Emirates ID to replace residency stickers on expatriate passports

Emaduddin Khalil, Staff Reporter

The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security (ICA) has issued a circular to the General Civil Aviation Authority stating that residency stickers will no longer be issued for expatriates and that their ID cards will be used as a proof of their valid UAE residency, effective from Monday, April 11.

The ICA has affirmed that a decision to cancel the residency stickers affixed to residents’ passports was issued by the ICA in implementation of the wise leadership’s directives upgrading services for the ultimate goal of achieving customer happiness.

The new procedures will be circulated to airlines to enable them to verify the validity of residences via the Early Inquiry Centre by checking passport number and Emirati ID card, which contains residency information.

The Authority pointed out that the cancellation decision came in implementation of the decision of the UAE Cabinet in support of the development of the services provided and the application of best practices and in order to achieve flexibility that aims to reduce the steps associated with the process of issuing and renewing the residence. The residence and the identity card applications will be joined together in a new unified form that includes the issuance and renewal of the residence and identity card services in one application, instead of the previous separate applications, with the aim of improving and developing processes related to the customers’ journey, in embodiment of the UAE’s vision to provide world-class and high-quality services enhanced by technology.

The Authority also indicated that its smart application provides the possibility to obtain the electronic copy of the identity card in support of the flexibility of use upon request, stressing that the new generation of the Emirates ID card issued to foreigners residing in the UAE includes all the details mentioned previously in the residence sticker, which enhances the added value for the uses of the ID card in proving the personal identity of individuals through the presence of personal and professional data, the issuing entity and other readable data on the surface of the card and the implicit details enhanced through electronic linking techniques.

In detail, Major General Saeed Rakan Al Rashidi, Acting Director General of Residency and Foreigners Affairs, said that the decision to stop issuing residence stickers and adopting the Emirates ID card issued to a foreigner residing in the UAE to prove residency comes as an extension of the package of supporting decisions towards providing the best facilities to customers and raising the level of government services, noting that the previous model of the residence sticker will be available electronically only through the Authority’s smart application.

This step aims to enhance transitional flexibility towards using the identity card as an alternative during this period. He also explained that the Authority has strengthened work with the relevant authorities at the aviation sector to enable holders of valid residence permits as well as visitors who are outside the UAE to come to the country, after verifying that entry criteria are met through the use of the passport reader available at the platforms of companies operating in the air transport sector at airports.

Al Rashidi confirmed that the Authority has developed all the necessary technical facilities to obtain individuals’ residency details through a printed form that can be applied for with the Authority’s stamp, through individuals’ accounts using the Authority’s application or through the smart services system via the website www.icp.gov.ae, which allows the possibility of printing the residence details form in just 3 steps.

Al Rashidi also added that the entry into force of the decision will stop the service of receiving and handing over a resident's passport previously designated for the installation of the residence sticker. This allows achieving a complete smart transformation of the Authority’s residency services, which enhances the happiness of customers and adds qualitative flexibility in the issuance and renewal processes.