Dubai Opens Its Doors For Tech Conferences – What Are The New Rules?

Dubai has fast grown to become the city of choice for global IT conferences. After the lull caused by the pandemic in the live events arena, the City of Gold is now all set to welcome delegates from all over the world to conferences such as the Internet 2.0 Conference, of course, with an updated set of guidelines for everyone’s safety. 

As a conference goer, you may have numerous questions about how these events will be different from the pre-COVID ones, the requirements to attend, and what you can expect after arrival. 

While the guidelines set forth by the Government of Dubai are subject to change as the COVID-19 situation evolves, we’d like to answer some of the questions sent to us, based on the prevailing regulations in place: 

Do I need a negative RT-PCR test to visit upcoming tech events in Dubai? 

Yes. To mitigate the spread of COVID-19, people are required to furnish a negative RT-PCR test (no more than 72 hours old) before departure. 

For those traveling from the countries of Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Uganda, Vietnam, Zambia, the test should not be more than 48 hours old. Passengers are required to show a hard copy of the negative test that’s either in English or Arabic. 

Children below twelve and individuals living with severe or moderate disabilities need not furnish a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test. 

Please note that you will have to undergo another test upon arrival. As announced through a circular on September 2, 2021, fully vaccinated travelers from international destinations won’t have to self-quarantine until they get their test results. For more information regarding country-specific guidelines, visit this page.

What kind of guidelines will be in force at IT conferences in Dubai? 

While many tech conferences will have their own sets of safety protocols, some of the mandatory ones are as follows: 

• Wearing masks and maintaining physical distancing of at least 2 meters at all times. 
• Screening at entry points
• Attendees will be required to pre-register for post COVID technology conferences in Dubai to facilitate contact tracing
• Conference staff will have to undergo regular temperature checks and have masks on at all times
• Sanitization of the entire venue at regular intervals
• Ensuring availability of hand sanitization stations 
• Panelists and keynote speakers can speak without masks on stage, provided that a distance of 4 meters is maintained. 
• Availability of isolation centers to isolate people with symptoms until transportation for further testing.

Is UAE safe to visit in 2022? 

UAE has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world! Upon publication, 79.4% of the population has been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus and aggressive steps are being taken to bring down COVID-19 positivity rates. However, do take cautionary measures to keep yourself safe while traveling. 

The Bottom Line 

We hope that we have answered some of your concerns about visiting upcoming tech events in Dubai in 2022. Here we’d like to reiterate that these guidelines may be tweaked or revised as cases go down and we slowly move into another year.