Quick answer: Apply for your Emirates ID through the ICP website or typing centre after visa stamping. Fees are AED 100–AED 300, card arrives in 5–10 working days.
If you're moving to the UAE, applying for a visa, or just trying to open a bank account here, you'll need an Emirates ID. It's the single most important document you'll carry once your residency is sorted. This How to Get a UAE ID Card: Complete Guide walks you through the actual steps, fees, and traps without wasting your week.
The Emirates ID is a mandatory biometric identity card issued by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). Every citizen and resident must hold one. You start your UAE ID card application through the ICP website or an approved typing centre after your residency visa is stamped, give biometrics at an ICP service centre, and collect the card within 5 to 10 working days. Fees run AED 100 to AED 370 plus service charges, depending on validity. [1][2]
The Emirates ID is your legal identity in the country. It carries a 15-digit UAE ID number, your photo, fingerprints, and an electronic chip with your personal data. Federal Law No. 9 of 2006 (as amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 17 of 2017) makes it compulsory for every citizen and resident, regardless of age. [1]
You'll need it for almost everything. Renting a flat, registering a SIM, getting a driving licence, opening a bank account, accessing public healthcare, signing tenancy contracts on Ejari (the Dubai rental registration system), even picking up a parcel sometimes. Lose it and your week stops.
The card is tied to your residency visa. When your visa expires or gets cancelled, the ID card dies with it. Citizens get longer validity, usually 5 or 10 years. Residents typically get 1 to 3 years matched to the visa term. [2]
Once your residency visa is approved and stamped, you've got 30 days to submit your emirates ID card application. Miss that window and you're looking at AED 20 per day in fines, capped at AED 1,000. [2]
Three ways to file:
After the application, ICP sends an SMS with your biometrics appointment. You show up at the service centre, get fingerprinted and photographed, and walk out. The card is delivered by Emirates Post to the address on file, usually within 5 to 10 working days. Residents under the age of 15 are exempt from the biometrics step. [2]
A note worth flagging: your medical fitness test, visa stamping, and Emirates ID application are now bundled under a single ICP transaction in most emirates. If you started residency before 2022, the process felt like three separate trips. It isn't anymore.
Government fees as published by ICP for 2024:
Add AED 70 service fee if applying through ICP, or AED 40 plus typing centre charges if using a typing office. Express service is AED 150 extra and gets the card to you in about 24 hours at the Fujairah or Al Ain Tasheel centres. [2]
Renewal opens 30 days before expiry. The system actually pings you by SMS. Renew late and you pay AED 20 per day in penalties, same as the original application. Lost or damaged card replacement is AED 300 plus the AED 70 service fee, and you'll need to file a lost-document report through the ICP app first. [2]
Watch out: Cancelling a residency visa cancels the Emirates ID automatically. If you're switching employers, your new sponsor must reapply from scratch — there's no transferring the card.
ICP rolled out a new Emirates ID card design in 2021. It's polycarbonate, more tamper-resistant, and carries fewer printed details on the surface because data sits on the chip instead. The cardholder's signature is no longer printed, and Arabic-only fields have been trimmed. If you're still holding a pre-2021 version, it stays valid until expiry — you don't need to rush a replacement.
Your UAE ID number is the 15-digit string printed on the front, starting with 784 (the UAE's ISO country code). It's permanent. Even if you cancel your residency, leave for five years, and come back on a new visa, the same number gets reassigned to you. Treat it like a national insurance number — banks, telcos, and government portals all key off it.
You can pull your number any time through the ICP app or the UAE PASS digital identity, which is useful when the physical card is sitting at home and a hospital reception wants it now.
The biometrics appointment includes a live photo capture at the ICP centre, so you don't bring a printed picture. But a few things still trip people up.
Dress code matters. Men should wear a collared shirt or kandura. Women can wear a hijab but the face must be fully visible from forehead to chin. No sunglasses, no coloured contact lenses, no heavy makeup that distorts features. White or very light backgrounds are handled by the centre — you just sit on the stool.
Children under 15 don't sit for biometrics, but you'll need a recent passport-style photo when filing the application. White background, 4.5 cm by 3.5 cm, taken within the last six months. Typing centres will reject anything blurry or off-spec, and a rejection means a second trip.
Card not delivered after 10 days. Track it via the Emirates Post tracking number ICP sends by SMS. If it's stuck, raise a ticket through the ICP app. Cards going to free zone addresses get held up more often than those going to mainland villas.
Name spelled wrong on the card. Don't just shrug it off. A mismatch between your passport and your ID will block you at banks, RTA, and the courts. Apply for correction through ICP — free if the mistake is theirs, AED 170 if it's a typo from your application.
Travelling without the card. UAE citizens and GCC nationals can use the Emirates ID instead of a passport for travel between GCC states under the GCC unified ID protocol. Residents still need their passport. [3]
Children's cards. Newborns need an Emirates ID within 30 days of their residency visa being issued. The biometrics step is waived for under-15s, but you still need to file the application and pay the fee.
If you're managing this for a family or a team of new hires, build in a 4-week buffer between the visa stamp and any deadline that needs the physical card. The system is fast when it works, but Emirates Post is the bottleneck nobody warns you about.
Need this checked for your situation? Talk to a UAE-licensed lawyer →
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Citations
[1] Federal Law No. 9 of 2006 concerning the Population Register and Emirates ID Card, as amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 17 of 2017. UAE Ministry of Justice legislative portal.
[2] Federal Authority for Identity, Citizen
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Get your Emirates ID through ICP or a typing centre. Processing takes 5–10 working days. Fees: AED 100 per year validity plus AED 70 service charges. It's mandatory for all residents.
This is general legal information, not legal advice. For advice tailored to your specific situation, consult a UAE-licensed lawyer.
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