Tips to relocate to Dubai

[MamzelleL]

Hello,
I’ve always found good advice here as there’s the Mumsnet community is so large I’m hoping to find people in this forum who have relocated to Dubai or used to live in Dubai until recently for some advice. I’m not interested in hearing from people who have never been or lived there or people who have only visited on holiday - I know there’s a lot of negative views and strong opinions on Dubai on this platform and Im not terribly interested in those since we’ve already made our decision.
I would be so grateful to get some guidance on:

• cost of shipping. We’re planning to bring as little as possible but we have some furniture that we love/that’s inherited that we can’t leave behind. If you shipped some furniture/big items what was the cost? This is just so that we can get an idea. I will of course set about getting quotes from shipping companies.
• where to live. Meadows and Springs look lovely but a little out of our price range. Arabian Ranches seems less practical as further away from the action. We don’t yet have school places and will need to take travel into consideration but I would like some advice on where is best to live with a monthly budget of 250-300k AED per year (regardless of where the schools may be) just so that we can start somewhere.
• schools. There seems to be several good options. I want to draw a shortlist of schools to go and see over the three days that we will be there at the end of the month. Which 3-4 primary and secondary schools that follow either the British curriculum or offer the IB would you recommend that we see? Brighton College caught our eye because we were aware of it and know the College in Brighton but it seems very small with no track record. GEMS seems to have a long waiting list. Dubai College looks very academic.
• car rental. Does everyone lease a vehicle in Dubai? It seems cheaper than buying.
• summer in Dubai. Do Europeans tend to leave Dubai in the summer months? Do UAE company have a similar approach to working remotely and allow Europeans to do this in the summer months?
• dogs in Dubai. There seems to be small park areas where dogs can be let off the lead but nothing too expansive. Is it really impractical to have a dog in Dubai? Can a dog be taken out to a restaurant? Does it need to be on the lead at all times outdoors?

[illiterato]

lived there a while back so not up to date on accommodation- couple of things-

Schools: be aware that the familiar names like Brighton college and Repton are just franchises- the ties to the Uk school of the same name are usually minimal to non-existent and the operating models don’t need to mirror the original. They will of course talk up the links but they’re usually pretty cursory and there’s no priority for the Uk equivalent.

Dogs:. I’ve never seen one in a restaurant although some allow them on the terrace. Bear in mind that many locals view them on the same lines as rats and in summer it’s hard to walk them due to the heat. That said, loads of people have dogs so it’s completely doable.

[HerRoyalNotness]

Join the twofatexpats group
on Facebook. Have a wealth of info on there

[AgentProvocateur]

Is that your annual or monthly budget? (It says both). I live here at the moment and although I don’t have school fees, rents are sky high. You won’t be able to rent until you have your visa/ID sorted, so you’d probably need to spend the first month in a hotel. You need a LOT of money in upfront expenses (we pay our annual rent in one go) and depending on what you do, jobs can be hard to come by, and some that you wouldn’t expect are low paid.

I’ve never seen a dog in an indoor restaurant, and some areas don’t allow dogs at all. I don’t think they’re allowed in the sea or on most beaches. It’s also too hot to walk them during the summer. I’m sure there are indoor parks for them though.

Remote working isn’t really a thing here, and most jobs are 5 days in the office. Working conditions are years behind Europe. My working week is 48 hrs.

there are various Facebook groups that will give you advice about schools etc. I would really caution against coming here without a job and a decent salary. You’ll haemorrhage money.

[MamzelleL]

Many thanks for the tip on schools. It was my impression that the schools with U.K. ownership were run independently from their U.K. sisters.

[MamzelleL]

ill take a look, thank you.

[MamzelleL]

@AgentProvocateur

Is that your annual or monthly budget? (It says both). I live here at the moment and although I don’t have school fees, rents are sky high. You won’t be able to rent until you have your visa/ID sorted, so you’d probably need to spend the first month in a hotel. You need a LOT of money in upfront expenses (we pay our annual rent in one go) and depending on what you do, jobs can be hard to come by, and some that you wouldn’t expect are low paid.

I’ve never seen a dog in an indoor restaurant, and some areas don’t allow dogs at all. I don’t think they’re allowed in the sea or on most beaches. It’s also too hot to walk them during the summer. I’m sure there are indoor parks for them though.

Remote working isn’t really a thing here, and most jobs are 5 days in the office. Working conditions are years behind Europe. My working week is 48 hrs.

there are various Facebook groups that will give you advice about schools etc. I would really caution against coming here without a job and a decent salary. You’ll haemorrhage money.

Apologies. It’s the annual budget.
my husband had a job there with accommodation paid upfront by his company. I’m totally aware of the upfront payments but we are bleeding money in London too and the next 10 years look pretty bleak.

[Namechangenora52]

Hi,
We live in Dubai and agree that rents are crazy high at the moment. How many bedrooms do you need? Springs may still be just about in budget, we were recently priced out of our rented house there.
We decided against taking our dog over as the heat in summer is just grim for them and have ended up with six stray cats instead.
Agree with the previous poster about working hours here - they are long and inflexible.
Schools are pretty over subscribed too at the minute, I teach out here so if you give me an idea of what flavour of school you are after, I could throw out some names. Is schooling covered completely or do you have a budget?
Sorry to sound so negative. People talk about how expensive Dubai is but if you are in London then I bet it's comparable. Cost of living can vary a lot here but I find it very easy to go over budget as this kids clubs etc quickly add up.
All that said, although my husband got relocated here so not an active choice, our kids are happy here, we've made good friends, I love my job.... Good luck!

[Bansheed]

My working week is 45 hours i week but i work entirely from home for an Amercian company. My colleagues are required in the office three days a week. We also have a policy of only being allowed to work out of the country for two weeks a year. Kids with two working parents tend to do summer camps but most families leave for the bulk of the summer. What is your job - you can still do remote freelance work? Any money you earn is tax free and well worth doing!

Dubai is expensive. And debt easy to accrue.

Accommodation has gone up due to a massive influx of Russians and Ukranians.

Dogs are always on a lead unless you go out to the desert. TBH I agree with that and i have two dogs. They are sometimes allowed on a cafe terrace but i have never seen one in a restaurant.

Schools are expensive, do you get an education allowance? As PP said above, they basically buy the name off the UK counterparts. Every year they are open they become less affiliated with the school back home. There is a home ed community.

For ref. I would not make the move for less than double your DH's salary, even with accom.

[MamzelleL]

@Namechangenora52

Hi,
We live in Dubai and agree that rents are crazy high at the moment. How many bedrooms do you need? Springs may still be just about in budget, we were recently priced out of our rented house there.
We decided against taking our dog over as the heat in summer is just grim for them and have ended up with six stray cats instead.
Agree with the previous poster about working hours here - they are long and inflexible.
Schools are pretty over subscribed too at the minute, I teach out here so if you give me an idea of what flavour of school you are after, I could throw out some names. Is schooling covered completely or do you have a budget?
Sorry to sound so negative. People talk about how expensive Dubai is but if you are in London then I bet it's comparable. Cost of living can vary a lot here but I find it very easy to go over budget as this kids clubs etc quickly add up.
All that said, although my husband got relocated here so not an active choice, our kids are happy here, we've made good friends, I love my job.... Good luck!

This is very helpful, thank you. We need 3 bedrooms. 4 would be ideal.
By all accounts having a dog there isn’t practical, but to separate from him may create a lot of anxiety for the kids. It’s a tough decision.
We’re looking for a school that offers both the English Curriculum and the IB because the IB may suit our youngest better. For our oldest child we need a good SEND provision. Ideally we’d like a school with strong language teaching (which should be easy enough, especially as it’s so poor in the U.K.) as well as good sport (if they could continue in rugby and cricket that would be fab) and drama. I like the sound of Nord Anglia and it sounds like there may be some room for us there, but it’s expensive. No chance to get into JESS, it seems. I’m waiting for some info from Kent. Guildford looks amazing but has poor reviews, so I’ve not enquired - perhaps wrongly. I’ve looked at others such as GEMS and Raffles but that they are by and large attended by Indian pupils may not help make this transition for our children as easy as it could be (the sad reality being that, whilst we live in London, our children’s schools aren’t very mixed, and to become part of the 10% when they have been in the 90% may be one too many adjustments). I’d be grateful to hear about any other schools I should consider or if I got anything wrong with the schools mentioned above.
Schooling is not covered by my DH’s company. There is a housing allowance that is about a 3rd of the cost of villas I’ve seen in The Springs or The Lakes. We have asked around and it seems that my DH’s package isn’t unusual as gone are the days when you got almost everything paid for - or so we’re told. But perhaps we should be getting a school allowance?
Like you, Dubai came to us rather than the other way around but having done the maths we think we’ll be a little better off in Dubai than London, where we’re bleeding money at the moment. This move is also about future opportunities. I don’t see the next 10 years in the U.K. favourably. The country has run itself into the ground and I worry that our salaries will be capped whilst interest rates continue to rise.

[MamzelleL]

@Bansheed

My working week is 45 hours i week but i work entirely from home for an Amercian company. My colleagues are required in the office three days a week. We also have a policy of only being allowed to work out of the country for two weeks a year. Kids with two working parents tend to do summer camps but most families leave for the bulk of the summer. What is your job - you can still do remote freelance work? Any money you earn is tax free and well worth doing!

Dubai is expensive. And debt easy to accrue.

Accommodation has gone up due to a massive influx of Russians and Ukranians.

Dogs are always on a lead unless you go out to the desert. TBH I agree with that and i have two dogs. They are sometimes allowed on a cafe terrace but i have never seen one in a restaurant.

Schools are expensive, do you get an education allowance? As PP said above, they basically buy the name off the UK counterparts. Every year they are open they become less affiliated with the school back home. There is a home ed community.

For ref. I would not make the move for less than double your DH's salary, even with accom.

Thank you for all this helpful
information. I got the impression that people worked hard.
I want to take this opportunity to retrain but did think about doing some freelance work until I do. Would freelance work coming from the UK be entirely tax-free?
Re dogs, what do people do with theirs when they go over for a long period of time in the summer? Do they leave them with a friend or are there decent kennels? The dog thing has become more of a worry and topic with my husband than I ever thought it could.

[Bansheed]

Let's say your household income (as you haven't mentioned if you will work) is

Per month:
incoming
Salary: 25,000
Housing: 9,000

out going
additional rent 9,000
school 9,000

that is 7k left, for everything: cars, petrol, food, flights

YOU WOULD BE INSANE to take that.

ps dogs are fine, that bit you are overthinking

[Bansheed]

@MamzelleL

Thank you for all this helpful
information. I got the impression that people worked hard.
I want to take this opportunity to retrain but did think about doing some freelance work until I do. Would freelance work coming from the UK be entirely tax-free?
Re dogs, what do people do with theirs when they go over for a long period of time in the summer? Do they leave them with a friend or are there decent kennels? The dog thing has become more of a worry and topic with my husband than I ever thought it could.

Yes, you bill to your bank here, where you are resident, tax free. You can find freelance work here too.

I have a live in housekeeper to help with the kids and cleaning as we both work FT. She keeps the animals during the summer and then, when she has her month off, we work around that with dogsitters, kennels etc.

[MamzelleL]

@Bansheed

Yes, you bill to your bank here, where you are resident, tax free. You can find freelance work here too.

I have a live in housekeeper to help with the kids and cleaning as we both work FT. She keeps the animals during the summer and then, when she has her month off, we work around that with dogsitters, kennels etc.

That’s helpful to know, thank you.

[Bansheed]

Actually, now that i think abut this properly, i am sad to say that i don't think you could afford to bring your dog out and relocate it on that salary. Sorry, that is a very tough decision for you guys to make. But i would hate for you to be stuck and have no way to bring him home. I think it is around 5k to fly them.

I am talking in dirhams. Have a look at pet relocate services

[Namechangenora52]

I'll have a good think about schools for you. I work in inclusion. For our cats. We just pay a neighbours helper to come by and clean/feed/hangout. I have a few chums that offer dog boarding at their houses as kennels are expensive. Previous poster is right, there are defo ways around the dog issue and neighbourhoods like the Springs etc have lots of green space for early morning walks before it is too hot for paws.
What we have done is go for a three bedroom plus maids room. In the older villas they are quite generous, and just plonked my teenager in there. He enjoys the kitchen proximity and Cinderella jokes it entails.

[MamzelleL]

@Bansheed

Let's say your household income (as you haven't mentioned if you will work) is

Per month:
incoming
Salary: 25,000
Housing: 9,000

out going
additional rent 9,000
school 9,000

that is 7k left, for everything: cars, petrol, food, flights

YOU WOULD BE INSANE to take that.

ps dogs are fine, that bit you are overthinking

Please could you clarify your figure for rent. Do you mean we should allow 18k per month? We have allowed 30k per month after researching options on Bayut etc but would of course prefer to spend less than that.
I will be working eventually. I just don’t know how long it will take.

[MamzelleL]

@Namechangenora52

I'll have a good think about schools for you. I work in inclusion. For our cats. We just pay a neighbours helper to come by and clean/feed/hangout. I have a few chums that offer dog boarding at their houses as kennels are expensive. Previous poster is right, there are defo ways around the dog issue and neighbourhoods like the Springs etc have lots of green space for early morning walks before it is too hot for paws.
What we have done is go for a three bedroom plus maids room. In the older villas they are quite generous, and just plonked my teenager in there. He enjoys the kitchen proximity and Cinderella jokes it entails.

Thank you!
A teenager down by the kitchen sounds perfect! ;)

[Bansheed]

300k pa is a much better option, if that is your actual allowance is, but the bills will rise accordingly. We are in a 4 bed apartment for 200k and bills around 3k a month, including phones.

I can only advise using the annual figure you gave and 250k pa excluding housing is foolhardy. You would need a monthly income of minimum 40k for a comparable basic UK lifestyle; to educate your children, eat, get about and travel home. Flights are around 6k each.

[Namechangenora52]

Meant to ask and maybe missed it but how old are your dc? When we moved out here someone recommended the Facebook page British Mums Dubai. They are a really friendly bunch.
There really are all types in Dubai. The school I work at is one of the premium ones (I know how wanky that sounds) but there are premium plus as well and mid range. RGS is brand new and as a previous poster suggests, a franchise. The grounds are gorgeous (can only comment as my 10 Yr old ds plays rugby there) but it's v expensive, even for Dubai.
Jebal Ali school out by Damac hills has a good reputation (used to be non profit up until this year) and Damac hills has a massive lovely green park for dog walking.
A lovely IB option is Fairgreen out in Sustainable city. It is super friendly and into gardening etc, has a whole inclusion /nurture department complete with courtyard and fountains and a dog. Arbour school also has a good reputation for being holistic and nurturing. I work at Dubai British School, Jumeirah Park which is handy for the Springs, Meadows , JVC, JVT. We are British curriculum, there is cricket but no touch rugby. I came to the school first as a parent as we had heard that it was friendly and informal, which it is and only started working there this Jan.
Have lots of friends who's kids go to Brighton and they are all very happy with it. Same with Nord.
Sorry that's a load of info for you- a brain dump but I'll blame the heat and the insane humidity today!

[useitorlose]

https://www.timeoutdubai.com/moving-to-dubai/470162-dog-friendly-cafes-and-pubs-in-dubai

whichschooladvisor and schoolscompared sites are useful to compare curricula and fees. You talk about GEMS as if it's one school, but there are dozens. GEMS Silicon Oasis has a good reputation for inclusive provision. Avoid Aquila like the plague.

[Borracha]

I also strongly recommend you check out British Mums in Dubai on Facebook - there are people posting questions like yours multiple times each week and they always get really great, detailed responses.

Also echoing what others have said - Dubai is bloody expensive and the set up costs are enormous. We have lived here 13 years now and all 3 of our kids were born here. On paper, our combined salary is eye watering but in reality it doesn’t go far. I would do some serious maths.

Sorry to sound so negative - we love living here - but I’ve seen it go wrong for many people. All it takes is for your husband to not pass his probation period at work (it’s not uncommon) and it falls down like a house of cards.

[MamzelleL]

@Bansheed

300k pa is a much better option, if that is your actual allowance is, but the bills will rise accordingly. We are in a 4 bed apartment for 200k and bills around 3k a month, including phones.

I can only advise using the annual figure you gave and 250k pa excluding housing is foolhardy. You would need a monthly income of minimum 40k for a comparable basic UK lifestyle; to educate your children, eat, get about and travel home. Flights are around 6k each.

thank you. I’m a little confused by your figures. Are you saying that 250k AED per annum after rental costs is fine? We have done the maths and checked typical monthly bills with some Dubai expats on one of the Facebook groups and think we should make it work.

[MamzelleL]

@Namechangenora52

Meant to ask and maybe missed it but how old are your dc? When we moved out here someone recommended the Facebook page British Mums Dubai. They are a really friendly bunch.
There really are all types in Dubai. The school I work at is one of the premium ones (I know how wanky that sounds) but there are premium plus as well and mid range. RGS is brand new and as a previous poster suggests, a franchise. The grounds are gorgeous (can only comment as my 10 Yr old ds plays rugby there) but it's v expensive, even for Dubai.
Jebal Ali school out by Damac hills has a good reputation (used to be non profit up until this year) and Damac hills has a massive lovely green park for dog walking.
A lovely IB option is Fairgreen out in Sustainable city. It is super friendly and into gardening etc, has a whole inclusion /nurture department complete with courtyard and fountains and a dog. Arbour school also has a good reputation for being holistic and nurturing. I work at Dubai British School, Jumeirah Park which is handy for the Springs, Meadows , JVC, JVT. We are British curriculum, there is cricket but no touch rugby. I came to the school first as a parent as we had heard that it was friendly and informal, which it is and only started working there this Jan.
Have lots of friends who's kids go to Brighton and they are all very happy with it. Same with Nord.
Sorry that's a load of info for you- a brain dump but I'll blame the heat and the insane humidity today!

Thank you. All of this is helpful. Our children are 12 and 10 and I have shortlisted two schools for now: Nord Anglia and DESS/C. JESS would be great but it looks like there’s no chance to get in.

[MamzelleL]

@Borracha

I also strongly recommend you check out British Mums in Dubai on Facebook - there are people posting questions like yours multiple times each week and they always get really great, detailed responses.

Also echoing what others have said - Dubai is bloody expensive and the set up costs are enormous. We have lived here 13 years now and all 3 of our kids were born here. On paper, our combined salary is eye watering but in reality it doesn’t go far. I would do some serious maths.

Sorry to sound so negative - we love living here - but I’ve seen it go wrong for many people. All it takes is for your husband to not pass his probation period at work (it’s not uncommon) and it falls down like a house of cards.

Hello, Thanks for this. I have been waiting to be let into the British Mums in Dubai Facegroup book for a couple of weeks and will make sure to read all the relevant posts when I’m finally in.
My visceral need to not decide anything until we know exactly what we’re getting into is why I’ve turned to this forum. The conclusion is that our monthly spend in Dubai isn’t going to be greater than in London. As my husband will earn on his own what the two of us are earning in London, we should be a little more comfortable once I’m up and running with a job - provided I can find one! Besides, the future is looking grim in the U.K. - everyone’s going to get poorer over the next ten years.
I have been very much on the fence about Dubai as I don’t know whether we’ll be able to make a life that we like there. To read from people who’ve been there a long time but speak so negatively of it obviously doesn’t fill me with enthusiasm. I wonder if you could share any of the good things? Are you happy with the lifestyle? Are your children enjoying their school? Do you think they’re getting a good education?

[Snipples]

We lived in Dubai for six years and came back home in 2021. We were paying 180k for a four bed villa in Damac Hills. Our villa is now renting out for 299k. It cost us 35k to relocate our stuff home and 13k for the dog to come back. We kept our dog in doggy day care for three days a week (I highly recommend Dogwalk Dubai, they are excellent and your dog can board there when you travel).

It's incredibly pricey in Dubai. We were spending about 10-12k a month on bills and that didn't include school fees as our kids were too young.

It is a good lifestyle out there but we wanted to come home for the girls to go to school as there are a number of cultural norms we didn't want to raise them around. It's only worth living in Dubai if you can save about half of your salary to have when you come home.

We were able to save and buy our UK home with a 40% deposit lowering our living costs here.

Summer wise people are around unless they don't work. We stayed every summer but tried to take a few trips somewhere cooler to avoid the worst of the heat. It's not a place to be if you're going to need to scrimp.