Moving to Dubai - Everything You Need to Know
/Have you ever wondered why so many people move to Dubai? It’s a baby compared to the other major cities in the world. However, in recent years, it’s become a top destination for tourists and expats. It’s the most populous city in the UAE and boasts a luxurious lifestyle, of beautiful beaches, huge skyscrapers and most importantly, job opportunities. It is also in the top 10 safest cities in the world.
In this blog post, I will explain everything you need to know about this incredible and exciting city. Moving here is pretty straightforward, however, there are certain things you should know before doing so. Including visas, accommodation, jobs, weather, healthcare, transport, bank accounts and lifestyle.
Dubai is one of the seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The other emirates are Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain. Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the UAE - ranked THE worlds safest city of 2020.
I moved to Dubai in September 2018 and truth be told, I didn’t have a clue where it was or what it was. I had just quit my job in Lincolnshire and wanted to work abroad again. I literally googled ‘swimming teacher jobs abroad’ and the perfect position was there waiting for me. I applied online, had a Skype call with the managers the next day, then within the next week I was on a plane. It happened very fast. Just like the city itself - everything is very fast-paced. I’ve never thought about anything less but it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
UAE Weather
With the UAE being in the Middle East, it is known for the stifling hot weather during the summer months. I arrived in Dubai on September 5th and I remember the temperature being 44 degrees - ouchie! The tourist peak season in the UAE is from October to April as the weather averages in the high twenties during the day. Plus, some days in January and February we’ve had night temperatures of 11 or 12 degrees, which is amazing. The month to avoid is definitely August! The humidity and heat can reach over 50 degrees. Everything sweats - it’s unbearable! Luckily for me, my work runs with the school holidays. So I can take time off at Christmas, Easter and the summer holidays. Many of the residents also leave during the hotter months. I don’t think I ever want to experience an August here…
Flights
My manager booked my flight with Emirates from London Heathrow which took around 6 hours 45 minutes direct. There are now many flights daily to the UAE from the UK. Including, Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow. So, getting to and from the UAE is straightforward and accessible. DXB airport is incredible - it has everything you could possibly need! It’s only the beginning of what the rest of the city has to offer.
Visas
For UK British passport holders, you can obtain a free 30-day tourist visa on arrival. Your passport will need to be valid for at least 6 months. If you are employed by a company in the UAE, they must provide you with a residence visa. This can be a long process… I waited for 7 months for mine! Most of these visas last for 2 years and you will need to undergo a medical exam as part of the process.
For those first few months here, I had to make visa runs to the Oman border. Which is a simple stamp out and stamp back into the country. Topped with a small fee of course. This might sound slightly shady, however, it’s a very common thing here. After the first 30 days, there is a 10 day grace period to renew the visa. If you fail to renew it, then the fines start creeping in. 200dhs for the first day, then 100dhs for every day after that! I used www.gotoursdubai.com for the visa runs to Oman and they did nothing but the job!
Currency
The currency in the UAE is Dirhams. The exchange rate averages around 4.6 Dirhams to 1 British pound sterling. Which is great for exchanging money made here and taking it back to the UK. The most cost-effective way to do this is to buy GBP at a UAE Exchange or Al Ansari branch. Transferring money online can become very expensive!
Accommodation
I work for a small company which has 12 employees. For anyone joining the company, my managers let the new employees stay at their apartments for a few weeks. This especially helped me to find my feet and gave me the time to settle in. Moving to a country I’d never been to was overwhelming enough without having to worry about finding a place to live. I can’t speak for all companies here, but this is something I was provided with.
Most residents here rent apartments and villas. Only people with the megabucks buy properties… one day Soph! To find accommodation - Property Finder and Dubizzle are used by most. One of the cheapest options is to rent a room in a shared villa or apartment. This is ‘technically’ illegal, as living with people of the opposite sex is against the law. However, the lifestyle of Dubai has made this the new norm. (All down to the discretion of the landlord of course!) After leaving my managers apartment, I moved into a huge villa with a girl from the company. I paid a monthly rent of 4000dhs, which included having my own room and access to a swimming pool. This is such a great way to meet people from all over the world. At one point we had over 12 nationalities under one roof!
At the start of my second year in Dubai, I moved into an apartment with 3 of my friends. It’s incredible - I now feel very settled here. It’s cheaper than the villa and we have a huge balcony which overlooks the beach, Palm Jumeirah and Burj Al Arab. Plus it’s only a 5-minute drive to the Marina and a 15-minute drive to Downtown. We certainly won’t be moving from here any time soon!
Transport
Taxis are cheap in Dubai and they’re everywhere! You can either flag one down or order one from the RTA app. There isn’t an underground train system here, however, there is a Metro which runs the length of the city. Some of the stops include DXB airport, Dubai Mall and Marina. For my first year in the city, I hired a car from Shift which is one of the most used rental services. I have now bought a car on finance for 5 years, which works out much cheaper than renting. I can then sell it once the finance has finished. This is my baby girl at the beach…
Just a heads up about the driving - I absolutely hated it when I first moved here. The roads are manic and people drive FAST! The main highway is called Sheikh Zayed Road which runs through the city and alongside the Metro. This is the main route that connects Dubai and Abu Dhabi - just over an hours travel time. It’s rare to have a 6/7/8 lane highway running through the middle of the city. It works for convenience, however, it doesn’t work for being a masked racing circuit. It certainly takes some getting used to. On the other hand, the roads are easy to navigate as the main highways run the length of the city and the smaller highways start at the coast and head inland - grid-like. The fun part about driving is spotting all the fancy cars on the road. You can’t go very far without seeing a Lambo or G-Wag!
Bank Accounts & Emirates ID
To open a bank account in the UAE, you must provide a salary certificate from your employer. A valid residence visa, passport and Emirates ID must be shown also. An Emirates ID is an ID card that you obtain once the visa has been approved. This takes around 7 days to be processed. The ID cards are used for various services around the country, including jumping the passport immigration queue at all UAE airports - bonus!
The main banks in the UAE are Emirates NBD, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Dubai Islamic Bank - to name a few. They all have online banking apps which makes financing and receiving your salary that whole lot easier. You can pay for pretty much anything on your card. Cash seems a bit redundant in the country - even paying for parking is done on the RTA app.
Lifestyle
No more boring stuff - we’re now at the good part! As I mentioned above, Dubai is a city that oozes luxury and charm. From brunches on the beach to sipping cocktails at the top of the tallest building in the world. To world-famous beach clubs and to those all-important nightclubs. It’s all here. Everything is new and clean and fancy. So you feel fancy. It’s very difficult to be unhappy in this city. Find people that you can trust and that have their feet firmly on the ground. No matter hard you try, you will get attached. Also, remember that many people will come and go. It’s a city that’s evolving - you will evolve too.
