Fear grows among Egyptians in UAE over residency cancellations, report says
Egyptians in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) face fears over their long-term residency in the country after a number of nationals had their permits cancelled earlier this month.
Several Egyptians living and working in the UAE have reported that their residency permits were unexpectedly revoked, leaving them unable to return to their jobs.
Posts shared online also suggest that a new Police Clearance Certificate requirement for Egyptian work permits may be complicating plans to change jobs or travel to Egypt, even though no official change in UAE residency rules for Egyptian nationals has been announced.
The New Arab reported that Mahmud Adel, a 33-year-old schoolteacher, travelled to Egypt in July for his annual holiday and was preparing to return to Sharjah three weeks later when his employer informed him by email that his residency had been cancelled.
"This was shocking, because the administration didn't mention any reasons for the residency cancellation," Adel told the publication.
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The report also quoted 36-year-old interior decorator Abdel Rahman Ahmed, who said he discovered his residency had been cancelled when he arrived at Cairo Airport to return to Abu Dhabi after spending time in Egypt.
"At first, I couldn't believe it, but I tried to contact the company in Abu Dhabi," Ahmed said.
Ahmed said company officials did not answer his calls, bringing an abrupt end to his eight-year career in the UAE.
Other Egyptian workers have reported similar experiences on social media, with fear spreading among employees, forcing many to reconsider travelling home.
“I’m scared that if I travel anywhere, I’ll be one of the unlucky people,” a user wrote on the social media platform Reddit.
Some expatriates and business owners have also decided against travelling to Egypt for fear that they could lose their residency status before returning to the UAE.
According to the Egyptian diplomatic mission in Abu Dhabi, some 1.3 million Egyptians were working and living in the UAE by the end of 2024.
Egypt received $43.1bn in remittances from its expatriate community in the first 11 months of the fiscal year 2025-26.
The two countries have been close allies for years, and the Gulf state has been a major investor in the North African nation.
However, there have been splits over regional issues, including in Sudan, where they supported opposing sides of the conflict in the country.
Middle East Eye contacted the Emirati embassy in London for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.
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