Getting an Emirates ID

What the Emirates ID is

The Emirates ID is the official identity card for every UAE citizen and resident. It is issued by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, known as ICP. The card carries a 15 digit identification number, an electronic chip, and fingerprint biometrics.

Holding one is a legal requirement, not an option. Everyone living in the UAE, including children, must have a card and carry it at all times. The card is used across government services, at airport immigration gates, and to prove identity in everyday transactions such as renting a home or opening a bank account.

How new residents usually get one

For most new residents, applying for an Emirates ID is bundled into the residence visa process rather than handled as a separate errand. A typing centre, acting as an ICP accredited agent, typically submits the Emirates ID application alongside the residence visa paperwork.

The general steps, based on ICP's own published process, are:

1. Submit the application through the ICP Smart Services website, the UAEICP app, or a typing centre.
2. Provide the required documents, which ICP's pages describe generally but do not itemise in detail on the pages checked for this guide.
3. Visit an ICP service centre in person to give fingerprint and biometric details. This step applies to individuals aged 15 and over.
4. Pay the applicable fees.
5. Collect the card once it is ready, or have it delivered depending on the service used. ICP's media centre states it does not charge a fee for delivering cards by post, though this statement comes from an older article and has not been reconfirmed on a current fee page.

Fees: what is confirmed, and what is not

The clearest, most recent figures Savara could trace back to an official source come from a 2022 UAE Cabinet Resolution on ICP service fees, published on uaelegislation.gov.ae. It sets out:

• Residents: AED 100 per individual, for each year of the card's validity. A card issued for a 2 year residence visa would, on this basis, carry an AED 200 ICP fee, and a 3 year validity AED 300. The resolution states the per-year rate directly; Savara has multiplied it to show the implied total, but has not seen ICP state the multi-year totals as a single published figure.
• UAE and GCC citizens: AED 100 per person for a 5 year validity.
• UAE citizens applying through a business sponsor (a separate category in the fee schedule): AED 200 per person for a 10 year validity. This is a different applicant category from the standard citizen fee above, not an alternative total for the same card.
• Lost or damaged card replacement: AED 300. This is a flat fee, not tied to validity length, and the replacement card keeps the same remaining validity as the card it replaces.
• Urgent issuance or renewal without a prior appointment: AED 150, a flat fee.
• Amending basic data on an existing card, keeping the same remaining validity: AED 150, a flat fee.

These figures are the ICP card fee itself. They sit separately from whatever a typing centre or the Smart Services channel charges to process and submit the application. ICP's own media centre confirms this separate charge exists: a statement on its site describes an approved increase of AED 100 per transaction in its "smart services fees" for issuing and renewing identity cards and residency permits, dated to around January 2023. That statement does not give the resulting total amount, so Savara cannot state a current figure for this charge. Older ICP statements, from 2012 and 2017, cited AED 70 for in-person typing centre submission or AED 40 through the website or app, but both predate the 2023 increase and are not treated as current.

Renewing an Emirates ID

Renewal timing depends on nationality:

• UAE nationals can renew once less than one year remains before the card expires.
• GCC nationals and residents can renew once less than six months remain before expiry.
• Renewal can also be done after the card has already expired.

Renewal can be completed at an ICP customer happiness centre, through the ICP Smart Services website, or via the UAEICP app. Anyone aged 15 or over must complete fingerprint and signature procedures at an ICP service centre as part of the process.

If the card is lost or damaged

Report a lost card as soon as possible, then apply for a replacement through ICP's services. The replacement fee is AED 300, and the new card keeps the same validity period as the one it replaces. If a card stops working because of a manufacturing fault, such as a damaged chip, ICP's FAQ states it is replaced free of charge; if the damage was caused by misuse, a paid replacement applies instead.

Where the Emirates ID gets used

Because the Emirates ID confirms identity and residency status in one document, it comes up constantly in day to day life in the UAE, from government services to opening a personal bank account or renting a home. Keeping it valid, and keeping a note of its expiry date, avoids last minute complications with these other processes.

General consumer information only, not legal advice. Rules and regulations can change, so check the latest official guidance for your circumstances.