Emirates 48-Hour Transit Visa in Just a Few Steps

An Emirates transit visa is the UAE entry permit that lets you leave Dubai airport during a layover — and despite the name, you do not need an Emirates airline ticket to get one. The 48-hour version is single entry, valid to enter within 14 days of issue, cannot be extended, and costs $90 per person all-inclusive. This page covers who needs it, the price, how the airline's own transit visa differs from ours, the documents, and how to apply online in about ten minutes.

Layover longer than two days? Use the 96-hour transit visa instead. Staying airside for a same-terminal connection? You need nothing.

Emirates Transit Visa vs Emirates Airline Transit Visa

"Emirates transit visa" means two things, and the confusion costs travellers real money. The permit is a UAE transit visa issued by GDRFA or ICP — identical whoever sponsors it. The Emirates airline transit visa desk is a service the airline runs for its own passengers, open only to travellers with both Dubai legs on an Emirates ticket under one booking, applied for several working days ahead.

That rules out a lot of people: anyone flying flydubai, IndiGo, Air India, Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, Wizz Air or Air Arabia, anyone on a codeshare booked through another carrier, and anyone with two separate one-way tickets. For all of them, the route to the same permit is a licensed UAE agency such as Emirates Visa. We are an independent agency, not affiliated with the airline, and the transit visa we file is checked against the same passport number at the same border. The airline's desk does not process faster — every application goes through UAE immigration.

Dubai Transit Visa 48 Hours Price

The dubai transit visa 48 hours price is $90 per person, total. The UAE waives its government fee on the 48-hour permit, so the price covers sponsorship, filing and insurance where required.

The 7 Days Single at $99 is worth a look if your layover is close to 48 hours or your flights are on separate bookings: it allows a week, gives 60 days to enter, and does not require an onward ticket to a third country. Full site pricing is on the Emirates visa price page.

Do I Need a Transit Visa for Dubai?

You need an Emirates transit visa for 48 hours if all three apply:

• Your nationality is not visa-free or visa-on-arrival for the UAE.
• You are connecting to a third country — not returning to where you started.
• You want to leave the airport during the layover.

You do not need it if you hold a visa-free passport, qualify for visa on arrival, or stay airside. Indian nationals with a valid US, EU, Australian, Canadian, Japanese, New Zealand, Singapore or South Korean visa or residence permit are stamped in on arrival and need no transit visa — see visa on arrival for Indians. Standard Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Nepali and Filipino passport holders need the permit.

Official UAE Rules for the 48-Hour Transit Visa

As set out on the UAE Government portal, the Emirates transit visa for 48 hours is issued free of government charge, is single entry, cannot be extended, must be sponsored by a UAE-based airline or licensed sponsor, and must be applied for before travel. It is not issued on arrival for any nationality. The permit is valid in every emirate, not only Dubai. The scheme has not been discontinued and remains in force as of September 2026.

48-Hour Transit Visa Rules

• Validity to enter: 14 days from issue.
• Stay: 48 hours from the time you clear immigration.
• Entries: single.
• Extension: not possible; cannot be upgraded to 96 hours after issue. Since February 2026 the UAE charges AED 50 per day of overstay with no grace period — see our overstay rules guide.
• Onward ticket: mandatory, to a third country, departing within the 48-hour window.
• Passport validity: at least six months.

Documents Required

1. Passport bio page — clear colour scan.
2. Passport-size photo — plain background; see photo size.
3. Confirmed onward ticket to a third country within 48 hours.
4. Inbound ticket showing arrival in the UAE.
5. Hotel booking or host address — recommended.

How to Apply for a Dubai Transit Visa Online

1. Select 48 Hour Transit and enter your arrival date.
2. Upload passport, photo, inbound and onward tickets.
3. Pay $90 online — the total price.
4. We file with UAE immigration and send the reference number.
5. Receive the e-visa by email in one to two working days. Print it and carry it with your passport.

Apply at least five working days before travel and no more than 14 days before arrival. Track it on visa status. Searches for "Emirates transit visa apply online" and "UAE transit visa apply online" end at this form — there is no separate government application for individuals.

Transit Visa for Indian, Pakistani and Other Passport Holders

The Emirates transit visa permit and price are the same for every visa-required nationality. What differs is scrutiny: Pakistani and Bangladeshi applicants are more often asked for a hotel booking, and all applicants should ensure the onward ticket is genuinely to a third country. If your trip is really a round trip with a Dubai stop, apply for a visit visa on your nationality page — for example UAE visa for Indian citizens or Pakistan.

Emirates Transit Visa vs Emirates Dubai Connect

Emirates airline also markets a stopover product, Dubai Connect, which provides a hotel and meals for passengers with long connections on Emirates tickets. It is not a visa. Passengers who take up Dubai Connect still need a transit visa if their nationality requires one to leave the airport, and the airline arranges it as part of the package for eligible bookings. If you are on any other airline, or your Emirates booking does not qualify, the Emirates transit visa you need is the standard 48-hour permit on this page.

48 Hours, 96 Hours or 7 Days: Which to Choose

• Under two days, one through-ticket: the 48-hour permit at $90.
• Two to four days: the 96-hour permit at $100.
• Separate bookings, a round trip, or dates that may shift: the 7 Days Single at $99 — no onward-ticket requirement, 60 days to enter.

Flight delays eat into a fixed 48-hour window. If your connection is close to the limit, the 7-day visa is the safer buy for nine dollars more.

Why an Emirates Transit Visa Application Is Refused

• No onward ticket, or one back to the country you departed from.
• Onward departure outside the 48-hour window.
• Passport validity under six months.
• Previous overstay with unpaid fines.
• Nationality restricted to airline-only sponsorship.

The government fee is not returned on refusal; the file can be corrected and refiled. See Dubai visa rejection.

Applying from India, Pakistan, Nigeria or the Philippines

Most Emirates transit visa applications we file are from Indian nationals on India–Dubai–Europe or India–Dubai–USA itineraries, followed by Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Nigerian and Filipino passport holders. The permit and price are identical for all of them. Indian applicants pay in rupees by UPI or NetBanking; others pay by international card. The onward ticket is the document that matters most — it must show departure to a third country within 48 hours of arrival, on a confirmed booking, and it is checked twice: by the airline at departure and by immigration in Dubai.

A Worked Example

You fly Mumbai–Dubai on IndiGo, arriving 8 October at 09:00, and Dubai–Amsterdam on KLM departing 9 October at 23:30. Two separate airlines, so the Emirates airline desk cannot help; you apply through us. You upload passport, photo and both tickets on 1 October, pay $90, and receive the e-visa on 2 October. It is valid to enter until 16 October. You clear immigration at 09:45 on 8 October and must exit by 09:45 on 10 October — your 23:30 departure on 9 October is comfortably inside the window.

What to Do With 48 Hours in Dubai

Enough for the essentials: Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall on day one, Old Dubai, the Gold Souk and a desert safari on day two. Airport hotels in Deira and Garhoud are ten minutes from Terminal 3. The permit also allows a day trip to Abu Dhabi or Sharjah, since it is valid across the UAE.