In a fresh push to strip red tape out of day-to-day mobility paperwork, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP) on 6 December unveiled a digital service that lets Emirati citizens renew their passports and Emirates ID cards in a single transaction. Until now, families often had to juggle two separate online forms, upload the same documents twice and pay two sets of fees. The new feature, embedded in the UAEICP smart-services app, collapses that journey into one screen: applicants confirm biometric details, upload a single photograph and pay once. ICP says processing time has been slashed by “at least 50 per cent,” and calls to its contact centre should fall by 40 per cent as expiry dates for both documents are automatically synchronised.
The launch sits under the second phase of the government’s Zero Bureaucracy Programme, announced by the UAE Cabinet in June, which tasks every federal entity with redesigning its most-used public services. Identity documents were a prime target because mismatched expiry dates frequently disrupted international travel: airlines require a passport valid for six months, while local authorities insist on a current Emirates ID to access e-gates and banking services.
![UAE rolls out one-step renewal for Passports and Emirates IDs]()
For corporate mobility managers the change is more than cosmetic. When a locally-hired employee’s passport lapses, HR teams must normally freeze work-permit renewals, bank-account openings and housing contracts tied to the Emirates ID. Aligning the renewal cycle removes that bottleneck and reduces the risk that staff will be grounded while paperwork catches up. Because the process is fully digital, employees on overseas assignment can submit applications and receive an electronic receipt before the physical documents are couriered to them.
Practical tips: the combined renewal option appears automatically if the passport is already expired and the Emirates ID will expire within the next six months. Applicants should double-check that their digital photo meets ICAO standards—passport photos rejected by the system remain the biggest cause of delays. Fees remain unchanged (AED 100 for a five-year passport booklet plus AED 150 for a ten-year Emirates ID), but the single payment gateway now accepts Apple Pay and Google Wallet, shaving minutes off each transaction.
The launch sits under the second phase of the government’s Zero Bureaucracy Programme, announced by the UAE Cabinet in June, which tasks every federal entity with redesigning its most-used public services. Identity documents were a prime target because mismatched expiry dates frequently disrupted international travel: airlines require a passport valid for six months, while local authorities insist on a current Emirates ID to access e-gates and banking services.
For corporate mobility managers the change is more than cosmetic. When a locally-hired employee’s passport lapses, HR teams must normally freeze work-permit renewals, bank-account openings and housing contracts tied to the Emirates ID. Aligning the renewal cycle removes that bottleneck and reduces the risk that staff will be grounded while paperwork catches up. Because the process is fully digital, employees on overseas assignment can submit applications and receive an electronic receipt before the physical documents are couriered to them.
Practical tips: the combined renewal option appears automatically if the passport is already expired and the Emirates ID will expire within the next six months. Applicants should double-check that their digital photo meets ICAO standards—passport photos rejected by the system remain the biggest cause of delays. Fees remain unchanged (AED 100 for a five-year passport booklet plus AED 150 for a ten-year Emirates ID), but the single payment gateway now accepts Apple Pay and Google Wallet, shaving minutes off each transaction.
