Dubai, May 21 (DC): Thanks to the UAE government’s new system, criminals from the India who flee and hide in the emirate can no longer find a legal job there. Those coming for work must obtain a ‘good conduct and behaviour certificate’ from their home country.

The rule was implemented in February and the special branch authorities here are receiving requests to issue the certificate. Several men from Hyderabad, including gangster Ayub Khan, who was released from prison, had stayed in the UAE after obtaining a work visa before his arrest in 2017.

“The rule will help ensure that the criminals do not get shelter in the UAE easily. Otherwise, they evade the police due to legal tangles and diplomatic efforts,” a senior police official said.

Expats applying for new work visas in the UAE are subjected to security background checks and required to submit a police clearance from their home countries, or the country of their residence for the past five years.

“The term varies between countries but the certificate is mandatory to show that the applicant has never committed a crime. The move marks as one of the most significant changes to the UAE's visa system and has resulted in a flood of queries to the authorities and expats’ home embassies,” said Mr Y. Dheeraj, a city-based lawyer.

The Centre, too, is serious in taking strong action against economic offenders who flee the country, and a Bill to this effect would be bought in Parliament, home minister Rajnath Singh said in a meeting earlier last month.