Will the new UAE multi-entry visa encourage you to invest in property?

Just in case there's somebody who doesn't know what this poll is about, here's a report from zawya.com

The United Arab Emirates will entitle foreigners that own property in the country and that meet certain criteria to a renewable six-month, multi-entry residency visa, national news agency WAM reported late Saturday.

Under the new regulation, property owners in the U.A.E. will be able to enter the country for a duration of up to six months per entry as part of a new resolution issued by Interior Minister Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, WAM reported.

The regulation, which hasn't come into force yet, is part of the government's efforts to introduce legislative measures aimed at stimulating the domestic economic environment, according to the statement.

Property owners will have to comply with various criteria to be entitled to the visa.

"Owners of built-in properties can stay for six months from the date of entry into the country," WAM cites an amendment to article 33 of the executive regulations of the law for entry and residency of foreigner.

"On the expiry of this period, the owner pledges to depart for his homeland or any of the GCC countries. He will only be allowed to enter the country again after meeting the required conditions," the article adds.

According to article 34, the property should be built-in, with owners of vacant lands not included. Owners should also obtain a title of the property from the property registration authority in the emirate where it is located.

The unit, whether a house or an apartment, should be wholly-owned by the owner, while the unit's value shouldn't be less than 1 million United Arab Emirates dirhams ($272,000).

In addition, article 34 stipulates that owners should have a fixed income of not less than AED10,000 ($2,700), or its equivalent in foreign currencies, since the visa doesn't entitle them to work in the country.

The measure is a positive step but not large enough to fully counter the slowdown in Dubai's real-estate sector, analysts say.

"We have consistently held the view that greater clarity regarding visa and ownership rights of property owners would help to increase transparency and hence confidence in the market, perhaps providing a positive trigger for demand," EFG said in a Sunday note.

EFG Hermes expects Dubai real-estate prices to slip 50-60% in 2009 and estimates that the emirate has seen prices drop 34% since peaking in 2008.

"It would have been even better to extend it (the residency visa) to the whole expat population instead of just property owners," who are a minority in Dubai, Eckart Woertz, chief economist at the Gulf Research Center, said in a phone interview.

"But this is a recognition that there are experts in the country that are looking for jobs and now this is an incentive for them to stay and look for work," Woertz said.

I don't think it will help build property investors' confidence. You can stay only 6 months and then again you have to go through the hassle of all the paperwork. If I invest money, I want to get a visa for several years and then renew it. It's awful.