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The Dubai Retirement Visa Program gives people over the age of 55 an opportunity to make Dubai their residents. The Program was developed by Dubai Tourism and the General Directorate for Residency and Foreigners Affairs. It is open to both residents and non-residents who wish to take advantage of this excellent opportunity to settle in Dubai.

As part of the retirement visa program, it gives the qualified applicants an initial visa for 5 years, and after which it gets renewed. To qualify for this program, the applicant should be more than 55 years old and have valid health insurance. If the resident takes health insurance for the sole purpose of applying for the visa and if his/her application gets rejected the applicant can claim a refund within 30 days of the purchase of the life insurance policy.

It has to be noted that the applicant should demonstrate his/her capacity to live in Dubai in the form of a 1 million Dirham bank balance or a 2 million Dirham worth of property in Dubai or enjoy a 20,000 Dirham monthly income.  It has to be noted that the renewal of the application is subjected to maintaining at least one of the criteria true. Applications can be submitted on the Retire in Dubai website.

The program was conceived by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, UAE Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, with an objective to make Dubai a favorite retirement destination. The program will initially focus on Dubai residents who have lived in the city for at least 10 years.

Dubai’s proximity to native countries for a large affluent expatriate population can make Dubai a convenient retirement destination for most retirees. Its excellent flight connectivity with all major cities in the world will give close relatives and friends an opportunity to travel from anywhere in the world to Dubai. The Dubai Tourism director general Helal Al Marri hopes these frequent travels would boost Dubai’s tourism.

Dubai is a highly tolerant city with an outstanding standard of living and open-door policy, diversity making it an ideal location for retirees to enjoy their retirement.