Filipino travelers who hold valid visas or residence permits from a select group of countries can now enter the United Arab Emirates without securing a UAE visa in advance, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in an advisory.
Effective June 25, 2026, Philippine passport holders carrying a valid visa, residence permit, or Green Card from the United States, European Union member states, Australia, Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Canada, or New Zealand are eligible for a visa-on-arrival from the UAE.
Qualified travelers may choose between a 14-day stay for a fee of AED 100, which may be extended once for an additional 14 days at AED 250, or a 60-day stay for AED 250, which the DFA said is not extendable.
The privilege marks a shift for ordinary Filipino passport holders, who until now have not been eligible for visa-free or visa-on-arrival entry to the UAE and have had to obtain a pre-arranged visa—typically through airlines, hotels, or accredited agencies—before traveling. Filipinos remain among the largest expatriate communities in the Emirates, where hundreds of thousands live and work across sectors including healthcare, hospitality, retail, and construction.
The DFA attributed the new arrangement to the strong bilateral relations between the Philippines and the UAE.
