Travel insurance for a German Schengen visa from the UAE

Do you need travel insurance for a German visa?

Yes, if you live in the UAE and need a Schengen visa with Germany as your main destination. The EU Visa Code requires travel medical insurance that covers repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical attention and/or emergency hospital treatment or death.¹

UAE nationals do not need a visa for stays of up to 90 days in any 180, unless they travel to carry out a paid activity.²³ The Visa Code’s insurance rule is addressed to visa applicants and does not say what a UAE national must show at a German border. The EU’s Entry/Exit System applies to UAE nationals.⁴ The EES and ETIAS guide explains it.

How much cover the consulate asks for

The consulate’s tourism leaflet (undated, as shown on 4 November 2026) asks for cover valid for the entire duration of the visa you request and in all Schengen countries, at a minimum of “30,000 € and repatriation”. The conditions must be stated on the insurance document or in a separate confirmation letter.⁵ The leaflets the consulate generates for VFS carry the same wording.⁶

The Visa Code sets EUR 30,000 as the minimum and does not set repatriation as a separate amount on top of it.¹ Ask your insurer for a certificate that states EUR 30,000, names repatriation and lists all Schengen countries.

The multiple-entry declaration says that if you are travelling for medical treatment, you must also show separately that you can pay for treatment the policy does not cover.⁷

Credit card insurance is not accepted

The leaflet says “Medical insurances of credit cards are not accepted”.⁵ It does not say whether that means only a benefit attached to a card, or also a separate certificate an insurer issues in a cardholder’s name. If your bank offers such a certificate, ask the consulate before you rely on it. The card cover guide compares other posts.

A multiple-entry visa needs a signed declaration

If you apply for multiple entry, you sign a declaration. The policy you enclose, original and copy, covers your first stay. You declare that you will need a policy meeting the same criteria for every later stay, and that you will carry the original for border controls.⁸

The declaration’s criteria are cover for at least the intended trip, at least EUR 30,000 per person, validity in all Schengen states, repatriation in the event of illness, urgent medical treatment and/or emergency hospital treatment, and an insurer with an office in a Schengen state, Switzerland or Liechtenstein.⁸

The office rule appears only in this declaration. It does not say whether it reaches single-entry applicants, or whether a UAE insurer with no office in those places meets it. Ask the consulate before you buy.

How long your cover must run

The leaflet says the entire duration of the visa you request. The declaration says the first stay or intended trip.⁵⁸ The Visa Code says the intended stay.¹ If your policy covers only your trip dates and not the whole visa period, ask the consulate whether it is enough.

Where you apply

The German Consulate General in Dubai decides every German visa application in the UAE. If you live in Dubai or the Northern Emirates, you lodge at VFS Dubai. If you live in Abu Dhabi or Al Ain, you lodge at VFS Abu Dhabi. Appointments use a waitlist, and a slot notification is valid for 24 hours. The application form is online in German or English.⁴

How many people apply for German visas in the UAE

Germany received 40,555 Schengen visa applications in the UAE in 2025, the most of any Schengen state and 13.6% of the UAE total. That was up 23.1% from 32,956 in 2024. The not issued rate fell from 27.0% to 22.0%. The figures cover applicants of every nationality.⁹¹⁰

6 categories. Highest: Germany, 40,555 applications. Lowest: Switzerland, 25,603 applications.

Data and source

Source: European Commission, DG HOME, Visa statistics for consulates 2025. Accessed 4 Nov 2026.

State	Applications
Germany	40,555 applications
Netherlands	31,634 applications
Spain	30,265 applications
France	28,160 applications
Italy	27,398 applications
Switzerland	25,603 applications

The small print

• Dates of the German documents. The tourism leaflet and the declaration on the mission site are undated. The VFS copy of the declaration carries the footer “Last updated: 30 March 2022”.⁷
• Card cover in EU guidance. The Visa Code does not mention cards.¹ The EU Visa Code Handbook (26 June 2024, section 6.9) says card cover meeting the Visa Code criteria may be accepted. The Handbook states that it creates no legally binding obligations.¹¹
• Duration in EU guidance. The Handbook (section 5.3.2) says cover is for the effective stay, not the validity of the visa.¹¹
• Where the insurer is based. Visa Code Article 15(4) says applicants should in principle buy insurance in their country of residence, otherwise in any other country.¹ The Handbook (section 5.3) says a company based in the country of residence or in a Member State.¹¹ The Swiss embassy in Abu Dhabi requires a policy issued in the UAE or Bahrain (listed 14 April 2026).
• Insurer lists. A 2024 EU study records German consular authorities using a pre-approved insurer list that is not exhaustive, with a German consulate in Saudi Arabia using one and one in Senegal not using one. The study does not mention the UAE.¹² The Consulate General’s UAE pages state no insurer list.
• How the figures are counted. The statistics count applications by the consulate that processes them, so Abu Dhabi residents appear under Dubai. The not issued rate is not issued divided by visas issued, limited territorial validity visas and not issued combined. Not issued includes refusals and examinations discontinued under Visa Code Article 8(2). The statistics give no nationality and no reasons, and nothing in them links a refusal to insurance.¹³