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Documents needed to cross the UAE border by road: Oman and Saudi checklist

To cross a UAE land border, each passenger carries a passport valid for 6 months, the visa for the next country and proof they can re-enter the UAE. The car needs its registration card and insurance valid abroad. Gulf News reports an AED 35 exit fee. A borrowed car needs an owner's NOC.

Updated

The Omani border post building at Al Wajajah, with a no-photography sign beside the entrance path
Bjoertvedt / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
On this page
  1. Passenger documents: passport, visa, Emirates ID and re-entry
  2. Children: passports, birth certificates and travelling with one parent
  3. Vehicle documents: registration card, insurance and owner NOC
  4. Money: exit fees, tolls, fuel and cash
  5. Phone and data across the border
  6. What you cannot carry across GCC borders
  7. What your chauffeur handles, and what you still need to bring
  8. If you drive yourself: Oman insurance, the Orange Card and owner NOC
  9. Photos in this guide
  10. The drive, on the map

By Mohammed Rashad Hussain, Managing PartnerPublished 5 min read

Passenger documents: passport, visa, Emirates ID and re-entry

Pack these for every person in the car, including infants.

  • Passport valid for 6 months. Saudi Arabia requires it under its tourist visa rules, the UAE portal requires it for entry into the UAE, and Oman’s exemption conditions use the same margin. Qatar asks for 3 months from arrival, according to Visit Qatar. Use 6 months for every road trip.
  • The visa or exemption for the next country. Oman exempts GCC citizens and more than 100 nationalities for 14 days, with conditions. Saudi Arabia issues visas on arrival, as eVisas or through embassies. Qatar and Bahrain are covered in our GCC road trip visas guide.
  • Proof you can return to the UAE. UAE residents come back on a residence visa and Emirates ID. Visitors need a visa that allows another entry. GDRFA Dubai calls its single-entry tourist visa a visa for a single visit.
  • Printed or saved copies. Keep the eVisa on the phone as well as in email, and a printed copy of any hotel booking. The German Embassy reported that officers at Al Batha check hotel bookings.

For the Oman rules in depth, read our Oman visa guide for UAE residents. For Saudi, the Saudi visa guide for UAE residents covers professions and GCC residence.

Children: passports, birth certificates and travelling with one parent

Every child needs a passport of their own and the same visa or exemption as an adult. Saudi Arabia’s Tourist Visa Regulations say under-18s must travel with a guardian or a safe companion.

We could not confirm official rules on birth certificates or parental consent letters for Oman, Qatar or Bahrain. If a child travels with one parent, ask the embassy of the country you enter what it wants to see, and carry the other parent’s written consent as a precaution. That is our advice, not a stated rule.

The fenced UAE and Oman border barrier in Dibba, topped with razor wire, with palm trees behind

Limghadar / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Vehicle documents: registration card, insurance and owner NOC

Gulf News lists the papers the car needs for Oman: a valid registration card and the vehicle ownership certificate. For a car not registered in your name, it also describes a no-objection certificate (NOC). The NOC is:

  • notarised and translated into Arabic;
  • stating that the owner permits you to use the car;
  • showing the chassis number, the registration details and your Emirates ID number.

A rental car needs a certificate from the rental company, according to the German Embassy. Insurance is the next question.

Country What the sources say about car insurance
Oman Many UAE comprehensive policies include Oman, Gulf News reports. If not, an Orange Card, third-party only, is sold at border kiosks for at least 5 days from about AED 106.
Saudi Arabia The German Embassy reported that UAE buses could buy Saudi insurance during border processing. We found nothing equivalent stated for private cars.
Qatar Visit Qatar says Hayya handles vehicle pre-registration for the Abu Samra border. We found no insurance rule on the page.
Bahrain The King Fahd Causeway Authority sells Bahrain vehicle insurance in its Jesr app, to be bought before departure.

Our Hatta border guide shows the Oman steps in order. The Saudi side is in the Ghuwaifat and Batha guide.

Money: exit fees, tolls, fuel and cash

  • UAE exit fee: AED 35, according to Gulf News, payable when you exit. We did not find it on an official UAE page.
  • Oman visa on arrival: OMR 5 for 28 days for UAE residents in approved professions, from Gulf News in July 2026.
  • Saudi visa fee: SAR 300 under the tourist visa regulation, for those who need to pay.
  • King Fahd Causeway toll: reported as SAR 35 or BHD 3.5 for a car. See the causeway guide.

Gulf News reported in 2023 that the exit fee and the Oman visa were paid by card at the border. Carry a card that works abroad, and a little cash in the local currency for fuel and cafes. The currencies are the Omani rial, Saudi riyal, Qatari riyal and Bahraini dinar.

Phone and data across the border

Ask your UAE network about roaming before you set off. Download offline maps for the stretch after the border, and save every confirmation on the phone. At Al Batha the German Embassy noted there is little infrastructure for arranging onward transport on the spot, so a dead phone costs more there than in a city.

What you cannot carry across GCC borders

We could not confirm official restricted-item lists for Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar or Bahrain, so we do not publish one. Read each customs authority’s list before you pack. The Saudi authority, ZATCA, inspects vehicles at Al Batha with security technology and a K9 unit, per its January 2025 news item, so assume the car and bags may be opened.

Keep prescription medicines in their original packaging, with the prescription. That is sensible practice, not a quoted rule.

The road to the Al Ghuwaifat border post at night, where UAE exit checks happen before Saudi Arabia

Gainerz120 (Wiki Loves Earth 2022, UAE) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

What your chauffeur handles, and what you still need to bring

On an Assure trip, the car is our job. Before the booking is final we confirm insurance for the destination, the registration papers and the permits to carry paying passengers across the border. We confirm these per trip, on request.

You bring the personal papers: passport, visa or exemption, residence proof for the return, children’s documents, and a card for any fees. Our cross-border chauffeur cost guide lists what changes a quote. Browse the fleet for sedans, SUVs and vans, available through our partner network, subject to availability, where they are not our own.

If you drive yourself: Oman insurance, the Orange Card and owner NOC

For a self-drive to Oman, do three things before the border:

  1. Ask your insurer whether the policy covers Oman, and get it in writing.
  2. If it does not, plan to buy an Orange Card at the border. Third-party only, at least 5 days, from about AED 106.
  3. If the car is not yours, get the notarised, Arabic-translated NOC.

Then follow the order in our guide to crossing at Hatta. For Saudi Arabia, start at the UAE to Saudi Arabia page, and for Oman at the UAE to Oman page. If you would rather not drive, see intercity transfers and cross-border transfers.

Photos in this guide

  • The Omani border post building at Al Wajajah, with a no-photography sign beside the entrance pathBjoertvedt / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

  • The fenced UAE and Oman border barrier in Dibba, topped with razor wire, with palm trees behindLimghadar / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

  • The road to the Al Ghuwaifat border post at night, where UAE exit checks happen before Saudi ArabiaGainerz120 (Wiki Loves Earth 2022, UAE) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

The drive, on the map

Road distance and drive time without traffic, from OpenStreetMap routing. Allow more at rush hour.

Dubai to Muscat by road

409km

  • About 4 h 43 minwithout traffic
  • Plus time at the border
  1. DubaiPickup
  2. Lahbab desertOn the way
  3. HattaOn the way
  4. MuscatDrop-off

Road distance and free-flow drive time from OSRM on OpenStreetMap, checked 17 October 2026. Stops are drawn in order, not to scale.

Dubai to Muscat transfers

Dubai to Riyadh by road

1,055km

  • About 10 h 31 minwithout traffic
  • Plus time at the border
  1. DubaiPickup
  2. Abu DhabiCity
  3. Al Ghuwaifat borderBorder crossing
  4. RiyadhDrop-off

Road distance and free-flow drive time from OSRM on OpenStreetMap, checked 17 October 2026. Stops are drawn in order, not to scale.

Dubai to Riyadh transfers

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Questions and answers

What documents do I need to cross the UAE border by road?

A passport valid for at least 6 months, the visa or exemption for the country you enter, and proof you can return to the UAE, such as a residence visa or a multiple-entry visit visa. The car needs its registration card and insurance that is valid in the destination country. Requirements differ by country, so check each one.

How much is the UAE land border exit fee?

Gulf News, in an explainer updated in May 2026, gives AED 35, payable when you exit at the border. We could not find the amount on an ICP or u.ae page on 17 October 2026, so treat it as reported. It describes the Oman crossings, and we have not confirmed the Saudi figure.

Can I drive a car that is not in my name across the border?

You need a no-objection certificate from the owner. Gulf News says it must be notarised, translated into Arabic and state the owner's permission, the chassis number, the registration details and your Emirates ID number. The car also needs valid insurance in the country you are entering. A rental car needs the company's certificate.

Can I travel to Oman by road with a UAE visit visa?

Only if the visa lets you re-enter. GDRFA Dubai describes its single-entry tourist visa as an entry visa for a single visit, so leaving by road ends it. You need a multiple-entry visa or a new one for the return. Your passport must also satisfy Oman's entry rules and be valid for 6 months.

Do children need extra documents at the border?

Each child needs their own passport and the same visa as an adult. Saudi tourist rules say under-18s travel with a guardian or a safe companion. We found no official guidance on parental consent letters for the other countries, so ask the embassy of your destination before you travel with one parent.

Do I need cash at a UAE land border?

Carry a card that works abroad, and some cash in the destination's currency. Gulf News reported in 2023 that the exit fee and the Oman visa were paid by credit or debit card at the border. We have no recent official statement on payment methods at any post, so do not rely on a single method.

What does a chauffeur handle at the border?

On an Assure trip we confirm the car's insurance for the destination, the registration papers and the permits for carrying paying passengers across the border, before the booking is final. You still bring your passport, your visa or exemption, your residence proof for coming back and any papers for children.

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