Once your own residence visa is issued, you can sponsor your family. The conditions are published and they are not onerous, but they are specific, and the one that stops most applications is documentary rather than financial.
The income condition
The UAE government portal states the sponsor must have a minimum salary of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation. That is the published threshold and it is lower than most people assume.
Who you can sponsor
- Spouse, on proof of an existing marital relationship.
- Unmarried daughters.
- Sons, up to an age limit that extends while they are in full-time study. Confirm the current age at u.ae rather than relying on a summary, including this one — it has changed.
- Children with special needs, under their own provisions.
The document that delays everything
A marriage certificate must be authenticated and in Arabic, or translated into Arabic by a certified translator. Birth certificates for children follow the same logic. If those documents were issued outside the UAE, the attestation chain runs through the issuing country's authorities and then through the UAE mission, and it takes longer than every other step combined.
Start it before you need it. We handle the translation side through legal translation services, but the attestation in the issuing country is on a timeline nobody in the UAE controls. The Emirates ID process covers what happens once the documents clear.
The steps, once documents are ready
- Sponsor file registration, if you do not already have one.
- Entry permit for each family member, or a status change if they are already in the country.
- Medical fitness test for family members aged 18 and over.
- Emirates ID application through ICP.
- Residence visa issuance.
- Health insurance, which is required and is the sponsor's responsibility.
Our per-person fees are the same as for any residence visa: AED 200 typing, AED 300 unemployment insurance where applicable, AED 300 portal access and health cover from AED 500. Government charges are billed at cost.
Plan it into the setup, not after it
Family sponsorship depends on your own visa, which depends on the establishment card, which depends on the licence. If bringing your family is part of why you are setting up, say so at the start: it affects which package makes sense, because visa allocation is tied to your facility in most free zones. Keeping that chain current, year after year, is most of what a PRO service does.
The investor visa covers your own, and the cost calculator prices our side for any number of people.
Family sponsorship questions
The published condition is a minimum of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus accommodation. The harder part is evidencing it if you pay yourself through your own company.
There are provisions for parents, with their own conditions and typically a higher bar than spouse and children. Check the current requirements at u.ae, because this is one of the categories that has changed most.
Yes, authenticated and in Arabic or translated by a certified translator. If it was issued abroad, the attestation chain in the issuing country is the longest part of the whole process. Start it early.
Family members aged 18 and over take the medical fitness test. Younger children generally do not, though other requirements apply.
No. Your residence visa comes first, and it depends on the company's establishment card. The order is fixed.
Family visas are sponsored by you personally rather than drawn from the company's employment quota, but your own visa came from that quota. Plan the package around the total number of people who need residency.
Last reviewed 29 August 2026. Conditions were checked against the UAE government portal and ICP. Age limits and category conditions change; confirm yours at source before committing to a timeline.
