I live in Dubai, ask me anything

Yeh, it’s nothing special or unique to live in Dubai. I know many people who live there and have visited myself

As such, I’m well aware that there have been hotels shut for ‘renovations’, malls empty, staff let go.

Many ex-pats live as normal but don’t pretend Dubai functions as normal. The tourist trade has plummeted and is relying on cheap deals and locals to use hotel restaurants etc. Even using a referral scheme to get people to visit!

The place is being propped up by the Gov but it won’t last forever. So enjoy while it lasts.

That is kind of true and not true at the same time @Bringemout ! There are indeed a lot of South Asian and Arab white collar / middle class workers in the UAE (I worked in a S Asian owned company) but, at least until recently, there was definitely a premium tier, where European employees got paid more and were higher status. I was one of two white employees in my company and it was clear I had been hired in part as a status symbol, being white and with UK experience.
S Asian workers tended to be concentrated in finance and IT. It was actually unusual for finance professionals to be particularly well paid as with no tax / simple corporate structures, there is no need for a high skilled finance director. Your DH's CFO was very unusual.

You mentioned you intend to stay for 5-6 years. Have you planned where you will go next?

Do you have kids and if so how did they adapt to the move?

How very virtuous of you 😬
Lots of westerners go out to the ME to work, the money is good, why wouldnt they if its on offer?
I have been to Dubai, on a 3 day stopover from China, the streets were clean, everyone was friendly and we felt quite safe.
As long as you observe their laws and be respectful you will have no problems

What about the language? Does everyone speak English or do you have to learn Arabic?

You’ve just reminded me of the oddity of having your home outdoor thermometer and the car thermometer showing 49 or 50 degrees, while the ‘official’ temperature hovered just below whatever was then the cut-off point for construction workers being given a mandatory break.

I believe that’s changed now, and there’s a mandated midday break in summer regardless of temperature, but the list of exemptions is so long (if you’re laying asphalt or pouring concrete or doing anything that disrupts electricity, water or traffic flow etc, you have to keep working) and the likelihood of the fines actually being imposed is so slim, that I wonder how much difference it makes. The UAE is very good at lip service to laws technically on the statute books purely to create the impression of an enlightened, Western tourist-friendly, modern state.

The British Government really won’t help you that much. When the UAE was getting hit by drones, the UK government sent a few officials to the safety of Oman airport and that was it. It was really up to individuals to get themselves out.

Other countries put on coaches to take people overland to Saudi or Oman to get alternative flights out but Brits were left organising/sharing taxis. I personally would never rely on British government help.

I would not go on holiday there and certainly wouldn't live there

Do you think the British government should be responsible for retrieving people who are there to avoid paying tax in the UK? I don’t the the US provided any repatriation programme either.

People often make the choice to work there to support their families, they are not skilled enough to migrate to the west usually. I completely agree that the kafala system is abusive but it’s a lot more nuanced than people understand. White people are obviously welcome to apply for whatever job as well, they don’t want them.

I knew a housemaid (I never had one) who’s daughter was at an all girls private school in the himalayas. So it’s easy to look at it and say it looks awful and very clearly when passports are removed, abuse happens thats grotesque. However without that opportunity that womans daughter wouldn’t be getting a pretty good education which raises her own prospects to get professional employment. I had a regular driver who felt sorry for british people because his whole house in India had air con, his kids went to private school and he always made sure his wife and kids had access to the best healthcare in their area. It’s only simple of you never actually meet anyone or speak to anyone about how their life actually looks. For some life is extremely hard, theres no getting around that.

The one thing I would say about the emirates specifically which doesn’t apply to other gulf countries is that they have made efforts to improve, they have local labour laws which cover minimum wage and conditions, some countries now stipulate a minimum wage for their nationals to work in gulf countries. There are efforts to improve. Is it enough, I would say no, but it’s going in the right direction.

Also had a gay friend in a different gulf country, he was always on grindr and often worse lipstick. He was clearly super gay however he always said he had no intention of leaving as he was able to live his life as he pleased as long as he was discrete. No I absolutely 100% do not endorse legislation that penalises women and gay people etc but honestly Dubai isn’t the worst country in the gulf by miles in terms of personal freedoms. The rest of the arab world is a dumpster fire of rights as well. In Iraq they are trying to introduce something they call the ja’afri laws, it’s fucking horrific for women and children. In Gaza you can marry a 14yr old, Lebanon has no minimum age, Iran and Iraq allow marriage of 9yr olds. I don’t buy this whole the emirates is uniquely bad nonsense.

This is such an odd answer and can only lead me to believe that you support any religions right to be intolerant

No I don’t. I was just answering the person who said the poster might need UK government help for “extradition”. Brits who live there know that they will be sorting that themselves if necessary

Anyway, I think probably the OP is a little bit right wing in her belief so I'm going to leave her to it

Especially when it was heavily twisted in the UK media.

Meaning? Or are you prevented from telling us?

When I lived there, the complaint was that even younger Emiratis no longer spoke Arabic properly, as they make up less than 10% of the population, and their Khaleej had become totally bastardised with English, the language of business and tourism and commerce, although Gulf Arabic remains the official first language.

In terms of numbers of speakers, Hindi and Urdu other languages from the Indian subcontinent would be the most used, as construction workers make up about 50% of the population of Dubai. That’s why there’s such a huge sex gap, too. The population is about 75% male to 25% female, because of single male construction workers who are on temporary contracts and can’t bring their families.

Because of the laws there, or is that just something you hope in general? 🥴😂

I find this reply quite hypocritical considering how you have described how you dress in a Muslim country. When in public or around men who are not close relatives, the consensus among the majority of scholars from the four main Sunni schools (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali) agree that a woman's entire body must be covered.

Maybe they assume most of the Brits there have the financial means to get themselves out, which is likely the case.