The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP) has reminded travellers that the special visa-overstay grace period granted after February–April flight cancellations expires at 23:59 on 9 July. The amnesty, announced on 10 June, waived daily overstay fines for tourists, cancelled-residence holders and departure-permit recipients who were stranded in the Emirates during the regional airspace closures earlier this year. ICP data indicate roughly 46,000 people took advantage of the measure; as of 7 July around 12,000 remain in-country without a valid visa. After the deadline, normal penalties resume: AED 50 per overstay day for visit-visa holders and AED 100 per day for cancelled-residence holders, plus potential immigration ban stamps. Visitors wishing to stay must file a status-change application through the ICP Smart app or an authorised typing centre and pay the associated fees before midnight Thursday. Travel-reliant businesses—from hotels to HR departments handling new expatriate hires—should urge affected guests or recruits to act immediately. Border queues may lengthen on 10–11 July as exit processing times increase for last-minute departures. The grace-period expiry also marks a milestone in the UAE’s post-crisis normalisation: from 10 July the government expects all inbound and outbound passenger flows to follow pre-conflict immigration rules.
Source: The UAE Guides
