DUBAI (Agencies): Select developers in Dubai can now take on direct registration of property owners qualified for the Golden Visa scheme, further easing the process for these investors to take up 10-year residency. This applies to those investors who have bought property (or multiple units) valued at Dh2 million or over.
There is also a way to the Golden Visa for those who bought at under Dh2 million in the past and whose properties are now valued at over that qualifying amount.
“If the property value has since risen above Dh2 million, then the owner can apply for a new valuation by Dubai Land Department,” said Tizian Raab, spokesperson for Azizi Developments.
Other developer sources too have confirmed that the investment-linked residency process is being speeded up at their level.
Part of a series of reforms on visas, the property investment related visa programme reduced the threshold to Dh2 million from Dh10 million earlier for a 10-year permit. This came at a time when global investor interest in property purchases in Dubai was firing up. In October, the authorities went live with the program, and the take up rates since then have been rated as exceptionally high.
According to an estate agent, “A lot of buyer prospects were waiting for October to confirm their deals. In many of the deals we processed, the buyers’ need was for ready homes and ready GVs.”
Now, with select developers being granted the rights, the process gets done more or less in step with deals being struck with new buyers.
“Azizi Developments have just received log-in details to a portal, hosted by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreign Affairs Dubai,” said Raab. “It allows us to directly register those who purchase property from us for their visas, including Golden Visas.
“We are delighted to be entrusted with the ability to directly register investors for their well-deserved visas ourselves now. It’s a privilege granted by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreign Affairs stemming from our long-standing, close relationship with the authority.”
Those investors who have a mortgage can qualify provided they have invested a ‘minimum of Dh2 million of his or her own funds’ while anything above that amount can also be mortgaged. Buyers of both already-completed and off-plan properties qualify. Those property buyers who have ‘spent a minimum Dh750,000 of their own funds for a 3-year visa.
“We have put in place a dedicated team to provide VIP service to our clients, assisting them in securing their visas, whether 3-year or Golden Visas, in a simple, convenient, and expedited manner,” said Raab.
