UAE 10-year Blue Residency Visa: Check eligibility and how to apply

UAE has a long-term residency visa aimed at individuals with exceptional contributions and efforts in the field of protecting the environment. UAE Blue Residency is aimed at attracting global environmental leaders to contribute to the UAE’s sustainable economic and social development.

The announcement of the UAE Blue Visa was initially made in May 2024. Starting February 2025, individuals can now apply for an environmental visa through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs, and Port Security.

Qualified individuals currently outside the United Arab Emirates can apply to first get a 180-day visa from the date of arrival in the UAE leading up to the completion of all necessary blue residency processes.

The Blue Residency visa is granted to individuals who have made significant contributions to environmental protection and sustainability, offering them a 10-year residency in the UAE.

The visa is expected to lead to job opportunities for people with training or education in sustainability-related fields, such as environmentalists, researchers and scientists studying the environment.

The 10-year Blue Residency Visa program seeks to attract and maintain global leaders in environmental research, advocacy, and technology solutions. The Blue Residency Visa is in contrast to the UAE’s ordinary two-year residency permit.

It adds to the previously established programs such as the Golden Visa, which grants investors, entrepreneurs, and specialists ten years of residency, and the Green Visa, which grants competent professionals and company owners five years.

The government communicated – “ We approved the ‘Blue Residency’… which is a long-term residency for a period of 10 years that will be granted to individuals with exceptional contributions and efforts in the field of protecting the environment, whether marine or land. Or the quality of the air environment, sustainability and its modern technologies, the circular economy, or other fields.”

The government states that those who have contributed to environmental conservation are eligible for a 10-year visa. These include the environment on land, the ocean, the quality of the air, sustainable technologies, and the circular economy.