Anyone travelling on a Nepali passport has to be holding an approved UAE visa at check-in, and the usual choice for a short holiday or a visit to relatives is a one-month UAE tourist e-visa applied for online. Approval from the UAE is only half the preparation, though. Nepal's own immigration officers at Tribhuvan International Airport question outgoing visit-visa passengers closely, and the UAE now asks many Nepali applicants for a police report from home.
Two Gates Between Kathmandu and Dubai: UAE Approval and TIA Departure
Nepal is classed as "visa required" by the UAE, which means immigration in Dubai will not issue an entry permit to an ordinary Nepali passport at the arrival desk. The exemption table published by the UAE's foreign ministry confirms this. Holding an American green card or a Schengen visa makes no difference for Nepali citizens.
The second gate is Nepal's Department of Immigration. Officers at the Kathmandu departure counter can turn back anyone whose papers suggest the holiday is really a job hunt, and genuine tourists with incomplete paperwork get caught too.
Are UAE Visit Visas Open for Nepalis at the Moment?
Yes, Nepali applications are being accepted. The UAE paused visit visas for Nepali citizens for several weeks after the September unrest in Nepal, then reopened them with tighter checks. A pause like that can arrive without warning, so keep non-refundable flights unbooked until the e-visa reaches you.
Nepal Police Clearance Report for a UAE Visit Visa
Since visas reopened, UAE authorities have been asking Nepali applicants, for visit visas as well as work visas, to supply a police clearance report issued by Nepal Police. Requests differ by visa type and by the route a file takes, so our team confirms before payment if your application needs one. Preparing it early avoids delays.
The report is requested online from Nepal Police and normally arrives within a few working days. Where an attested copy is demanded, Nepal's Department of Consular Services handles the attestation. The spelling and passport number on the report should match your passport letter for letter.
What Nepal Immigration Checks at Tribhuvan Airport
Since the Department of Immigration tightened its rules for visit-visa departures, passengers bound for Dubai are usually asked for:
- a passport with six or more months still to run, plus the approved UAE visa;
- a two-way air ticket;
- a hotel reservation covering the whole stay or, when lodging with family, documents proving the relationship within three generations;
- at least USD 500, which may be shown as cash or on a debit or credit card;
- a signed self-declaration confirming the trip is only a visit, required for the UAE and the other Gulf states.
Officers keep wide discretion; carry printouts and describe your plans simply. Nepal sets and revises these conditions; recheck them with the Department of Immigration the week you fly.
Matching the Dubai Tourist Visa to a Nepali Itinerary
Rupees, Dollar Cards and the Cost of a Dubai Visa From Nepal
Prices are in US dollars, not rupees, and appear on each visa card. Many applicants in Nepal pay with a dollar card from a Nepali bank, which handles online US-dollar payments but carries a spending limit, so check it first. Our guide to what Dubai visas cost explains why longer stays and extra entries are priced higher.
Documents a Nepali Applicant Uploads
- A sharp colour image showing the data page; the passport itself must stay in date for six months after you land.
- Your latest photograph, taken against plain white; the UAE visa photo rules give the size and framing.
- Your return or onward flight details.
- Travel health insurance the UAE accepts, covering every day of the stay, as described in our note on UAE visit visa insurance.
- The Nepal Police report, when your application calls for one.
Spell every name the way the passport prints it in English. A name written differently on a citizenship certificate, hotel voucher or ticket raises avoidable questions at both airports.
Flights From Kathmandu to Dubai and Sharjah
flydubai, Himalaya Airlines and Nepal Airlines all fly nonstop from Kathmandu to Dubai, with about four hours and 40 minutes in the air. Air Arabia flies nonstop to neighbouring Sharjah, and the tourist visa is valid at either airport. Travellers from Bhairahawa usually connect through Kathmandu, since Gautam Buddha International has no nonstop Dubai flights at present.
Clocks in Dubai sit one hour and 45 minutes behind Nepal throughout the year. A late-evening departure from Kathmandu therefore lands the same night in Dubai, which matters when you compare the arrival date with the entry window on your visa.
Flying to Dubai From Delhi or Another Indian Airport
Nepalis living or studying in India sometimes fly out of Delhi, Lucknow or Mumbai instead. For a UAE trip from an Indian airport, they generally need a no-objection certificate from the Embassy of Nepal in New Delhi. The embassy asks for the original passport, the UAE visa and ticket, your travel history, documents showing why you are in India, and a signed application explaining the trip.
Children under 16, labour-permit holders and travellers holding a valid US, UK or Schengen visa are among those excused. The certificate is discretionary; apply early.
Nepali Families in the UAE Inviting Parents and Relatives
When Nepalis working in the Emirates invite a parent or sibling, the visitor is the applicant and receives the tourist visa personally, so the family member in the UAE does not need to act as a sponsor. At the Tribhuvan counter, the traveller swaps the hotel booking for papers proving the family tie, and should carry the host's UAE address and phone number.
A spouse or child who is moving to the UAE to live needs the resident's family sponsorship instead; our overview of UAE family residence requirements sets out that route. Nepalis working in Riyadh, Doha or elsewhere in the Gulf may fit the separate GCC-resident UAE e-visa.
Why Nepali Workers Cannot Use a Tourist Visa for a Dubai Job
A Dubai job is only lawful once your future employer has secured your work permit, and Nepali workers also need a labour permit from Nepal's Department of Foreign Employment before departure. Leaving on a visit visa to look for work contradicts the self-declaration signed at the airport and is exactly what the departure checks are designed to catch. Walk away from any agent selling a "visit visa now, job later" package. How lawful hiring works is explained in our overview of UAE work permits.
Already in Dubai on a Nepali Passport? Extensions and Overstay
Ask about more time before your last permitted day. Subject to the visa held, a one-month extension arranged without leaving the country or a two-month stay extension within the UAE can sometimes avoid a flight out.
Overstay fines grow by AED 50 a day and start immediately, as the UAE allows no grace days; the whole sum is collected before you can depart and may count against you later, so read how overstay fines in the UAE are checked if your dates slip.
Tracking a Nepali Application Until the E-Visa Arrives
Your application ID is emailed once payment clears, and the online Dubai visa tracker shows each stage. Once the e-visa lands, read the name, passport number and entry type against the passport itself, then print two copies: one for the airline desk and one for the immigration officer in Kathmandu. Departures only days away may suit the express UAE visa option where the file is eligible.
If a Nepali Applicant's Visa Is Refused
A refusal often has a fixable cause: a blurred scan, a missing police report, spellings that disagree, or an old UAE case that was never closed. Go through our list of common UAE visit visa refusal reasons before trying again. Fees on a refused file are not returned; withdrawing before submission returns the payment minus USD 50, as our published refund terms explain.
Plan a Dubai Visit From Nepal With Dubai Visitor Visa
Unsure about the right visa, the police report or the Tribhuvan departure check? Send our visa team your passport details, travel dates and where you will stay. WhatsApp is staffed at all hours, so even a late-evening question from Kathmandu gets an answer.
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