Last checked against official sources on 25 September 2026
QUICK ANSWER
Who pays for a UAE work visa from Pakistan, and how long does it take?
Your employer does: UAE law puts the work permit, entry visa, medical tests and residence permit on the employer, so anyone asking you to pay for the job or the visa itself is a warning sign. A new work permit usually takes about 5 days once the employer files; in Pakistan you pay for degree attestation and Protector of Emigrants registration, and offer to Emirates ID usually takes 4–10 weeks.
Checked on the official sites on 13 October 2026. Fees and times change, so confirm them on the linked page before you pay. Visa centre charges and any consultant's fee are extra.
Who pays the visa
The employer
work permit, entry visa, medical tests and residence permit
A UAE work visa is not something you apply for. Your employer does — a mainland company through the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), a free zone company through its free zone authority — and you complete the rest after you land.
That makes the job offer the whole application. A genuine employer with a real vacancy gets the permit through in weeks. A visa sold to you without a real employer behind it is the oldest Gulf employment scam there is, and it is the worker who ends up stranded, fined or banned.
Most refusals come down to one of four
01A real employer
02Security clearance
03A verifiable degree
04A clean UAE record
AEUnited Arab Emirates · Work visaFACT SHEET
Who applies
Your employer. You cannot apply for a standard work visa yourself
Validity
Two years, renewable
Entry permit
Valid for 60 days; the residence formalities follow after you land
Before you fly
Protector of Emigrants registration in Pakistan
Who pays
UAE law puts recruitment and visa costs on the employer
In the order it happens. Each stage waits on the one before it, so the date you start decides the date you finish. Ranges, not promises — the mission owns the clock.
OFFER TO EMIRATES ID4–10 weeksusually — attestation takes most of it
1First
Check the offer and the employer
Before you pay anyone or resign from anything, confirm that the company exists and holds a valid trade licence, and that the offer names the job, the salary and the benefits. A genuine employer hires you because they need the work done. They do not sell the visa.
23–8 weeks
Attest your degree
Skilled job titles need an attested qualification before the work permit is filed. For a Pakistani degree the chain is HEC (or IBCC for school certificates), then Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, then the UAE Embassy, then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Doing it out of order means doing it twice.
31–3 weeks
Your employer files the work permit
A mainland employer applies to MOHRE, a free zone company to its authority. Approval includes a security check and is not automatic: a real offer can still be rejected, and the authorities do not always give a reason.
4Days to 2 weeks
Entry permit and Protector
Once the permit is approved your employer sends an employment entry permit. In Pakistan you then register for Protector of Emigrants — through your promoter, or directly with the Bureau of Emigration if the employer hired you without one. FIA immigration checks it at the airport.
5Within 60 days
Travel while the entry permit is valid
The entry permit is valid for 60 days. The residence formalities have their own deadline once you land, so travel when you are ready to start them.
61–3 weeks
Medical, Emirates ID and residence
In the UAE you take the medical fitness test, give biometrics for your Emirates ID, and sign the labour contract your employer registers with MOHRE. The residence visa is issued electronically and your Emirates ID is the proof of it — nothing is stamped in your passport.
The official figures are in the quick answer at the top, as checked on 13 October 2026. They change without notice, so each line here says what a cost depends on and where the current figure is published.
Paid by the employer
Permits, visa and Emirates ID
UAE law puts recruitment and visa costs on the employer: the work permit, entry permit, residence visa, medical test and Emirates ID. An employer may not pass them on to you, directly or through a recruiter.
Paid in Pakistan
Protector registration
In Pakistan you pay for your Protector registration — the government fee, the welfare fund and insurance — at the rates the Bureau of Emigration publishes. A licensed promoter's service charge is regulated; always get a receipt.
FIGUREBureau of Emigration
Paid at each stage
Degree attestation
Degree attestation is paid at each stage — HEC, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UAE Embassy and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs — each at its own published rate.
FIGUREEach office
Never pay this
The job or the visa itself
If anyone asks you to pay for the job offer or the visa itself, stop. It is the clearest sign the offer is not what it claims to be.
This is general guidance. Rules change, sometimes without notice, and your case will have specifics this page cannot know about. Check anything decisive on the official pages, or send us your situation and we will tell you where you actually stand.
Read before you apply
Why UAE work visa applications are refused
The grounds that come up most on files from Pakistan. Most of them can be dealt with before you submit.
REFUSED
01
Security clearance rejected
Security clearance rejected. It happens even with a real offer, the reason is rarely given, and your employer sees only the rejection.
02
A past ban, absconding or overstay
A previous labour ban, absconding case or overstay in the UAE, which stays on the system.
03
Medical unfitness
Medical unfitness. The UAE screens for certain infectious diseases, and some results mean the residence visa is not issued.
04
A degree that cannot be verified
A job title that needs a degree you do not have, or a degree that cannot be verified. Forged certificates are caught at attestation, and the consequences fall on you.
05
Passport details that do not match
Passport details on the application that do not match the passport exactly.
06
The employer's own position
The employer's own position — an expired trade licence, unpaid fines, or rules on the mix of nationalities in its workforce — can block the permit even when the job is real.
Already been refused?
Send us the refusal letter before you do anything else. It states the grounds, and they decide whether applying again is worth it or would just cost you the fee a second time.
Two agents cover WhatsApp between them, so this reaches a person rather than an inbox. The first assessment is free and you get a straight answer, including when that answer is no.
YOUR MESSAGE PREVIEW
ApkaVisa · live agentonline now
Assalam-o-Alaikum! I'd like a free assessment.
Service: Work Visa
Destination: United Arab Emirates
(ref: form-guide-work-visa-uae)
No. The standard work visa is applied for by the employer. The routes you can apply for yourself — the Green Visa for skilled employees and freelance permits in some free zones — have their own eligibility rules, and none of them is a way around needing the work.
Not for the visa. UAE law puts recruitment and visa costs on the employer. You pay for your own Protector registration and degree attestation in Pakistan. Anyone charging you for the offer or the visa itself is the problem, not the solution.
You can look for work, but you cannot start until your employer has the work permit in place. Working on a visit visa leads to fines and a ban. FIA also stops passengers at Pakistani airports it believes are leaving on a visit visa to work, so travel on the visa that matches why you are going.
If the job title requires a qualification, yes, and in order: HEC, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UAE Embassy, then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Roles that need no qualification usually need no attestation. Ask your employer which applies before you start, because attestation is the slowest part of the process.
No. UAE rules do not allow an employer to hold your passport against your will. Your Emirates ID is the proof of your residence, and your passport stays with you.
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More on United Arab Emirates
The other guides we have written for this country — each covers one visa in full.
