ArchieTech

Now I have seen a few threads about women and dress. Replies in terms of tourists and locals are one thing but my Girlfriend has asked a few questions off the back of conversations with friends.

I am confident some of these are likely to come across strange, but if someone would be kind enough to state the obvious (or what I hope to be the obvious)

1. Are unmarried people allowed to live together?
2. Is it true a foreign woman will not be allowed to work in a government role (consultancy) and in fact face difficulty in general job seeking
3. Work dress code for women, do they need to cover up totally
4. Will she be required to drive a car with pretty much black windows?

Now my answers are
1. Yes we are allowed
2. After a call to an agency I get the impression no, if any prejudice, no more than normal (lets be honest it is still present sometimes)
3. No they don’t, but should observe and be respectful and diligent (ask in interview if needed)
4. No need for black windows, but dark helps heat wise

Thanks for any help/advice

If at all possible, perhaps there are some professional woman who can give further tips and advice.

In short my Girlfriend will be going into the Consultancy sector, but seems to have had some very strange conversations over the past weeks raising these and some other questions. If anyone would be so kind as to summarise there experience and be honest with any difficulties had we would both be very grateful.

Thanks,
AT

Sam FTQ

I am a professional woman working for the government, although in Abu Dhabi. Your answers are correct, with the exception of the first one:

Unamarried couples are not allowed to live together.

ArchieTech

Thank you for such a quick reply.

Is there any way around this? in a legitamate sense, not a silly one?

Thats not good at all
AT

Sam FTQ

Yeah, get married.

jrudofsky

Plenty of unmarried couples live together. It is however against the law. It will depnd where you decide to live as to whether you come up across problems....ie if surrounded by expats then unlikely. Everything should be in your name (rent, bills etc) if you are sponsored and just don't draw attention to it.

lionheart

For goodness sake, if you were not aware that its illegal for an unmarried couple to live together, you really ought to think again before deciding to move here. Check many previous threads on this topic. Also, having tinted glass may be illegal, depending on he degree of darkness. As for the clothing issue, simply bear in mind that 80% of the population are non-locals, mostly from the Indian subcontinent. Two thirds of the population are male, mostly here on bachelor status. Put two and two together. If a woman wears scanty clothing, she may be the subject of unwanted attention...or worse...from guys who are simply unaccustomed to seeing white female flesh.

ArchieTech

nice!

whiel that is a great idea we are both keen on, we were hoping to to come back and have rasied enough savings to have a lavish do. Currently it would be a rather limited affair. Something she is not keen on at all.

We were hoping to be over in Dubai for abotu 4-5 years

A review is needed then
AT

Well to be honest we have a friend out there (married) not living in expat area and saving a fortune, we were hoping to do the same, they do have other relatives as well.

Even if with expats, is this really a good idea and how often (even if rare) do people get in to trouble (not that i think this is a good risk to even contemplate).

Are we talking fine, prison, deportation, a possible mix of any of those?

Not good!



Thanks for your reply Lionheart, we are both new to this and despite the many links for general overview I must have missed this unmarried part.

As for the dressing of women I have come across many conflicting threads and could not seem to find a ladies point of view. I have already mentioned it is always best to do what is expected of that culture. However it is good to ask. My searching skills clearly need honing as I did not find an answer either way and still have not, there seems to be constant debate on this topic.

We are going over soon, I am sure this will give us a much better insight.

I would not have thought it means anything, but she is not white, she is part Spanish but i would not have thought colour of skin should make any difference. Is this not the case? Black, Indain Brown, Chinese?

Thanks
AT

Emerald_Eyes

I enjoy working in Dubai hugely. I work with all men in a corporate environment so I tend to wear suits most of the time. All my skirts are knee length, and my tops always cover my shoulders. I still wear sky heels of course! I think during Ramadan it is advisable to cover up a little more so I will probably stick to linen trousers and trousers suits then. I think it is important to be respectful and mindful of the religious and cultural aspects while working here, but personally I don't think she will need to change her habits drastically.

It is important to be fairly strong when putting ideas forward to people, as sometimes you can be dismissed as a woman, but over time I think people come to respect you for your work and knowledge once you have proven yourself as credible. We actually have quite a few women in the office here, so I don't think women can honestly say they are discriminated against very much

Hope that helps.

ArchieTech

Thank you very much, this is very useful. I can log in at home later so we can both go through this and evaluate. There is a lot to consider and i think out visit will help us understand the greater picture as well.

AT

jrudofsky

From my limited knowledge, and there are far more people on here that have the experience to tell more.....but I have not heard of anyone (Western) being caught or 'prosecuted' for this. However it would be a combination of prison/deportation and possibly a fine.

There was one 'story' i heard that a guy was in hospital, his girlfriend visited, some questions were asked and the authorities found out and they were deported...apparently.

If she gets her own visa/sponsor herself, rather than doing visa runs, you would find things marginally less complicated!

lionheart

Please don't get me on to the thorny topic of racial discrimination here in Dubai...needless to say, Spanish is regarded as European=white, so you have no worries there.

ArchieTech

Cheers, was not trying to open up anything else (sounds somewhat interesting though if not perhaps controversial), just trying to understand. I would say she is white; however a majority of the wider family are very dark.

I don’t have any English blood in me, just born and bread here, but never even gave that another thought. My family are from just around the corner (well more neighbours two/three doors down) in geography terms.

Thats a bit off topic for this though.

Thanks for your reply lionheart
AT