The UAE government has introduced the ‘Work Bundle’ initiative to streamline the process of obtaining employee residency and work permits in private sector companies. Initially implemented in Dubai, the initiative will gradually expand to include other emirates.
Read more: UAE reveals ambitious plans to combat government bureaucracy
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced, “In our ongoing quest for government excellence, we have recently introduced the ‘Zero Bureaucracy’ initiative, aimed at streamlining procedures and enhancing efficiency within the federal government. In alignment with this vision, today marks the inaugural launch of the ‘Work Bundle’, a pioneering project designed to expedite, simplify and streamline the processes related to residency and employment.”
أطلقنا قبل فترة مشروعاً لتصفير البيروقراطية الحكومية لتقليص الإجراءات وإعادة هندسة الخدمات وتقليص مدتها في الحكومة الاتحادية ..
واليوم نطلق باكورة هذا الحراك الحكومي عبر مشروع "باقة العمل" .. الذي يعمل على تسهيل وتبسيط واختصار إجراءات الإقامة والعمل في الدولة ..
المشروع الجديد… pic.twitter.com/d6FfdeheL5— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) March 6, 2024
Sheikh Mohammed further explained that the Work Bundle aims to reduce the amount of time spent on renewing residencies and employment contracts within government frameworks, reclaiming a total of 62 million working days. It is estimated that the initiative will eliminate 25 million procedures annually, resulting in significant cost savings for both the government and private sectors. The government expressed gratitude to all federal and local entities for their collaboration in bringing this project to fruition.
This initiative is in line with the ‘Zero Bureaucracy’ program, which seeks to simplify government procedures, reduce unnecessary requirements, and enhance efficiency, quality, and flexibility in the UAE.
Key services provided by the “Work Bundle”
The ‘Work Bundle’ is designed to simplify and expedite procedures for private sector companies, benefiting the business community. The project provides a single platform for completing employment services such as renewal, cancellation, medical examination, and fingerprinting.
The implementation of this initiative is the result of close cooperation between federal and local government entities. The entities involved include the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security, the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai, Dubai Health, and the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism. The project is supported by Digital Dubai, which provides the necessary digital infrastructure and services for seamless data exchange between the relevant entities.
Enhancing global competitiveness
The ‘Work Bundle’ is a significant step in the UAE’s digital transformation efforts, aimed at enhancing the country’s global competitiveness in terms of ease of establishing and managing businesses for private sector companies.
The initiative also improves the customer experience by offering a single platform instead of multiple ones, reducing the number of procedures from 8 services to a unified platform. The required steps have been reduced from 15 steps and 16 documents to just 5 steps and 5 documents, while the number of visits has been reduced from 7 to only 2. These improvements have significantly reduced the time required to complete transactions, from 30 working days to just 5 working days.
The project’s objective is to simplify procedures, reduce effort and time, and eliminate redundancies. It is estimated that the initiative will eliminate 25 million procedures, 12.5 million annual visits, and 62.5 million working days annually.
Initially, the Work Bundle will be available on the “Invest in Dubai” platform. It is planned to be made available for 275,000 companies in Dubai. Additionally, it will be accessible on several other government digital platforms in the near future, including WorkinUAE.
The steps for recruiting a new employee from outside the country involve filling out a unified application and obtaining a work permit for the employee. The employee then proceeds to complete the necessary residence procedures, including a medical examination and the issuance of an Emirates ID card, which require the employee’s presence.
For the renewal service, the company owner fills out the unified application, and the employee completes the medical examination and obtains an Emirates ID card.
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