They’ll be trying to beat new United Arab Emirates visa regulations due to come into force at the end of July, which some watchers predict could lead to labour shortages.
Wannabe workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, the Philippines and Bangladesh, who currently aren’t subject to visa fees, will have to find a refundable deposit of Dh1,000 ($272), and take out health insurance while they hunt for work.
But the other side of the same coin means potential employers and recruitment agencies will have to go abroad to find workers if a labour shortage is to be avoided, according to Umesh Awadramani, business development manager of the Careerline Recruitment Agency. “Employers are never going to pay money up front for people to come and visit, because they don’t know if they are going to take on the person or not. Employers will have to go to the countries concerned to select people and hire them from there.”
Major general Mohammad Ahmad Al Merri, director general of Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department, said the new rules were intended to regulate the market and make the process of travelling to the UAE simpler, underwriting the importance of tourism to the country.
Anyone found working on a visit visa can be fined more than Dh50,000 ($13,617) and banned from re-entering the UAE. Employers will also face harsh penalties.
Jennifer Lucas, recruitment manager with Wadi Jobs, predicted employers would find themselves bearing the brunt of costs when the new regulations are enforced.
“It will be more costly for employers because they will have to fly in people to start working. There will be less people coming in to look for work because the fee is a lot of money, so companies will chose to recruit from countries of origin.
“What might happen is that it might be a quicker recruitment process, because employers and recruiters might carry out interviews over the phone. If employers don’t want to make the decision there and then through a telephone interview and want to do it face-to-face, they will have to fly the person out, pay for their visit visa and their accommodation. So it will probably be more costly for employers,” she said.
