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To sponsor a spouse and children for UAE residence, you normally need an attested marriage certificate and an attested birth certificate for each child. Documents issued abroad must pass through the issuing country's chain, the UAE embassy and MOFA attestation before GDRFA in Dubai or ICP in the other emirates will accept them. Start early: the attestation, not the visa, is usually what takes the longest.
The family visa document list
| Family member | Document to attest | What the authority says |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse | Marriage certificate | GDRFA: certified marriage contract. ICP: attested marriage contract |
| Each child | Birth certificate | GDRFA and the u.ae dependant list: attested birth certificate |
| Sponsor | Proof of income and housing | ICP: income of AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 plus housing |
The marriage and birth certificates are the attestation work. Passports, photos, Emirates ID, tenancy contract and salary proof are submitted as normal copies. Each certificate is a separate document with its own stamps, so a family of four with two children usually attests three certificates.
Step by step: attesting family documents from abroad
- Collect originals. Find the original marriage certificate and each child's birth certificate. Copies and scans cannot be attested, and laminated documents are refused by MOFA.
- Home country chain. A notary where needed, then the foreign ministry or its apostille office. The UAE is not part of the Apostille Convention, so an apostille alone is never the end of the chain.
- UAE embassy. The UAE embassy or consulate in that country attests each certificate. In many countries this is now done through the MOFA portal and a courier, with the embassy and MOFA stamps issued digitally together.
- MOFA. Where the embassy step was not digital, MOFA attests the certificate in the UAE.
- Translation if needed. MOFA accepts documents in Arabic or English. A certificate in another language needs a legal translation in Dubai.
- Visa application. Submit the attested certificates to GDRFA (Dubai) or ICP (Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and the other emirates).
The detailed routes are on marriage certificate attestation and birth certificate attestation.
What attestation costs with us
Our prices are totals with every official fee and the courier included, plus VAT:
| Where the certificate is from | Usual time | Our price per document |
|---|---|---|
| UK, premium route | 12 to 14 working days | from AED 1,600 |
| UK, standard route | 22 to 24 working days | from AED 985 plus VAT |
| USA | about 7 weeks | from AED 1,025 plus VAT |
| Canada | 4 to 6 weeks | from AED 1,900 plus VAT |
| UAE-issued, MOFA only | 2 to 3 working days | from AED 250 plus VAT |
| Any other country | depends on the country | quoted after you share a copy |
For other countries, send a copy on WhatsApp and you get the total price, all official fees included, before any work starts. The full table is on attestation fees.
The visa fees that come after attestation
The Dubai GDRFA family residence visa has its own fees. If your spouse or child is already inside the UAE, for example on a visit visa, GDRFA adds an in-country fee. These are visa fees, separate from attestation.
Country routes for family documents
Each country has its own chain. A few examples:
- United Kingdom: FCDO legalisation, then the UAE Embassy in London, which issues embassy and MOFA attestation digitally. See UK marriage certificate attestation and UK birth certificate attestation.
- Philippines: PSA copy, DFA apostille, UAE Embassy Manila, MOFA. See Philippines marriage certificate attestation.
- South Africa: DIRCO legalisation (free), UAE Embassy Pretoria, MOFA. See South Africa birth certificate attestation.
Every other country is listed on attestation by country.
Children born in the UAE
A child born in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or any other emirate has a UAE-issued birth certificate. It never goes to a foreign embassy for a UAE visa. If an office asks for it to be attested, it only needs the MOFA stamp, which we handle from AED 250 plus VAT, all official fees included.
Timing your family's move
The slowest part of a family visa is usually the attestation abroad. A UK certificate on the standard route takes 22 to 24 working days, USA documents about 7 weeks, Canada 4 to 6 weeks. If your family will arrive on visit visas and change status inside the UAE, the in-country fees apply, so it often pays to finish attestation before they fly. See how long attestation takes.
Common mistakes on family visa documents
- Only an apostille. Common with UK, US and Philippine certificates. The UAE still needs embassy and MOFA attestation.
- Wrong version of a certificate. Some countries issue short and full versions, or local and national copies (for example a local registrar copy instead of a PSA copy in the Philippines).
- Names that do not match. A surname on a passport that differs from the marriage certificate, or a child's name spelt differently, causes questions. Keep linking documents.
- Laminated originals. Refused by MOFA.
- One certificate missing. Attest all children at once, so the file is complete.
For more refusal reasons, see why attestation gets rejected.
