Dubai Forums

jayzed

Hi - I have been offered a position in Dubai by my current employer (I'm based in London at the moment). I'm a professional in my mid-30s, married with one young (not school age) child, and planning to have another soon. The base salary (more or less the same as what I get in the UK now) is pretty g...

jayzed

Thanks Scot. Do you/others think that we would be able to live okay and save a bit on the package I've described? It doesn't seem to me that we'd be any better off than we are now in London. My wife will probably look for work once we're there, but that would be on a local package and given our spro...

jayzed

I'm mid-30s, middle management role in medium-sized international company, wife and baby. Will be moving to Dubai to do essentially the same job I do now in London. Working in DIFC. Salary: AED28,000/month (24,500 base plus 3,500 car allowance). We have to pay for rent etc out of this. This is about...

jayzed

I've read somewhere (possibly on this site) that the UAE authorities won't issue a residence visa to you if you have a brand new passport (possibly because they think you're trying to hide Israeli stams in your previous passport?). Is this true? I'm probably moving to Dubai in a month or two, but my...

jayzed

Sage & Onion, can you tell us a bit more about the employment ban? I'd heard about some restrictions on changing employers but could do with more detail. I'm about to head out to Dubai with my current employer but a competitor (also in Dubai) is already starting to ask questions about headhuntin...

jayzed

Hi, I will be moving out soon (just in time for the summer - oh joy!) with my wife and baby to take up a new job. I'm currently getting quotes for shipping our personal effects - the contents of a one-bedroom flat, not a great deal of furniture - from London to Dubai. I wonder if anyone on the forum...

jayzed

Thanks for the comments. I should clarify that we are moving from a one-bedrooom place but hopefully to a three-bedroom place in Dubai (there are three of us and we're desperately cramped already with the baby sleeping in our room, but we put off moving in London because we knew we'd be moving to Du...

jayzed

Hi, I've searched the archive on the issue of changing jobs once you're in Dubai. I will be coming to Dubai with my current employer based in a Free Zone (DIFC). My understanding from what I've read is that if at some point in the coming year I wanted to switch to work for another company (most like...

jayzed

Most people have said that it isn't much for Dubai, either, and that it probably won't cover all the costs. If I assume about £1800 for shipping and about £700 for flights, that leaves £2500 = AED17,500 Then there's: - Utilities deposit AED3000 (?) - Oven AED1000+ - Fridge AED1000+ That leaves 12,50...

jayzed

Yes, I realise I'll have to pay rent up front but my employer will advance me that. But it seems to me that there are a lot of other costs associated with moving into a new place. How easy is it to rent a place direct from the landlord, i.e. cutting out the agent and therefore the agent's commission...

jayzed

I'm about to start looking for rented accommodation in Dubai for me and my family (wife and baby), and have a few questions. 1) How easy is it to rent direct from the landlord (i.e. cut out the agent and therefore the agent's commission). 2) When I see prices in Gulf News etc, are these generally ne...

jayzed

I'm thinking about a villa in Satwa as a possible place to live. I'm in my mid-thirties, will be coming to Dubai with my wife and baby. I have a couple of friends who absolutely love living in Satwa, rave about it having a nice mix of families, good restaurants etc. On the other hand, I have other f...

jayzed

I will be moving to Dubai shortly and will need to take out a personal loan to pay up-front rent and vehicle costs. Couple of questions about this: 1) I understand from looking at the archive of this forum that interest rates vary on a case-by-base basis but are normally around the 10% mark, calcula...

jayzed

Thanks for your replies. My understanding is that I would enter the country on a temporary employment visa, and would then obtain a residence visa once I'm there (but don't know how long that would take - a month? more? Any ideas?). My (potential) employer has said that it is not their policy to adv...

jayzed

Not an answer I'm afraid, Chinku, but another question as I'm in the same position as you. I've heard that a lot of nurseries are closed in July and August. Is this true? If so, what other options are available?

jayzed

I'm moving to Dubai very soon and will begin property-hunting. Am I likely to be able to find a 3-bedroom villa in Jumeira for around Dh180K? I see the occasional at this price in Gulf News but most of them seem to be over Dh200K, which is beyond my means. I'm not looking for something flash, just a...

jayzed

Mashaal, you say you used to live in Jumeirah... when was this? A couple of years ago? I honestly don't believe that anyone can rent a 3-br villa there for anything close to 150K these days. But if you can find one, let me know! I'd be interested in hearing more people's opinions about Satwa. xty, y...

jayzed

My office is in DIFC, so Satwa/Jum 1 would be fairly convenient.

Chocoholic, I know such things exist - I have a friend who pays 70K for a fabulous place near the beach in Umm Suqeim. But realistically, that kind of situation is extremely rare and I'm not counting on getting that lucky!

jayzed

I know this question has been asked many times before, and having checked the archive and other sources I think I know the answer, but just want to make sure I've got it straight. My understanding is that the employment law in "onshore" Dubai does not apply to Free Zones and therefore the ...

jayzed

There are a lot of questions about cost of living/salaries on this forum, but obviously there are vast differences in people's age, experience, qualifications and expectations. In other words, no standard benchmark. A lot of the questions come from people moving from the UK, so I'd be interested to ...

jayzed

Xander, I'm afraid I can't offer any suggestions as I'm still in the process of moving to Dubai, but we are going to be in the same position, so if you do find anyone please PM me and let me know! I will do the same if we find someone. You might try posting this request on the expatwoman.com boards ...

jayzed

My contract (with a company in the DIFC) has a pretty standard non-compete clause that prevents me working for a competitor for six months. I'm not planning to leave immediately but may want to switch jobs at some point in the next year or so. Because I work in a pretty specialised area, I would alm...

jayzed

Thanks for your responses. As far as I'm aware, when I'm working in the DIFC, the issue of an official labour contract in Arabic lodged with the department of labour does not arise - my employment is governed by the DIFC Employment Law, not by UAE/Dubai labour law. Please correct me if I'm wrong! Th...

jayzed

Any opinions on the best banks to hold a current and/or savings account with? Any bank have particularly good/bad customer service? Any account have particularly useful or cost-saving features?

jayzed

Thanks for your replies. I've gone with Emirates/MEBank (for no particular reason - my conclusion was that there's not a huge amount of difference between the leading local banks).

jayzed

Scotsman, If your company is providing 2/3 of your rent, then I think you're doing pretty well. These days it's increasingly common for employers to provide no accommodation allowance or just a token amount that bears no relation to the current cost of renting. Weigh up your tax savings against that...

jayzed

Okay. I want to know who are the two people earning more than 60K, who do you work for, and are they hiring?

jayzed

Habibi, you're talking about a tax-free salary range equivalent to £65k to £100K at current exchange rates. Dubai may well be on a par with the UK in terms of expense, and in some respects is more expensive, but you should still be able to live a reasonably comfortable life on less than AED40K a mon...

jayzed

What proportion of your annual income - or of your combined income if you're a couple - do you spend on rent? Would be interesting to know if this is for a flatshare, own flat, own villa etc and in what part of town.

jayzed

Oh bugger, I seem to have missed the all-important 40% to 50% option! Apparently I can't edit the poll now. Maybe a forum moderator can do it?

Dubai Forums

jayzed - Posts

Is it usual to get housing allowance?

The usual question

Residence visa in new passport

Changing jobs

Relocation costs

Changing jobs - work permit

Some questions from a newbie

Satwa: dodgy or delightful?

Cost of personal loans

Where can I afford to live?

No employment ban in Free Zones?

Cost of living Dubai vs London

Non-compete clauses - enforceable?

Best bank account?

Poll: What proportion of your income do you spend on rent?

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