Credit cards for students in the UAE (October 2026)
How UAE university students can pay by card: supplementary cards from age 12, youth accounts with no salary needed, and your first card once you earn a salary.
UAE banks don’t sell credit cards to students: a card in your own name needs a salary, and the bank checks it. That still leaves a few good ways for a student to pay by card. Here they are, best first.
1. A supplementary card on a parent’s card
This is a second card on the parent’s account, in the student’s name. It’s the closest thing to a student credit card in the UAE.
- Age: 12 or older at Emirates NBD, HSBC and Emirates Islamic, according to their own pages. Other banks set their own age.
- Limits: the parent can set a spending limit for the card. HSBC lets you change it in its app at any time.
- Who pays: the parent. The debt is on their account.
- Rewards: earned at the parent’s card’s rates. If the student spends mostly on food and online shopping, a parent card that pays well there earns more. See best cards for dining and best cards for online shopping.
2. A youth or student bank account with a debit card
For spending that’s the student’s own money. Emirates NBD’s Youth Package is for anyone aged 18 to 25 and needs no minimum balance or salary. It comes with a free debit card that also works as an RTA nol card. Other banks have student accounts too, so compare the fees.
A debit card spends money already in the account, so there’s no bill and no debt. Most debit cards earn little or nothing in rewards.
3. Your own credit card once you earn a salary
When you start work, you can apply in your own name. Each card states the minimum monthly salary it needs; the lowest in our catalogue is AED 3,000 a month. Start with a card that has no annual fee and pay the full balance every month: that builds your record at the Al Etihad Credit Bureau (AECB). See your first UAE credit card and credit cards for a AED 5,000 salary.
What about a card backed by a deposit?
Some comparison sites say a few UAE banks will issue a credit card against a fixed deposit, without a salary. We couldn’t confirm this on any bank’s own page, so ask your bank directly before counting on it.
Frequently asked questions
Can a university student get a credit card in the UAE?
Not one of their own while studying, in most cases. UAE banks ask for a monthly salary (usually AED 5,000 or more) and proof of it, and none of the banks we track sells a student credit card. The usual route is a supplementary card on a parent’s credit card.
How old do you have to be for a supplementary card?
Emirates NBD, HSBC and Emirates Islamic say 12 or older on their own pages. Other banks set their own age, so check before applying.
Who pays the bill on a supplementary card?
The main cardholder, usually the parent. The account and the debt are theirs, and the supplementary card shares their credit limit unless they set a lower one.
Does a supplementary card earn rewards?
Yes, at the main card’s rates, and the rewards go to the main cardholder’s account. So the parent’s choice of card decides what the student’s spending earns.
What about international students?
A credit card in your own name usually needs a UAE residence visa and a UAE salary. A supplementary card depends on the parent holding a UAE card. Ask the bank about a student or youth account for day-to-day spending.
Keep going
- Credit cards for new UAE residents
- No annual fee credit cards
- Card Match: tell us how you spend and see which card pays you most
- The CardMax app: the best of your own cards at every shop
Figures come from the CardMax catalogue of 114 UAE credit cards, taken from each bank’s published terms and checked up to 25 Oct 2026. They update automatically whenever the catalogue changes. Terms change often, so confirm on the bank’s site before you apply. How we rank.