Temporary passport not sufficient proof of UAE citizenship

A temporary Emarati passport is not enough for a foreigner to acquire UAE nationality, according to the Dubai Court of Cassation.

The court also confirmed that a person acquires UAE citizenship only after a decree by the Minister of the Interior and approval of the Council of Ministers.

The court also said “UAE courts are not competent to hear cases filed against a foreigner who has no home or permanent place of residence in the country.”

These legal principles were issued when the Court of Cassation considered a case filed by a bank operating in UAE against a Pakistani.

The bank had asked the court to compel the defendant to pay  6.2 million Hong Kong dollars  (Dh2.7 million). The defendant was guarantor of a loan given by the bank to a company.

Both the company and the defendant (the Pakistani guarantor) declined to meet their financial obligations. The bank then filed a lawsuit demanding this amount.

The Court of First Instance ruled that it has no jurisdiction over the lawsuit which forced the bank to appeal the judgment.

The Court of Appeal upheld this verdict following which the bank approached the Court of Cassation.

The Court of Cassation supported the verdicts of both the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal and established these legal principles.

The bank based its appeal on the fact that the respondent holds a temporary UAE passport which gave him the right to engage in commerce in the UAE.  He had announced in a newspaper that he is selling a shop licensed in his name.

The Dubai Court of Cassation rejected this argument and upheld the ruling of the Court of First Instance that UAE courts are not competent to hear such cases.

The Court of Cassation based its judgment on Article 20 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which allows UAE courts to consider only cases filed against citizens and foreigners who have a home and place of residence in the country.

The Court of Cassation also based its judgment on Federal Law No. 10 of 1975 which empowers the Minister of the Interior to grant temporary passports to some people.

But the Court of Appeal also noted that the temporary passport is not sufficient proof of UAE citizenship.

Citizenship of the UAE can be granted only on the basis of Article 27 of the act. A decree by the Minister of the Interior and approval of the Council of Ministers are needed, the court ruled.

The court said the Ministry of the Interior had said the passport of the defendant was a temporary one which had expired long ago. Also, the defendant had left the UAE and had not returned. So it was clear that he was a Pakistani national and had no permanent place of residence in the UAE, the court noted.

Emirates to hire 10,000 professionals this year

Emirates, the world's biggest international passenger carrier, will hire up to 10,000 professionals this year to manage its growth, a senior official said.

"We will hire 10,000 people this year to manage our expansion and growth as 30 new aircraft join our fleet," Boutros Boutros, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice-President for Media Relations, Sponsorships and Events, told a gathering of top Indian management professionals on Saturday.

Emirates Group, which also includes the ground handling and ticketing arm Dnata, has nearly 60,000 people on its payroll.

The airline, which has a fleet of 171 aircraft, flies to more than 130 destinations. We have an orderbook of 235 aircraft worth $84 billion [Dh308 billion] at list prices including 70 A380s and the airline's network covers 95 per cent of the world's population," Boutros said. "From Dubai, our airline reaches 6.6 billion people within 16 hours flying time."

The airline is focusing on expanding to the Americas and India, where it operates 185 flights a week. The airline is ready to deploy more aircraft to India if need be, he said Emirates launched flights to Dallas and Seattle within the last six weeks and is preparing to launch services to Washington DC, the airline's seventh gateway to the United States.

Deportees cannot return UAE without ministry approval

Expatriates deported from the UAE cannot return to the country, unless they have a judicial or administrative ruling or special permission from the Ministry of Interior.

This is in accordance with a new legal principle, issued by the Dubai Court of Cassation. A visit visa or a residence permit issued by the General Department for Residency and Foreigners Affairs (DGDRFA) stands void if there is no permission of the Interior Minister, the court ruled.

The principles were issued when the court considered the appeal of a foreign woman, who was fined Dh10,000 and was deported.

The Dubai Public Prosecution referred the woman for trial as she entered the UAE without the permission of the Interior Minister.

The Court of First Instance heard the case and fined her Dh10,000 to be followed by deportation. But the woman took the case to the Appeals Court, which upheld the ruling.

Unsatisfied by the two verdicts, she then moved the Court of Cassation, which issued the above principles.

The woman’s argument was that she had a residence visa and is sponsored by her Emirati husband.

But the Court of Cassation rejected her clarifications stating that Interior Ministry’s data as well as her fingerprints confirm the fact that she had been previously deported from the UAE under charges of prostitution. And that she later returned on a visit visa and then changed status to residence visa under the sponsorship of her husband. This, the court ruled, is in violation of the legal rule as well as the Interior Minister's decision.

The Court of Cassation based its ruling on Federal Law No. 6 of 1973, as amended by Law No. 13 of 1996 on entry and residence of foreigners.

Indian expats in UAE should register birth of their new born children without delay

Indian expatriates are urged not to delay the registration of their new-born babies with the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi or the Consulate General of India in Dubai the Embassy said in a statement that the immediate registration of the birth is required to get an Indian passport issued.

If the registration is not done within one year of birth, there may be delay in issuing the passport as additional formalities may be needed and financial penalties may be imposed by the UAE authorities.

For registration of the birth and obtaining new passport, complete the formalities, including filling up of requisite forms  under passport services – registration of birth, issue of BC and passport for a child born in UAE)

 After one year of the birth of the child, the case will have to be referred to Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Indian Citizenship Section, 26, Jaisalmer House, Mansingh Road, New Delhi-110011, in the prescribed application forms for getting approval. Procedure for getting approval in such cases from MHA takes considerable time. It is, therefore, advisable that parents holding Indian passports, register the birth of their children born in UAE with the Embassy within the prescribed period of one year without fail.

Persons like spouses married to Indian citizens etc, intending to acquire Indian citizenship by registration, who are resident in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, are required to apply in the prescribed forms  to Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Indian Citizenship Section, 26, Jaisalmer House, Mansingh Road, New Delhi-110011 through the Embassy of India, Abu Dhabi. Prospective applicants are cautioned that procedure for getting approval in such cases from MHA takes considerable time. It is, therefore, advisable that such persons apply well in time with all documents.

http://www.indembassyuae.org/drupal/IndianCitizenship

March 26th the Deadline for claiming Philippine passports

Dubai Filipino expatriates who have not claimed new passports which have been issued six months ago or longer, from the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai have until March 26, 2012 to claim them, or they will be disposed of.

"We are talking about 800 unclaimed passports, some of which had been issued more than a year ago," Vice Consul Geronimo Suliguin said. In an advisory issued by the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai, all unclaimed passports after six months from the date of issuance will be disposed of beginning March 12 under Department Order No. 37-03 dated 23 September 2003.

"Applicants can always check the status of their passports on our website," Suliguin said adding lost receipts is not a reason for not claiming them.