Question
Can I apply for a golden visa myself, or do I have to be nominated?
The short answer
Some golden visa categories are applied for on documents you hold, and others rest on a recommendation from a named body. ICP's Golden Residency guide asks investors for evidence such as AED 2,000,000 of registered property, while scientists and healthcare, education and industry specialists need a recommendation from a body such as the Emirates Scientists Council or the relevant ministry. Separately, ICP publishes a Golden Residency Nomination Application as a pre-approval service, with AED 0 application and issuance fees, an AED 100 smart-services fee and a 2-day completion time; it is not the residence itself.
What each route is for
Categories built on documents you hold are the ones you can assemble alone. ICP's guide asks a property investor for registered ownership of at least AED 2,000,000 (a loan is allowed if it comes from an approved local bank) and asks a public-investment investor to show the capital is not borrowed and to prove its source. A top graduate needs a Ministry of Education attested degree and must have graduated no more than two years before applying.
Other categories are judged on a recommendation. ICP's guide names the Emirates Scientists Council for scientists and researchers, the Ministry of Health and Prevention for healthcare specialists, the Ministry of Education for education specialists, and the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology for industry specialists, each alongside the relevant local authorities. You cannot produce that recommendation yourself, so the first step is approaching the body that gives it.
Pre-approval is not residence
- The nomination service carries an AED 0 application fee, an AED 0 issuance fee and an AED 100 smart-services fee. ICP lists a 2-day completion time, and the service runs through the Smart Services website and app with a UAE Pass login.
- The service is filed under the Visitor category. It asks for a passport valid for no less than 6 months, a valid UAE health insurance policy, a photo and the documents that prove eligibility. Residence is issued afterwards through a separate service.
- ICP's guide gives eligible applicants outside the UAE a six-month multiple-entry visa, renewable for a further six months, to complete the Golden Residency procedures. That bridges the gap between approval and issuance for someone travelling in to finish. Its fee sits on a separate ICP service card, not on the nomination card, so check it before you book travel.
What neither route changes
ICP publishes the category requirements and judges the evidence against them. Neither route lowers a threshold. A graduate of a Category (A) UAE university still needs a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 out of 4.0, and a Category (B) graduate needs 3.8. Neither route converts a refusal into an approval.
The only timeline ICP publishes for the nomination service is 2 days, and that covers pre-approval, not issuance of the residence. Anyone who guarantees a golden residence is promising a decision that stays with the authority.
Where this stops
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Where this comes from
General information drawn from the CBUAE Rulebook, including the Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Regulation (C 15/2021), and Cabinet Resolution No. (134) of 2025 as published, not legal or tax advice. Rules and guidance change, so confirm the current text and each institution's own requirements before you submit.