# American moving to dubai needs help



## amo3ing (Jul 22, 2008)

Hello everyone, Iam an American lady, and i will move to Dubai in the next few days, i will be there by the 15th of september, me and my three kids, i never went outside USA, so it will be an adventure for me, but its really hard living here in my town, in Brewster, washington, and i have heard alot about Dubai and how it is very nice place, i just want if any one living there to help me finding a job, i have long expericnce , around 12 years in sales and retail, and iam 30 years, i speak spanish and japanese beside english, and i wish if anyone can help me to find a job because i don't have enough money to stay there longer, so i wish to find job as soon as i be there.
and i have many questions, i wish if you can tell me about the schools in dubai, all my kids going to school, and about Accommodation, and if i get a job what is the average of salaries there?
i know many people come to this forum, so i wish if you can help me and i will be very grateful, and i wish if i can have friends there too from nay nationality, i wish i can make alot of friends coz i don't want to be alone as i was in my town, you know its hard for a lady with three kids to live alone without friends, so i welcome any friends.
my name is April by the way, and i wish to receive your replies as soon as possible.
thank you for your time.


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## sgilli3 (Mar 23, 2008)

amo3ing said:


> Hello everyone, Iam an American lady, and i will move to Dubai in the next few days, i will be there by the 15th of september, me and my three kids, i never went outside USA, so it will be an adventure for me, but its really hard living here in my town, in Brewster, washington, and i have heard alot about Dubai and how it is very nice place, i just want if any one living there to help me finding a job, i have long expericnce , around 12 years in sales and retail, and iam 30 years, i speak spanish and japanese beside english, and i wish if anyone can help me to find a job because i don't have enough money to stay there longer, so i wish to find job as soon as i be there.
> and i have many questions, i wish if you can tell me about the schools in dubai, all my kids going to school, and about Accommodation, and if i get a job what is the average of salaries there?
> i know many people come to this forum, so i wish if you can help me and i will be very grateful, and i wish if i can have friends there too from nay nationality, i wish i can make alot of friends coz i don't want to be alone as i was in my town, you know its hard for a lady with three kids to live alone without friends, so i welcome any friends.
> my name is April by the way, and i wish to receive your replies as soon as possible.
> thank you for your time.



Hi and welcome to the forum.
I have a few concerns here.

1.You cant just enter Dubai, with 3 kids and have no housing/schooling organized.
Housing and schooling are very expensive and (for example) a 3 bed villa plus schooling for kids can set you back 350,000 dhs (almost 100,000 US) AYEAR - all paid UPFRONT !!!!

2. Are you arriving with a husband who will sponsor your stay in the UAE?

3. Retail jobs pay low wages, and are held by mainly Filipino workers, and you would not earn enough to support 3 kids (let alone pay decent housing/bills etc)

We love love a little more info from you.


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## amo3ing (Jul 22, 2008)

*more info*

hi, thank you for your reply, iam sorry i didn't mention all info needed here, but i thought it will not make any difference.
anyway, i will go to dubai to marry my boyfriend, he is egyptian, and he has job offer there, but he cannot sponsor me coz his salary will not allow to him to sponsor another person.
and i have information that retail jobs there pay well, specially and i have strong experience in retail, and i know that companies there provide accommodation, and this amount of money you have mentioned is really high, because i don't want expensive schools for my kids, i know there are expensive and cheap schools.
and please, i don't need anyone to give me dark picture about the life and money there, because my life in my town is much worse than anything, and this man i will marry is all my life, i really can't live without him, and he is the kind of father that i want for my kids, their real father left me long time ago and he was taking money from me by force, and then he divorced me but after taking all money i have, my mother is horrible person, she doesn't stand me and my kids, and iam her only daughter, i don't have friends or relatives, so this man is all i have, i would go the end of the world for him, and i have chosen dubai and i told him about going there, and he is egyptian, and he left his country for me and he went there for me.
Iam sorry, i know its personal things i shouldn't say it , but this is really means alot to me, so i wish if you can help me there, finding job, and settle down i would be very grateful for you.
and i will reply for any questions.
thank you
1


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

Dubai is a great place to live but as sgilli3 has already pointed out, retail jobs pay peanuts! As an American, you might be offered slightly more but you would still struggle to live on it. Do not let yourself be fooled by the tax free lifestyle - yes, there is no income tax but accommodation on its own will put you out of pocket! Companies do not necessarily provide accomodation and the accommodation allowance is almost always never enough to cover your accommdation. There is also no obligation on the part of the employer to provide you with accommodation or an allowance! If you are coming out with 3 children, you will need at least 3-bed apartment or villa. As sgilli3 has already said, this will set you back at the very least 250 -300,000+ AED depending on the area that you choose to live in (look at Bhomes.com for more accurate rental figures). Apartments are also almost always rented out unfurnished, so you would have to find money to furnish the whole apartment or else ship all your belongs over to Dubai. You will also have to bear the cost of their visas, which is certainly not cheap. The company you end up working for will take care of only your visa! Your family's visa will in all certainty be your responsibility! You will also need the permission of your children's father before you can bring them to Dubai.

In regards to school, there is no such thing as cheap schools here. Depending on the age of your children, you need to allow at least 10,000 AED per child per year. On top of that, there will be uniforms, books, extra-curricular activities, etc. I believe that there is also a registration fee of some sort that needs to be paid when you contact the school to secure your child's place.

I'm sorry that your life is not as you would like it to be right now but you need to think very hard about moving here. Dubai is great if you have money - without money, it can quickly turn into a nightmare! If you are still wanting to come out here, try contacting the large American & British stores here. They might pay a little bit more but to be absolutely honest with you, since I've been here, I've yet to see a Westerner working on the shop floor. 

I am not trying to paint a dark picture of life in Dubai but just merely advising you that you need to plan carefully, else you might find yourself in an 'out of the frying pan, into the fire' situation. 

Best of luck and hopefully things will work out for you.


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

Amo3ing,

Maz25 has given very good advice, please think about this very seriously before you arrange to go to Dubai. Life is never greener on the other side of the fence and with 3 little ones in tow, life can be very hard in a foreign land, especially without a source of good income.

I really wish you all the best.


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## sgilli3 (Mar 23, 2008)

Hi Amo3ing,
I understand that you care very deeply for this man and ypour children, but we are trying to help you understand it isnt as easy as packing up and moving countries.

1st off- This man cant sponsor you anyway, regardless of money, as you are not married.
It is also illegal to live together if not married. Sure some people do it, but if caught, there are serious consequences.

If you were married, but he doesnt make enough - he still cant sponsor you to stay.

If you are lucky to get a job, that pays maybe 1,000 US a month - you will be extremely lucky.

Unless you are sharing a villa with many other families (which is illegal), you will need a min of 5,000 dhs a month for a 1 bed/studio apartment in Dubai (some of the othger emirates are cheaper, but further out so you would need to commute a long distance for work etc)

The only "cheaper" (??) schools are generally Indian, Pakistani and perhaps Filipino and Russian schools...still a lot of money though.

Unless you were a manager of a top store, retail companies generally dont pay fro any housing allowance.

Without sponsorship here, you will become an illegal resident, and there are fines for overstaying on your visa here.

I dont want to paint a negative picture, but I would hate for you to arrive here, with 3 kids in tow, and find that you cant live here.


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## ghanem31 (Sep 20, 2008)

you said that your boy friend can't sponsership you, that means his salary is less than 4,000 Dhs by the law ( 1$ = 3.6 Dhs ) which is a very low salary for him alone to survive in Dubai 

good luck


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