Travellers without full name on passports declared 'inadmissible passenger', barred from entering UAE: Air India

Based on a new advisory issued by Emirate, Air India and AI Express have said that the entry of single-name passengers into the UAE has been banned. The new rule comes into effect immediately. The circular titled “name as appearing on the passport for travel to UAE” was issued by the two airlines on November 21.

It read “As per National Advance Information Center, UAE, the following guideline has been implemented with immediate effect for travel to UAE. Any passport holder with a single name (word) either in a surname or given name will not be accepted by UAE immigration and the passenger will be considered as INAD.”

According to the circular, a passenger with only a single word as his given name and no surname will be considered an INAD and will not be issued a visa. ” In case the visa was issued previously then he will be INAD by immigration,” the circular clarifies.

INAD or inadmissible passenger is a common term used for people who are not allowed to enter the country that they want to travel to. Such passengers who are banned entry will have to be taken back to their country by the airline.

The new rule “applies only to passengers with visit visa/visa on arrival/employment and temporary visas and is not applicable to existing UAE Resident card holders,” the circular added.

A report by Dubai-based Khaleej Times has stated how several Indian citizens without their surnames on passports are being barred from flying out of the country after this new rule was implemented by some airlines.

Taking cognizance of the present situation, travel agents are also requesting people to wait for further information before applying for a visa, or making any changes to their existing documents.