can now apply for a one-year visa extension, which starts from the date of the divorce or the death of the spouse. “Under the new visa reforms enacted by the Cabinet, widows and divorced women and their children have been granted a one-year residency without the need for a sponsor,” said Brigadier Saeed Rakan Al Rashidi, acting director-general of foreigners affairs and ports at the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship. “The aim is to give women the opportunity to adjust their social and economic status after the loss of the head of the family,” he said.

Al Rashidi explained that the one-year visa will start from the date of the death or divorce and that the woman and the children must be under the husband’s visa at the time of divorce or death of the head of the family.

“The visa will be granted to the woman and her children provided that the wife can sustain herself in

the UAE. Children will be under the sponsorship of their mother and only those staying here with their parents at that time of divorce or death will benefit from this type of visa,” he explained.

Previously, divorced and widowed women who did not have an employment visa would have to leave the country soon after their divorce or the death of their husband.

The aim is to give women the opportunity to adjust their social and economic status after the loss of the head of the family.”

Brigadier Saeed Rakan Al Rashidi, acting director-general of foreigners affairs and ports, Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship