With an eye on expats' pockets, UAE to offer them residency on retirement

The new law, which comes into effect in 2019, will allow foreign retirees over the age of 55 to apply for longer residency visas

The United Arab Emirates will allow foreigners to obtain extended residency visas after they retire, a major policy shift designed to give expatriates a bigger stake in the economy and foster longer-term growth.

Foreign residents from around the globe make up more than 80 percent of the UAE’s population and have for decades been a mainstay of its economy, working, buying homes and splashing their cash at luxury malls and eateries. But they were only welcome as long as they could work, creating an underlying sense of transiency even among expatriates who have spent most of their lives in Dubai,