Shoaib Malik, Sania Mirza get UAE Golden visas

In 2019, the UAE established a new system for long-term residence visas. These Golden Visas are issued for 5 or 10 years and will be renewed automatically.

Commenting on this Sania said: "First of all I would like to thank Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid, Federal Authority For Identity And Citizenship & General authority of sports Dubai for giving us the Dubai Golden Visa. Dubai is extremely close to me and my family."

The star couple is also working towards launching their sports academy offering tennis and cricket coaching in Dubai soon.

"This is my second home and we are looking forward to spending more time here. Being one of the few selected citizens from India, this brings an absolute honour to us. This will also give us an opportunity to work on our tennis and cricket sports academy which we are aiming to open in the next couple of months," she added.

Earlier, Pakistani pop star and host Fakhr-e-Alam became the first man from the South Asian country to get the UAE 10-year Golden Visa.

According to the report, the 45-year-old, who is a UAE resident for more than 1.5 decades, was granted the coveted visa by UAE authorities.

Golden visas were introduced in 2019. They are designed to enable foreigners to live, work and study in the UAE without the need for a national sponsor and with 100 per cent ownership of their business on the UAE’s mainland.

These visas are issued for 10 years and as long as the recipient continues to meet the conditions of the visa, they can renew for a further decade when it is due to expire.

Normal expatriate workers must renew their visas every two to three years.

Golden visas are different to Emirati citizenship, which can only be granted to individuals nominated by government or royal court officials.