Dubai - The service saves users nearly Dh200 in fees incurred on every new residency application, as well as Dh100 on renewals.
Published: Tue 10 Dec 2019, 2:51 PM
The new 'Residency' service was launched in partnership with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai.
Smart Dubai has launched UAE Residency application services in partnership with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA Dubai) via its Dubai Now application and e-services platform, which allows the emirate's residents to conduct city transactions from the convenience of their smartphones.
The residency service facilitates the transactions and procedures required to issue residency visas for members of the community.
Flexible and efficient, the process takes less than 40 minutes, saving time and effort for all applicants. Users need only 10 minutes to complete their application, which then takes 30 minutes to two working days to be approved.
Dr Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, Director General of Smart Dubai, explained: "Developing the bundle of government services offered through the Dubai Now app is in line with the Dubai Paperless Strategy 2021, through which Dubai government is looking to digitise all internal and external government transactions, establishing itself as a fully paperless administration by December 2021 and saving more than one billion pieces of paper consumed by Dubai Government entities every year."
Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, Director General of the GDRFA Dubai, noted: "So far, all residency services were only available through our smart channels and 'Amer' service centres located around the emirate. The services include issuance, renewal, amendment, and cancellation of residencies, in addition to amendment of status and transfer of sponsorship."
Al Marri noted that visa applications have been made easy and can now be submitted via the smart application and completed in minutes, provided all requirements are met.
As many as 350 people have used the Dubai Now application to issue or renew residency visas for their dependants since the service was announced last month.
Furthermore, the residency section allows users to undertake a host of actions, such as issuing, renewing, and cancelling residency visas, as well as managing dependants, in addition to offering detailed information about these services. It points users to the steps they need to go through, which include medical tests and extracting IDs, among others, in addition to sending push notifications to alert users when their residencies are approaching their expiry dates.
The service saves users nearly Dh200 in fees incurred on every new residency application, as well as Dh100 on renewals, which are usually printing fees.
Smart Dubai has launched 27 new government services on its Dubai Now application at GITEX Technology Week 2019. These services covered various sectors, including residency, housing, education, transportation, and charity donations; they were introduced in collaboration with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai, the Department of Land and Property in Dubai, Knowledge and Human Development Authority, Roads and Transport Authority, and the Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation.
This addition brings the total number of services accessible via the Dubai Now application to 88 services offered by 33 participating entities, offering users seamless, integrated experiences on a single platform.
A Staff Reporter
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