UAE Freelance Visas Are a Mess: Scams & Suspensions

Freelance visas are for those who want to move to Dubai, get a residence visa and open a business bank account, without the cost and hassle of setting up a regular LLC company.

There are just a handful of free zones where you can purchase a freelance business licence plus a residence visa. In Dubai, these include Dubai Internet City, Media City, Dubai Design District, and DMCC.

Now here is where it gets messy.

Over the summer in 2025, all of these free zones suspended visa issuances for freelancers.

We were hoping for this to get resolved; however, as of November 2025, visas are still not being issued - and even visa renewals are suspended.

Officially, all government websites still show that you can apply, and there are news reports that there are no more suspensions. 

However, if you visit any of these free zones or call them, you will quickly find out that while you may be able to submit a visa application - visa approvals remain on hold.

However, it gets worse - Beware of Fake Freelancer Visas!

If you search for 'freelance visa' on Google, you will come across dozens of websites that claim to sell freelancer visas.

And most of these have more attractive pricing than the official government websites.

How is that possible?

Here is what is going on: Some individuals set up regular LLC companies - which allow them to hire close to unlimited employees.

When you are buying a visa from these providers, they will pretend to hire you - and simply issue you an employment visa.

The visa and Emirates ID that you will receive will show their company name as sponsor - and indicate that you are their employee.

These questionable providers are just calling it a freelance visa - even though it is a regular employment visa.

This leads to multiple issues:

Because you are officially the employee of the visa provider, you can’t open your own business bank account, get a Stripe account, and officially aren’t allowed to work as a freelancer in the UAE.

You are only allowed to work for your employer.

These setups are exploiting a loophole. They report to the government that you are on a commission-based salary and thus don’t have to pay you a salary.

However, your visa is constantly at risk of a government crackdown and cancellation. In fact, there are already news reports that investigations into these companies are starting.

The 5-year Green Visa for Freelancers is also unavailable.

A lot of websites, including government sources advertise a so-called 5Y green visa for freelancers

However, while advertised, for many years, Dubai’s government hasn’t approved any such 5Y green visas for freelancers. It is simply not available when you apply.

Specifically, to get approved for the 5Y Green Visa, you need to obtain a Mohre work permit - which as of Nov 2025 (and for the past 2 years) isn't being issued.

What can you do as a freelancer if you want to get a freelance visa?

The only two options you have are to:

• Wait and see whether freelance visas will be issued in the future - If so, we will update this article. Once visa issuances restart, we are happy to assist you with your application.

• Or set up a regular LLC company - check out our company setup services here.

Whatever your choice, we are here to help.