Dubai Forums Dubai Expat Forums Dubai Expat Help Forum

I have been following this forum very closely as Dubai has always been a place very close to my heart. I fell in love with it when I first visited 4 years ago and now after tieing up all loose ends i intend on emmigrating.

These are my questions and my position in life, it surely would be worth moving to dubai, but I'd like to put it to you people out there to guide me.

1)married both 35 years of age with 2 kids of 11year(boy) and 4 year (girl) living in London with a great house no mortgage and no debts.
2)retired at the moment caring for wife(depressed) at home and day trading
3)investments would generate about 42k dhs/month.
4)qualifications:-didn't finish mechanical engg.(dropped out 2nd year)
5)I wouldn't want to work in Dubai anyway, happy share trading online.

This is my position in life, my question to you all is although London is amazing in summer but i feel Dubai would suit my wife and with great outdoor life it would suit my kids too. Is 42k/month enuff for a family of 4 with none working??THIS INCOME IS PRETTY FIXED it can only go upwards so no speculation on it going down.
As for me i could prolly hire a nanny or get help with my kids. Here in London life is great,but it also can be lonely with no friends and no social circle, being at home is a full time job with day trading and looking after the kids and wife, this could give me a lil time for myself.
Most importantly, is investing and buying a property in Dubai the only way to get a residence visa or if i show an income of 42k/mnth i could get a residence permit??(british citizens,if it helps)


Your opinions will be greatly appreciated.

Financially you would be fine, and I'm sure you could get around the visa issue with that sort of money. I'm sure there are many companies who would hire you as a "consultant" and process your visa if you were to pay them for it.

I have real doubts that this is the right place for you though.

Outdoor life consists of beaches or sand dunes and 50% of the year it's very very hot out there. Other than that it's shopping malls and not a great deal else.

I would seriously consider other options - Australia, New Zealand etc.

Hi there,

We moved out here from Berkshire last year.

A couple of things that come to mind is that it can be very stressful settling out here and the first two months were especially so for us. The more preparation you can make before coming out here the better. So it may be more prudent for you to come out here on your own and get everything in place for the wife and kids to follow, especially if it is difficult time for your wife at the moment.

Regarding you income (it would take bit of time to work out school fee's, rent on a three bedroom, health insurance) but I would initially say that 504k a year should suffice for covering living expenses.

As for your Visa I can advise you here as I have just been through the process of setting up at a freezone establishment and I now work from home.

By all means pm me and we can chat on what I know.

john smith wrote:Financially you would be fine, and I'm sure you could get around the visa issue with that sort of money. I'm sure there are many companies who would hire you as a "consultant" and process your visa if you were to pay them for it.

I have real doubts that this is the right place for you though.

Outdoor life consists of beaches or sand dunes and 50% of the year it's very very hot out there. Other than that it's shopping malls and not a great deal else.

I would seriously consider other options - Australia, New Zealand etc.

John, thx for the quick response, but in my situation I would prefer to be closer to the Uk as my investments would require me to travel into the uk atleast twice a year. Australia and NZ would totally alienate me from the UK. Plus, Australia and NZ aren't tax heavens. Being an investor i have to look at all angles.

Jabbajabba, thx to u too for your suggestion, but at the moment my situation is such that i cannot leave my wife and kids alone for a month or two, like i mentioned i am taking care of them full time and i do not have cover or anyone i can trust. I would have to travel with them and i do understand that would shunt my movements once in Dubai.
Suppose, i would have to rely on setting up things from the UK, which does make it difficult, especially with school application and getting a decent place to live. I suppose the best time would be to come with family during the kids summer break in UK.
About the freezone set up....now that would certainly be useful info.

If you are coming out in the summer break - be prepared for the heat!

The heat around July and August puts people off Dubai.

XPClone wrote:If you are coming out in the summer break - be prepared for the heat!

The heat around July and August puts people off Dubai.

thanks for that xp, i'll make sure that doesn't turn anyone in the family off, plus we were there 3 years ago about the same time, wife was happy
shopping in A/C malls and kids were happy with indoor activities.
My concern is how much has Dubai changed since and living and holidays are two different things.
Would the money be enough for a retired life@35 and kids going to school out there?

jabbajabba wrote:Hi there,

We moved out here from Berkshire last year.

A couple of things that come to mind is that it can be very stressful settling out here and the first two months were especially so for us. The more preparation you can make before coming out here the better. So it may be more prudent for you to come out here on your own and get everything in place for the wife and kids to follow, especially if it is difficult time for your wife at the moment.

Regarding you income (it would take bit of time to work out school fee's, rent on a three bedroom, health insurance) but I would initially say that 504k a year should suffice for covering living expenses.

As for your Visa I can advise you here as I have just been through the process of setting up at a freezone establishment and I now work from home.

By all means pm me and we can chat on what I know.

Hey there, can you elaborate on the FZ thing. Which area did you go with and how much does it set you back per year?