How to Apply: UAE Visa for Filipinos
January 22, 2016
After my post on how to apply Japan visa for Filipinos, I received some messages from friends asking if me if I can possibly write about my other visa application experiences. I always wanted to write about them to be honest, but then I procrastinated for a while. Some of these friends are curious how I got my Dubai/ UAE visa so I am going to talk about the process I went through in this post.
I didn't have much expectations on how beautiful Dubai is but now that I think about it, I underestimated its beauty and grandness.I love the fact that it is one of the most diverse places in the world and very different from the places I visited before.
I was granted a Dubai/ UAE visa in 2014 through Emirates Airlines. If you purchased your ticket somewhere, then this post might not be of help. To cut the long story short, after examining all my options on what is the easiest and most doable option for me, I decided to just course it through Visa Information & Application (VIA) located in Makati which was handling all visa applications for Emirates Airlines.
I checked the process for travelers wanting to use Emirates Airlines as their "sponsor" and the process seems to be still the same.
Here are the requirements I compiled from this link:
Here are the requirements I compiled from this link:
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I went to the VIA office (without any appointment, just walked-in) one morning and submitted the following documents:
- Completed application form (see above link)
-Passport Sized Photo
- Certificate of Employment (COE)
- Photocopy of my credit card (front only)
-Bank Certificate and Statements for the last six (6) months
- Photocopy of my BIR Form 2316
- Photocopy of my car's OR/ CR
- Hotel booking (booked through www.booking.com)
- Copy of my confirmed Manila/Dubai/ Manila ticket purchased at Emirates Airlines
I paid the visa fee around Php 3,800.00 that time and then was told that I would need to wait for at least seven (7) working days for the result.
How much money I presented in my bank account?
You do know I can't say it here. But to be fair, I saved up for this trip really good as my Emirates Airlines ticket to Dubai did not come cheap. I had to pay around Php 48,000.00 for the flight tickets alone plus add the visa processing fee. So please note that when I showed them my bank account, the cost of the ticket had already been spent and my bank account was a "Manila/Dubai/Manila-flight-ticket" poorer.
Processing Time:
After 5 business days, I received a call from VIA that my passport is now ready for pick up. Wohooooo!
Easy peasy? Yes but gathering all the documents may be tedious but if you have them ready, that's no problem. Pricey? Yes- that's for sure.
At that time, my brother wasn't working in UAE yet or I could have opted for another way to get my visa and I can buy Cebu Pacific's cheaper fare instead of shelling out that much in flight tickets!
I believe as long as you got all documents ready and complete, your chances are better. Only the waiting game is what's causing us anxiety I think!
So best of luck to you and hopefully you'll tell me about your sand dunes adventure in no time!
Love,
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