30-Day Countdown to Dubai: The Complete Licensing & Relocation Checklist for Western-Trained Clinicians

Western-trained Doctors, Physiotherapists and Nurses moving into private hospitals, specialist clinics, and UHNWI care in Dubai. Follow this sequence to avoid the usual bottlenecks that delay start dates.

At a glance: the clean sequence

1. PSV/DataFlow (education, licence/Good Standing, employment)

2. Licensing portal (DHA eligibility/licence)

3. Entry/Work Visa → Arrival → Medical Fitness → Emirates ID biometrics → Residence

4. Tenancy/Ejari → banking/insurance additions

5. Hospital credentialing & privileging → first-day onboarding

You may practise only when Residence + Licence + Privileges are active.

The 30-day countdown (copy/paste)

T-30 to T-25 — Build the document pack

• Passport (≥6 months), passport-exact name on all files (include middle names)

• Degree + full transcripts (hours/credits visible)

• Regulator licence + Good Standing Certificate (order now; keep within validity window)

• Employment references on letterhead (duties/dates/FTE; signed & stamped)

• CV in month/year chronology (no gaps)

• Mandatory courses (BLS/ACLS/ATLS/PALS per scope)

• Police clearance if employer requests

• Colour PDFs; intact seals/QRs; clean filenames

T-24 to T-20 — Start PSV/DataFlow

• Open education, licence/Good Standing, and employment components

• Upload legalised originals + sworn translations where needed (legalise before translating)

• Track each to Verified; correct any name/date mismatches the same day

T-19 to T-16 — Licensing portal setup (DHA)

• Create/reset DHA account; ensure email/phone match DataFlow

• Submit eligibility/licensing steps that do not require final PSV yet

• If an exam is required, book the earliest viable seat; do two timed mocks

T-15 to T-12 — Employer sponsorship logistics

• Confirm Entry/Work Visa route and estimated issue date with HR/PRO

• Activate a UAE-ready mobile plan or eSIM for OTP/SMS on arrival

• Prepare a short credentialing index (one page listing every document you’ll hand to HR)

T-11 to T-8 — Housing shortlist & budget

• Shortlist 3–5 buildings near your facility at shift-change travel times

• Understand costs: deposit 5–10% of annual rent, agency ~5%, Ejari fee, utilities setup (DEWA + cooling)

• Draft a rent plan (1–4 cheques vs monthly platform)

T-7 to T-5 — Final PSV and licensing checks

• All DataFlow components at Verified or in final QA

• Good Standing still within the employer/regulator validity window

• If exam sat, upload official results; avoid screenshots

T-4 to T-2 — Travel admin

• Flights booked; relocation allowance confirmed

• Digital folder synced (passport, visa, entry permit, DataFlow PDFs, licensing letters)

• Appointment windows pencilled for Medical Fitness and Emirates ID biometrics after arrival

T-1 — Hand luggage pack

• Passport, entry permit, 4x passport photos, offer letter, HR contact, hotel booking

• Printed checklist; phone fully charged; cloud access to all PDFs

Arrival week (signals—not guarantees)

Day 1–2 — Entry formalities & HR briefing

• Meet HR/PRO; confirm Medical Fitness appointment and biometrics slot

• Provide credentialing pack; verify contract title ↔ regulator category ↔ requested privileges

Day 3–4 — Medical Fitness + Emirates ID biometrics

• Medical Fitness (bloods + chest X-ray); keep receipt

• Biometrics capture at ICP centre; ensure phone receives OTP/SMS

Day 5–7 — Residence issuance & tenancy/Ejari

• Residence Visa printed; Emirates ID card to follow

• Sign tenancy; register Ejari; open DEWA and cooling accounts

• Share tenancy/Ejari with HR (banking, sponsorship, insurance additions)

Hospital credentialing & privileging (what committees check)

• Identity & licences; Good Standing current; PSV/DataFlow attached

• Procedure/competency logs for advanced scope; mandatory courses in date

• Title alignment: contract ↔ DHA category ↔ requested privileges

• Proctoring plan if any scope needs supervised starts

Mini-audits you can run in 10 minutes

Identity & dates

• Passport-exact name across CV, licence, GSC, references

• No date conflicts between references and CV

Documents

• Colour PDFs; full seals/QRs; no cropped edges

• File names clean: Surname_Name_Document_YYYYMM.pdf

Onboarding

• Medical Fitness appointment confirmed

• Biometrics SMS received; location pinned

• Tenancy/Ejari PDFs stored for bank/sponsorship

Common pitfalls—and calm fixes

• Translating before legalising → redo; always legalise then translate

• Missing middle names → reissue documents or add regulator note

• Expired Good Standing at review → reorder immediately; upload fresh PDF

• Tenancy without Ejari → chase agent/landlord; many admin steps require Ejari

• Privileges requested beyond evidence → accept proctored plan; build logs

• 
  

Short FAQs