British plasterer is kicked out of Dubai over facial tattoos reading 'blessed', 'family' and 'crazy life'

A British man was 'devastated' after being kicked out of Dubai for having face tattoos.
Jordan Howman, 34, landed at Dubai International Airport for a dream week-long holiday with his fiancée Theresa, 38, and daughter Kaic, 16, when immigration officers took him aside, confiscating his passport.
The plasterer from Crewe had 'worked his arse off' to save up for the £3,000 trip and was hoping to spend five days seeing the United Arab Emirates, his 'favourite country in the world'.
But Mr Howman claims after six hours of being held, immigration officers sent him packing 'because of his face tattoos'.
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.
'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.
'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".'
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
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.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Metro

4 hours ago

• Metro

British man 'devastated' after being kicked out of Dubai for face tattoos

A British man's dream holiday to Dubai was ruined after he was refused entry because of his tattoos. Jordan Howman, 34, landed at Dubai International Airport for a week-long getaway with his fiancée Theresa, 38, and daughter Kaic, 16. Jordan, from Crewe, had forked out £3,000 for his third trip to the United Arab Emirates, his 'favourite country in the world.' But on arrival, he was pulled over by customs officers, before being refused entry after a six-hour wait due to his face tattoos. Jordan got the markings 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 said: 'It has absolutely devastated me. I feel like I've been massively discriminated against. 'My missus has been crying her eyes out.' 'There's no law against face tattoos – there's nothing like that. The plasterer said the experience had made him feel 'absolutely rubbish' and had put him off travelling to Dubai again. He added: '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 UAE has become one of the go-to destinations for wealthy British expats and holidaymakers alike. But the state's socially conservative policies can cause problems for visiting foreigners. Britons have previously faced arrest for public displays of affection, including kissing. The UAE also has a zero tolerance for drugs, with passengers found with even residual amounts of illegal substances facing a prison sentence. Jordan's Emirates airline touched down at Dubai International Airport on Wednesday, June 111, 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'.' After taking Jordan 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, Jordan was transferred to immigration at around 12pm, he said. By this time, his family had reached the five-star Anantara hotel. He called his partner 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. Jordan 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.' More Trending At 2.30pm, Jordan 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', he said. Metro approached Dubai Airports for a comment and an attempt was made to contact the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigh Affairs Dubai. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Is it safe to travel to Dubai right now? Latest Foreign Office tourist advice after US strikes Iran MORE: Florida attorney general offers Trump 'Alligator Alcatraz' prison to hold immigrants MORE: Why I keep going back to the world's 'most overrated' city

The Sun

6 hours ago

• The Sun

Holiday warning to Brits as flights cancelled to tourist hotspots including Dubai after Trump's bombing raid on Iran

FLIGHTS to tourist hotspots have been cancelled following Donald Trump's bombing raid on Iran. Following the US attack on Iran's nuclear sites, all scheduled flights from London to Dubai and Doha have been axed. 1 This comes as a British Airways flight from London Heathrow to Dubai was diverted to Zurich on Saturday night. All of the airline's flights to Dubai and Doha from London Heathrow were cancelled on Sunday, including return flights, according to the company. In the wake of the US attacks, Israel has announced that its airspace is closed to both inbound and outbound flights. Tehran launched retaliatory missile strikes after the US struck three nuclear sites in Iran overnight. In a statement, British Airways said: "As a result of recent events, we have adjusted our flight schedule to ensure the safety of our customers and crew, which is always our top priority. "We are contacting our customers to advise them of their options while we work through this developing situation." For those already booked onto flights to Dubai and Doha between Sunday and Tuesday, the airline is offering a flexible booking policy if they wish to change their date of travel. But according to London Gatwick's website, flights to and from Dubai and Doha are continuing as scheduled.

The Independent

6 hours ago

• The Independent

British Airways flight from UK to Dubai diverts after Trump bombs Iran's nuclear sites

A British Airways flight from UK to Dubai was forced to divert after Donald Trump launched a US attack on Iran. BA flight 109 from London Heathrow to the Gulf hub took off at 9.53pm on Saturday (21 June) and flew normally for almost five hours towards Dubai. But at 2.48am British time, about 90 minutes before touchdown at Dubai, the aircraft turned around and retraced its course due to the fresh attacks in the Middle East. The flight had been fuelled only for the journey to Dubai with a contingency for diversion – but could not make it all the way back to London. Instead, the pilots landed at Zurich airport, which is 480 miles from Heathrow.