A British man was ‘devastated’ after being kicked out of Dubai for having face tattoos.
Jordan Howman, aged 34, arrived at Dubai International Airport with his fiancée Theresa, aged 38, and his daughter Kaic, aged 16, for a much-anticipated week-long vacation when immigration officials pulled him aside and confiscated his passport.
This plasterer from Crewe had put in a lot of hard work to save up the £3,000 needed for the trip and was looking forward to spending five days exploring the United Arab Emirates, a country he considers his favorite in the world.
But Mr Howman claims after six hours of being held, immigration officers sent him packing ‘because of his face tattoos’.
About eight or nine years ago, Jordan had tattooed geometric cubes on his face along with words like ‘blessed,’ ‘family,’ and ‘crazy life.’ He mentioned that this tattoo had never been an issue during his two previous visits to Dubai.
‘My missus has been crying her eyes out,’ he said.
‘It has absolutely devastated me. I feel like I’ve been massively discriminated against.
‘There’s no law against face tattoos – there’s nothing like that.
Jordan Howman, 34, had ‘worked his arse off’ to save up for the £3,000 trip and was hoping to spend five days seeing the UAE, his ‘favourite country in the world’
The plasterer from Crewe claims after six hours of being held, immigration officers sent him packing ‘because of his face tattoos’
Jordan went on the trip with his fiancée Theresa, 38,(left) and daughter Kaic, 16, (middle left)
‘I’m a lovely lad, I get on with anyone. It’s made me feel absolutely rubbish. I’m not allowed in a country because of the way I look. It’s properly, massively affected me.
‘It was my favourite country, but this has absolutely ruined it. Now I’ll never go again. I’ve lost all of my money because of a pattern on my face.’
The emirates has become one of the go-to destinations for wealthy British expats and holidaymakers alike.
But the Muslim state’s social conservatism can cause problems for visiting foreigners.
Permanent tattoos are generally considered haram (forbidden) in Islam because it is considered mutilating the body and changes Allah’s creation, according to many Islamic scholars.
Mr Howman’s Emirates airline flight landed at Dubai International Airport on Wednesday, June 11 at 7.30am.
‘It was my third trip to Dubai,’ he said.
‘I’d had no problems all the other times. But this time, as we got in, I scanned my passport and was just about to go through security when an airport worker pulled us aside.
‘We were about to put our hand luggage on the conveyor belt when the man said: “follow me”.’
Theresa is also heavily tattooed but was not removed from the county by the officials
Jordan got the geometric cubes tattooed on his face around eight or nine years ago alongside words like ‘blessed’, ‘family’ and ‘crazy life’ and said it has never caused problems during his previous two visits to Dubai, he says
After taking Mr Howman aside, a man asked if he’d had his passport stamped before taking it from him by allegedly snatching it out of his hand
Mr Howman has tattoos all over his body and head
Mr Howman was promptly put on another Emirates flight heading back to the UK after being denied entry
After taking Mr Howman aside, the man asked if he’d had his passport stamped before taking it from him.
‘Then he snatched my passport out of my hand,’ he said.
‘There had been nowhere to stamp it – we’d used the electronic gates. It was just an excuse to get the passport out of my hand.’
After being held in a waiting room for over four hours, Mr Howman was transferred to immigration at around 12am, he said.
By this time, his family had reached their five star Anantara hotel.
He called his partner Theresa and she got a taxi to the airport but he says ‘they wouldn’t let me see her’ and she got a taxi back to the hotel, costing a total of £250.
Theresa is also heavily tattooed but was not removed from the county.
Mr Howman said he was not given his passport back for some time which was ‘terrifying’.
‘A woman came and took me upstairs to immigration, where they said: ‘He’s not coming in because of his face tattoos – you’re not coming in because of the way you look’,’ he said.
‘One of the staff behind the desk said a more senior immigration officer made the decision, saying I was not to enter Dubai and that I must leave the country immediately.’
At 2.30pm, Mr Howman was put on another Emirates flight heading back to the UK.
‘They sent me on a flight back to Manchester. It was only when I landed that I got my passport back. Friday morning was the first time I got to see my daughter, over Facetime.’
The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs Dubai have been approached for comment. Dubai Airports was also contacted for comment.
