Who we are
This website is operated by Ashford Immigration, [registered company name and trade licence number to be confirmed], a private immigration and visa consultancy based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In this notice, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to that company.
We decide how and why the personal data described in this notice is used. This makes us responsible for it under data protection law.
[Applicable data protection regime, including whether the company is established in a free zone with its own data protection law, to be confirmed by counsel.]
Information we collect
Contact details. Your name, email address, phone or WhatsApp number and country of residence, when you fill in a form, request a consultation or message us.
Assessment answers. If you use the eligibility assessment, we ask about your goals and the countries you are considering, and about you: for example your nationality, age, education, occupation and work experience, marital status, and whether family members would move with you.
Messages. Anything you choose to tell us in a free-text field, an email or a WhatsApp message.
Partner enquiries. If you contact us about a business partnership, your name, organisation, role and contact details.
Technical information. Your IP address, browser and device type, and the pages you visit. Our hosting provider records some of this to run and protect the website. Analytics tools collect some of it where you have agreed or where consent is not required. See the section on cookies and analytics below.
Information you give us as a client. If you engage us for a service, we will ask for further documents, such as passport copies, police clearance certificates, academic and employment records, and bank statements. We will explain how these are handled when you engage us.
Some of this information is treated as sensitive under UAE law, such as details about your family, your health or a criminal record. Please do not send sensitive documents through the website forms. If we need them for a service, we will ask for them through an agreed channel and use them only for that purpose.
How we use your information
We use your information to reply to your enquiry and arrange a consultation if you ask for one.
We use your assessment answers to form an initial view of the routes that may suit you and to prepare for our conversation with you. This is a first indication, not a decision about your eligibility.
If you engage us, we use your information to provide the service you have asked for, including preparing applications and supporting documents.
We also use information to keep records of our dealings with you, to keep the website secure and protect our forms from spam and misuse, to understand how the website is used so we can improve it, and to meet our legal obligations.
We will only send you updates or marketing messages if you have agreed to receive them. You can opt out at any time.
Legal basis and consent
UAE data protection law generally requires consent before personal data is processed, with limited exceptions set out in the law.
We ask for your consent when you submit a form on this website. [Consent wording to be confirmed against the live forms.]
In some cases we may rely on an exception in the law instead. Examples are where processing is needed to take steps you have asked for before entering into an agreement with us, to perform an agreement with you, or to comply with another law.
You can withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us. This does not affect processing carried out before you withdrew it. Without some information, we may not be able to continue advising you.
Who we share information with
Service providers. We use outside providers to run our business, such as website hosting, form handling and automation tools, customer relationship management (CRM) software, email, messaging and analytics. They receive only the information they need to provide their service to us. [List of providers to be confirmed.]
People and organisations involved in your matter. When you engage us, and with your knowledge, we may share information with the parties your application requires. These can include government authorities, visa application centres, education institutions, employers, translators and, where representation must be by a licensed practitioner, a practitioner you choose to instruct.
Legal requirements. We may disclose information where the law requires it or where a competent authority lawfully requests it.
If you message us on WhatsApp, your messages are also processed by WhatsApp under its own terms and privacy policy.
We do not sell your personal data. We do not share it with third parties for their own marketing.
International transfers
Some of our service providers store or process data outside the UAE. Many of the organisations involved in an immigration matter, such as foreign governments and universities, are outside the UAE by their nature.
When we transfer personal data outside the UAE, we do so only as UAE data protection law allows. For example, the destination may offer an adequate level of protection, the transfer may be needed to perform an agreement with you, or you may have consented to it.
[Hosting and provider locations to be confirmed.]
How long we keep information
We keep personal data only for as long as we need it for the purpose it was collected for, and to meet our legal, accounting and record-keeping obligations.
Enquiries and assessment answers that do not lead to an engagement are kept for [period to be confirmed]. Client files are kept for [period to be confirmed] after the matter closes.
When we no longer need information, we delete it or anonymise it.
How we protect information
We use technical and organisational measures suited to the kind of information we hold. These include encrypted connections to this website, access limited to the people who need the information, and the use of established service providers.
No method of sending information over the internet is completely secure. We take care, but we cannot guarantee the security of information you send to us online.
If a data breach affects your personal data, we will notify you and the relevant authority where the law requires us to.
Your rights
The UAE Personal Data Protection Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 Regarding the Protection of Personal Data) gives you rights over your personal data. These rights apply subject to the conditions and exceptions in the law.
You can ask us what personal data we hold about you, how we use it and who we have shared it with.
You can ask for a copy of your data in a readable format, or ask us to transfer it to another organisation where this is technically possible.
You can ask us to correct inaccurate data, or to erase data we no longer need.
You can ask us to restrict or stop processing your data, including for direct marketing.
You can object to a decision based only on automated processing that has legal effects for you. We do not make decisions about you in this way.
You can withdraw your consent at any time.
To make a request, use the contact details at the end of this notice. We may need to confirm your identity before we act. We will reply within the time the law requires. If you are not satisfied with our reply, you may be able to complain to the UAE Data Office.
Cookies and analytics
This website uses essential cookies to work properly. We use analytics cookies only with your consent where the law requires it.
Our Cookie Notice (/cookies) explains which cookies we use and how to control them.
Children and young people
This website is intended for adults. Many of our services involve families and students, so parents and guardians may give us information about their children, for example for a family visa or a study application.
If you are not yet an adult, please ask a parent or guardian to contact us for you.
If we learn that we have collected a child’s personal data without the appropriate consent, we will delete it.
Contact and changes to this notice
For privacy questions or to exercise your rights, email [privacy contact email to be confirmed]. Please say that your message is a privacy request.
We may update this notice when our practices or the law change. The latest version will always be on this page, with the date it was last updated.
Last updated: [date to be confirmed].