Emirati Iranians or Emirati Persians are residents of the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkme ...

ian national background. The community accounts for 5-8% of the country's population.

Demographics

Due to the geographical proximity between

and the

Persians The Persians are an Iranian ethnic group who comprise over half of the population of Iran. They share a common cultural system and are native speakers of the Persian language as well as of the languages that are closely related to Persian. ...

were the first major group of foreign settlers in the region, with a history dating back to the 1810s. Persians who resided in the

Trucial States The Trucial States ( '), also known as the Trucial Coast ( '), the Trucial Sheikhdoms ( '), Trucial Arabia or Trucial Oman, was the name the British government gave to a group of tribal confederations in southeastern Arabia whose leaders had s ...

prior to 1925 or before the formation of the union were offered the

Emirati citizenship Emirati nationality law governs citizenship eligibility in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The law is primarily ''jus sanguinis''. Foreigners may be naturalized and granted citizenship, but the process is limited due to the declining share of t ...

as per Article 17 of the United Arab Emirates Citizenship and Passport Law of Year 1972. The UAE is currently home to 500,000 Iranian expatriates, most of whom live in Dubai. The Iranian Club in Dubai is the main social club of Iranian expatriates in the country. The Iranian population in UAE also includes small communities of

Baloch people The Baloch or Baluch ( bal, بلۏچ, Balòc) are an Iranian people who live mainly in the Balochistan region, located at the southeasternmost edge of the Iranian plateau, encompassing the countries of Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. There a ...

and Khuzestani Arabs.

Business and organisations

There are an estimated 8,000 Iranian-backed businesses in Dubai. There is an

Iranian Business Council - Dubai The Iranian Business Council - Dubai is a business council formed by Iranian expatriates in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The council promotes trade relations between Iran and the United Arab Emirates. See also * Iranian Club, Dubai * Iran–Uni ...

. There is also an Iranian Hospital in Dubai. Iran maintains a consulate-general in Dubai. The Iranian businesses in UAE own more than $ 300 billion there.

Religion

There are two notable Iranian mosques: the Iranian Mosque in Bur Dubai and the Iranian Mosque in Satwa. There is also a significant community of Baha'is.

References

{{Immigration to the United Arab Emirates Ethnic groups in the United Arab Emirates