Ed Pies

Does anyone have some advice on getting hold of the Dubai labour card/ contract?

I received my visa on 5th October. Two weeks (inshallah) to wait for my labour card ... nothing has arrived yet. The company PRO is useless, and some people have waited 6 months for their cards in our company.

Without my labour card I was unable to sponsor my wife or childrens' residency. Fortunatley after a great deal of pleading with the duty captain, I was able to get a dispensation to sponsor my family, after presenting pay slips and my employers labour contract.

However we can't sponsor our maid who has had to go back to Sri Lanka. No dispensation allowed. My wife has a good job offer which she cannot take as we have no childcare for our son - no nursery places available for a few months either.

We could get a local to sponsor the maid on our behalf which would be expensive and illegal. we could get another maid, but when you trust someone with your children you want someone you can rely on.

Any tips on getting hold of the card would be greatfully received.

zamboooka

If the PRO's useless, I guess you should drop by the Ministry of Labor. Not the one in Deira, but try the new one in Al Qusais. That's fairly empty. Take all the documents that you do have - passport / visa etc (yours and the maid's) Talk to one of the higher ups, see if you can get them to understand your situation. Other than that, there's really not much you can do.

MrsHaps

Mu hubby sponsored me and he does not have a labour card....

Are you company not sorting the sponsorship of your wife and children?

Ed Pies

I was allowed a dispensation for my wife and famly, who are now fully sponsored. Unfortunately the same 'cannot' be done for the maid.

Eva

Would the company offering your wife a job not sponser her? Then in turn she can sponser the maid(assuming she will be earning upwards of the required salary to do this). All about timing but sure that can be managed..

admon

If his company sponsor his wife that won't solve his labour card situation, which is the problem.

Eva

I agree.
I refer however to the company offering his wife employ.

admon

I expect they have no interest in sponsoring, but yep agree with your point.

Eva

Thank you.I must be a clever swede today then....
Have no idea of their expectations.
OP just highlighted a number of dilemmas thrown up by typical
bureaucratic inefficiencies,so we try to help yes?

commander

Mrs haps, your husband does have a labour card, his employer just keeps it. That's why he keeps his passport.

Unless its changed of course.

I never saw mine there or at my last job until I left.

Trust me, he will have a labour card

Babyrat08

Your labour card does come after you receive your visa. The labour card will actually be sent to your company's PO Box. There is a labour office at the Grand Hyatt Hotel (its in one of the Hyatt hotels in Dubai anyway) you should speak to someone there as they will be able to help you.

Ed Pies

Thanks for your help, looks like a trip the labour office then.

I will take Mrs.Pies and our toddler for maximum impact...

Ed Pies

After eventually finding the labour office, I was able to get a copy of my official contract stamped by the minisry of labour, however immigration insisted that I must provide the original to support our maid's visa application, and would not accept the copy.

I cannot think of any other way forward apart from illegal sponsorship by a local, which will cost a premium, and be dodgy. Otherwise I will have to wait for the labour card and Mrs.Pies will loose her job offer.

Inselaffen

I never got my labour card for my second job. The free zone wanted my passport for me to get my labour card. told them to keep it!