What the Cuba visa rules mean for United Arab Emirates travellers
United Arab Emirates citizens can enter Cuba without a visa and stay for up to 90 days. You only need a valid United Arab Emirates passport at the border; immigration officers may still ask for a return or onward ticket, proof of accommodation and enough money for your stay. The 90-day limit usually counts calendar days from your arrival, so book your return flight inside that window.
Documents to prepare
Whatever your visa status, Cuba applies the same entry conditions to every traveller:
- Passport validity: The UK Foreign Office says your passport must have an expiry date at least 6 months after the date you arrive in Cuba and 3 months after your planned departure date.
- Vaccinations: Yellow fever: WHO lists Cuba as requiring proof of yellow fever vaccination from travellers aged 9 months or over arriving from countries at risk of yellow fever transmission, including travellers who transited more than 12 hours thr…
- Travel insurance: Canada's travel advice says you must be able to show proof of medical insurance on entry to Cuba, and that if you have none, or the Cuban immigration authorities are not satisfied with the proof you show, you may have t…
- Return or onward ticket: The UK government tells British visitors they must also show proof of onward or return travel.
Cuba entry rules compared
Cuba lets 20 passports in without a visa, issues eVisas to 160 and requires an embassy visa from 18. United Arab Emirates citizens are treated the same way as China, Malaysia, Mongolia and Singapore. Overall the United Arab Emirates passport ranks #2 in the world with 128 visa-free destinations.
More travel options
Planning a longer trip in Americas? With a United Arab Emirates passport you can also visit 25 countries in the region without a visa, including Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Bahamas, Chile and Colombia.
In the other direction, Cuba citizens need evisa to visit United Arab Emirates.