What do the amendments to the UAE's citizenship laws really mean?

The changes made to the UAE Federal Law No. 17 of 1972 (the ‘Citizenship Law’) constitute a positive development and further reinforce the UAE’s status as a regional and international investment hub.

The amendments have already prompted the interest of numerous individuals and will allow investors and certain professionals to envision and plan a long-lasting and stable establishment in the UAE.

The UAE government had already considerably facilitated the obtainment of the UAE citizenship in August 2020 with initial amendments to the Citizenship Law. The latest changes include a major development: individuals will now be able to obtain the UAE citizenship without having to relinquish their original nationality.

We currently await clarifications on the specific criteria permitting access to the UAE nationality. The definition of an ‘investor’ will need to be elaborated to accurately assess the accessibility of the citizenship on a case per case basis.

For example, it is essential to identify whether a minimum value will be required for an individual to be considered an investor. The procedural modalities of the grant of the citizenship also constitute a point of interest in order to evaluate the ease of access to the UAE nationality.In a nutshell, the announcement provides the following:

The UAE citizenship will now be available to investors, doctors, scientists, skilled and talented individuals (including artists and intellectuals such as authors and engineers) and their families;

The individuals granted the UAE citizenship will be able to keep their existing citizenship and will therefore not be required to relinquish it;

The naturalized individuals will be afforded rights that will be detailed at a later stage by governmental and federal bodies. These rights include (but are not limited to) acquiring real estate and establishing companies in the UAE; and

The UAE citizenship will be granted via a nomination by each Emirates’ Ruler’s Court through a mechanism that is yet to be clarified.

While we await the details in relation to the specificities of each requirement, we note that allowing access to foreign investors and highly skilled professionals to the UAE citizenship, and by extension the rights and obligations currently available to UAE nationals, will allow the UAE to retain and generate a significant traffic of talent to the UAE, particularly in the fields which will be afforded the opportunity.

The amendments will also, in our opinion, boost the real estate market as individuals will be incentivised to acquire real estate in the UAE and to build more stable and long-term ties to the country, whether on a personal or professional level.

The above clearly indicates the UAE’s purpose to attract new investments and talent and create new opportunities, particularly in the fields that are most strategic to the continuous development of the country.

These fields include science, medicine, technology, and space, and we note that the UAE has recently adopted numerous initiatives to enhance its contribution to the global efforts in these areas.

The UAE’s position as a leading economy is further reinforced by its offering of a competitive platform for talented individuals who will now be able to consider building and developing their practices from the UAE.