It might be best to come out and see the UAE before you decide to move. Also be aware that the packages you have seen advertised may not exist! Many agencies have been advertising ghost jobs in construction for months so that they have candidates for when / if the upturn comes! Please let us know how it goes though.

me too darling lol

she is only going to listen to the answer she wants to hear.... so here it is:

life here is great and it's tax free! We have sunshine all year and you always go out. I swim everyday day. I'm paid a fortune, and my kids go to private schools. Petrol is cheap and I drive a 4x4. My company pays for private health care.


sadly the truth is nearer...

life here is ok but it's not tax free! We have sunshine for some of the year but also lots of dust where you don't want to go out. I don't swim everyday day as its too cold in winter and too hot in the summer. I'm paid rather well , but most of that goes on my kids private schools. Petrol is cheap but the 4x4 drinks loads and I wouldn't drive anything else as the roads are so dangerous. My company pays for private heath care by law, although the choice of hospitals are crap and only covers 'cures' - preventive medicine is extra.

For me, I love it here and do ok, however on a PM salary I don't see how it can work out for you. I spend around 5k GBP a month on an all in basis for a modest life and only one kid at nursery - big school fees are higher.

We are not having a dig, just giving you the facts. eyes wide open and all that.

next post for me might be germany - for me, that is still a better option than the UK, but I'll be financially worse off.

Bear in mind that a 6 day working week is fairly normal in construction and the basic working week is 48 hours and usually more. When you do the sums the hourly rate is usually better in UK and I know people will say but what about the tax. Well from experience the tax saving soon disappears as you end up paying more for most things.

The tax free hook is not as good as it sounds.
You pay 5% of your yearly rental municipality tax. All food and drink in restaurants have a 10% municipality tax. You pay 30% tax on booze bought from the booze shops. food and clothes are generally more expensive than the UK.
When you rent your house you pay 5% agents fees 10% deposit (and try getting that back from some landlords when you leave :-) ) You pay 2000dhs depoisit to get your DEWA connected.

Your 1st year setup expenses are high. Some schools want a fee to put your childs name on a list.
BUT.. do your homework, come for a visit 1st and then if you still want to try it then go for it
There are a lot of people here doing well and who love living here...but there are a lot of people who get their fingers burnt..just research,research, research!!