oneshandyandy

Hello,

First post in here, I am moving over to Dubai next month from Bristol, UK for work!

I have some questions which are rather complicated.

I have a girlfriend from Argentina who is also planning to move into the area. I am well aware of the laws surrounding unmarried couples in Dubai, so my enquiry isn't about this!

She is aiming to find work before heading there, but this is proving to be a little more tricky that we had anticipated, so she was thinking of coming on a tourist visa to find work. I know that tourist visas for Argentinean citizens aren't as easy to get hold of as they are for Brits. Would it be possible for her to do visa runs if it takes a while to find employment?

She does has an interview for a job in Muscat, Oman, coming up. It'll be quite a good job for her and is only a 4-5 hour drive from Dubai, much easier to manage than a UK-Argentina relationship and we could see each other most weekends, until we manage to get ourselves employed in the same place. Going back to the tourist visa, would it be easier for her to get a tourist visa for UAE as an Omani resident?

Further, I am aware that once you leave a job in the UAE your visa is revoked and you have to leave for a period of a few months before you can find another job. If she was to take up this job in Oman, might there be any residency visa problems if she was to try and find work in Dubai? Also vice versa for me, would I come across any issues obtaining a residency visa to work in Muscat?

Many thanks!
Andy

Leannmean

I cannot answer that because I don't know any Argentinians and these things hugely differ from one nationality to another .

Yes , some nationalities cannot get a tourist visa yet they can get it if they are residents in one of the GCC countries.

that has changed recently as long as she leaves that job amicably .

mission

once you have a residency visa within the GCC, then you can travel freely between the GCC countries.

oneshandyandy

Thanks for the replies, very helpful!

I've just seen the thread on the 6 month ban being lifted, that's great news.

If you were to get a job in Oman, and leave that for one in the UAE (amicably or not), could there potentially be any difficulties obtaining the residency visa for UAE?

OriginalSunshine

Check the visa situation: Border crossings between the UAE and Oman - [MM] Muscat Mutterings

You may also need to check what kind of occupation is on her residents permit. I was an Engineer Manager, and had a Private driving licence. M boss had residency based on him being a Geologist and he had a Private Light driving licence, which meant he wasn't allowed to drive company vehicles, and at the time, was not allowed to drive through the border. Rules change alllllllll the time though, so just don't rely on one particular method to meet up. I mean, heck when I first arrived Oman had different weekend days to the UAE!

Oman has a 2 year no entry ban if you quit your job in Oman. Lots of controversy there.

Be aware that the economy in Oman is suffering major rly due to the oil price drop, there may not be many jobs available. They may be advertised, but don't lah on anything until you get the contract.

oneshandyandy

Thanks for that! Practicalities like that aren't too much bother for us, pretty much anything will be an improvement on the current 31 hour collection of flights from my place to hers. I've checked it out and there is a bus service between the cities. If we can see each other every couple of weekends we'll be happy.

Wow, 2 years! That is a long time, but doesn't pose a problem to us, as long as it doesn't make working in the UAE difficult.

She had the interview today and it went extremely well. Almost weirdly so. As you say, until the ink is on the paper nothing is confirmed.

Leannmean

It does not effect your situation in the UAE , but , to echo what OriginalSunshine said , The economy is suffering in Oman to some extent , gas prices will spike , many expats are being sent home .
There is a 2 year ban indeed , most employers issue a NOC upon finishing 2 years of employment and have no desire to renew the contract .
it all depends on the " sponsor ' ,I think that a sponsor can get someone banned indefinitely from entering Oman but I am not sure .

mission

on a completely side note - how do you manage to have any kind of relationship with someone who literally lives on the other side of the world to you....gotta be having loads of phone sex

archie159

Are you sure? For all nationalities, to all GCC countries...? And if this is the case, why do (several) Brits I know, with UAE residency, keep complaining about the need to renew visas to go to Saudi?

mission

you mean renew their UAE visa or need a visa to go to Saudi?

archie159

They have UAE residents' visas, but (as far as I can tell - I wasn't that interested...) they still need to get visas to travel to Saudi - ie, their UAE residency visa does not seem to grant free travel to all GCC countries, as you stated. And for those it does (Oman etc), are you sure this also applies to nationalities who cannot normally get visas on arrival?

On the other issue... I do know an Argentinian couple here in Abu Dhabi - I won't see them for at least 2 weeks, but can ask about the border-run issue when we next meet.

mission

ah i see....for Saudi i cannot be sure.....but as far I know the other GCC countries ie UAE, Qatar, Bahrain & Oman (i think those are the ones?) you can travel freely (regardless of what nationality you are) between them once you have a resident's visa. But i could be wrong.

oneshandyandy

Happy new year everyone!

Ok great! It won't be a problem if she gets banned after finding work in Dubai.

Hahaha well we met working together on a cruise ship, Skype is a godsend!

Thanks, that would be very helpful if you could ask when you next meet them! It would certainly make life easier knowing that border runs are an option.

I'll have to do a little further research on this. Would be a massive dealbreaker if she couldn't come into the UAE easily!

Tockalosh

You know the world is a truly amazing place....

One moment we are fighting with the little fellows on a bog ridden shithole in the south Atlantic and the next moment we are having a crafty ham shank over Skype with their daughters.
Love obviously is the answer to almost everything.
Good luck with the UAE/Oman run

oneshandyandy

One more thing... might it be ill advised to travel across the border together in a car as an unmarried male and female?