Applicants from 10 additional nationalities must present a good conduct certificate when applying for a new United Arab Emirates employment or investor visa starting July 20, 2026, according to an advisory issued to partners by the Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ).
The document, also known as a police clearance certificate, confirms that an applicant has no criminal record in their home country. RAKEZ said the requirement stems from the latest update by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) and now covers both employee and investor visa categories.
The newly listed nationalities are Ghana, Lebanon, Lithuania, Morocco, Mozambique, Pakistan, Senegal, Syria, Tonga and Zambia, per the RAKEZ advisory.
The requirement is part of a phased ICP rollout that began June 16, 2026, and is being introduced across several dates through November. An earlier group of nationalities — including Afghanistan, Algeria, Bhutan, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Cuba, Egypt, Iraq, Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, Sri Lanka and Uganda — is already subject to the rule.
RAKEZ set out two routes for obtaining the certificate. An applicant who is outside the UAE, or inside the country on a tourist visa, must secure the certificate from their home country and have it attested by the relevant UAE Embassy. An applicant inside the UAE on a cancelled visa must obtain it through the UAE Police. The free zone authority advised applicants to have the certificate ready alongside other required documents before submitting a visa application to avoid delays.
While the Philippines does not appear on the July 20 list, Filipino jobseekers are already covered under a separate phase of the same ICP measure. The requirement takes effect for Filipinos on August 15, 2026, placing the Philippines in the second of the ICP’s three implementation phases, according to law firm GFLO International, which published the affected nationalities by phase.
For Filipinos, the good conduct certificate’s local equivalent is the clearance issued by the National Bureau of Investigation, recognized in the Philippines as a “No Criminal Record” certificate. Once obtained, the NBI clearance must be authenticated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and attested by the UAE Embassy in Manila before it can be used in a visa application. Applicants are advised to allow extra processing time, as a translation added after attestation falls outside the embassy’s seal and is rejected by the ICP.
RAKEZ said it can assist with certificate applications within the UAE, document attestation, translation and visa submission. Applicants may reach the free zone authority at VAS@rakez.com or on WhatsApp at +971 7 203 1696, or call 600 577 000 for other support.
