More than 160 employees in Dubai have been fined a total of Dh152.2 million for failing to adjust their staff's visa status after closing their companies.
The 161 defendants were also charged with selling residency permits to hundreds of victims. In one of the incidents, an employee paid his employer around Dh1,000 to get a residency permit, The National has learnt.
The Dubai Citizenship and Residency Prosecution said the defendants were convicted and will be deported after paying the fines.
On Wednesday, Dubai's Citizenship and Residency Court said the total amount of fines for the defendants was Dh152,240,000.
Sources close to the case told The National that the defendants, from different Asian countries, closed their companies in September 2024 without settling the status of their employees.
An inspection by officers from the General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners’ Affairs caught one of the defendants closing his company without settling the status of three employees.
It was part of an inspection campaign carried out during the visa amnesty campaign from September to December last year.
According to the Federal Decree-Law Regarding the Regulation of the Employment Relationship, shutting down a business without settling workers' status or misusing work permits can lead to fines between Dh100,000 and Dh1 million.
