- Extended working hours for Visa Application Centres in UAE
- Exclusive 50% Ramadan discount on Premium Lounge services for all UAE Healthcare professionals
VFS Global, the world’s largest outsourcing and technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions worldwide, announced the opening hours of the Visa Application Centres (VACs) in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, including extended working hours to provide even greater convenience to visa applicants during the holy month of Ramadan.
| Countries | Dubai | Abu Dhabi |
| United Kingdom | Monday – Friday 09.00am – 02.00pm Extended hours: 02.00pm to 06.00pm Prime Time: 08.00am to 09.00am | Monday – Friday 09.00am – 02.00pm Prime Time: 08.00am to 09.00am |
| All other visa centres (except Saudi) | Monday – Friday 09.00am – 02.00pm Extended hours: 02.00pm to 05.00pm Prime Time: 08.00am to 09.00am | Monday – Friday 09.00am – 02.00pm Prime Time: 08.00am to 09.00am |
Note: All VACs will remain closed for a prayer break between 12.00 pm to 02.00 pm on Fridays during Ramadan.
In addition, VFS Global celebrates UAE Healthcare Heroes by offering an exclusive 50% discount on Premium Lounge services for the month of Ramadan. All frontline healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, psychologists, therapists, and pharmacists, with a valid medical ID card travelling to any country that offers Premium Lounge service, can avail of the offer in Dubai or Abu Dhabi centres.
VFS Global’s Premium Lounge offers assured personal assistance, quicker completion of the application submission process, and immediate biometric enrolment, all at a spacious and plush facility. Customers who opt for Premium Lounge also receive complimentary photocopying and photo-booth services as per requirements. Automatic updates at each stage of the visa application will also be shared via SMS.
As an optional service to customers wanting to complete the entire visa application submission process from the comfort of their home or office, VFS Global continues to provide the “Visa At Your Doorstep” service whereby a customer can submit the application, enrol biometrics, and get the passport couriered back to the location of choice.
VFS Global suggests citizens and expatriate residents of UAE to plan their travel itinerary and visa application well in advance of the departure date to avoid delays in processing during the peak season of Eid and Summer Holidays.
VFS Global is the world’s largest outsourcing and technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions worldwide. With 3524 Application Centres, operations in 141 countries across five continents and over 237 million applications processed (since inception in 2001) as on 31 January 2022, VFS Global is the trusted partner of 63 client governments. The company manages non-judgmental and administrative tasks related to applications for visa, passport and consular services for its client governments, enabling them to focus entirely on the critical task of assessment. VFS Global is majority-owned by the global investment organisation EQT. The Swiss-based Kuoni and Hugentobler Foundation holds a minority stake in VFS Global. EQT is a global investment organisation with offices in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific and a 27-year track record of consistent investment performance across multiple geographies, sectors, and strategies. EQT AB Group is listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm stock exchange. EQT manages and advises a range of specialised investment funds and other investment vehicles that invest across the world with the mission to generate attractive returns and future-proof companies. EQT funds’ investors do not influence portfolio companies’ decision making or strategies. Nor do they have access to private and confidential business assets or client and customer data.