# Dubai as a Single Parent Teacher



## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

Hi,

Firstly apologies if there have been similar points previously regarding moving to Dubai as a single parent.

I am looking to move to dubai in the next year (most likely for Sept 2015 academic year) with my 10 year old daughter. 

Having read a few blog posts on orientation etc when arriving in UAE, I wanted to know whether I would be able to bring my daughter with me then. As in, have teachers travelled with their children when they arrived in the country or have the children accompanied them afterwards? That's really badly worded - Hopefully someone will understand what I mean 

Thanks in advance


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## BedouGirl (Sep 15, 2011)

You will need to sponsor your child. Have you asked your prospective employer about this? Schooling here is very expensive - bringing your child out after the year has started is not a good move. You need to work on getting her into school at the beginning of the year so you'd need to start now.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

Hi BedouGirl,

Thanks for your response. I haven't asked as of yet, I'm hoping that the school I get a job in will be a K-12, if it is, will my daughter be allowed to attend the same school as the one I am working in?

What I meant to ask was, when teachers come to Dubai a few weeks before the term has started, do they bring their children with them then? Or will I have to be in Dubai before I can sponsor my daughter?


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## BedouGirl (Sep 15, 2011)

kaji said:


> Hi BedouGirl, Thanks for your response. I haven't asked as of yet, I'm hoping that the school I get a job in will be a K-12, if it is, will my daughter be allowed to attend the same school as the one I am working in? What I meant to ask was, when teachers come to Dubai a few weeks before the term has started, do they bring their children with them then? Or will I have to be in Dubai before I can sponsor my daughter?


I think many schools will and I think you may get a discount. Your daughter can come in on a visit visa with you. She will probably have to do a visa run before you can sort her sponsorship. What you may have to watch is that you may not be able to do the run with her as your visa may still be in process. If this is the case, you will have to pay an overstay fine for her. This would normally kick in around the 39th day after arrival.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

Excellent, thanks for that. I guess it's just a matter of finding a job relatively quickly once the new academic year starts in a good school.

I've tried to find blogs/posts relating to single parents who have made the move out there, but there doesn't seem to be much information.


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## BedouGirl (Sep 15, 2011)

kaji said:


> Excellent, thanks for that. I guess it's just a matter of finding a job relatively quickly once the new academic year starts in a good school. I've tried to find blogs/posts relating to single parents who have made the move out there, but there doesn't seem to be much information.


Type single parent in the search engine on this forum, there's loads of threads on the subject, some quite recent.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

While you're looking for a job, I would also recommend researching daycare options. Teachers are not extremely well paid here and while you could get a discount in school fees, you might have to pay quite a bit in after school care (unless your daughter stays back after school for different activities).

Good luck and research research research!


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

Thanks Pamela. What would you suggest? By the time we move there next year, daughter will be 11. 

So I'm hoping that she does after school activities as I'm not sure whether daycare centres would take an 11 year old. I think that's one of the reasons I want to get a job hopefully in a K-12 school so that I won't have the hassle of dropping her off at a different school whilst working in another. 

It's a lot to take in at the moment, I've been researching for a while now, thinking about costs, living expenses, etc.


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## twowheelsgood (Feb 21, 2013)

One of the chaps working for me is a single parent and his plan is for his child to be picked up and dropped off by a nanny. Mind you, he is paid an whole lot more than a teacher in Dubai so that may not be affordbale from your viewpoint.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

It's something I will look into. 

I've never used a babysitter or nanny before, apart from my dad, so I'm not sure whether I'd be able to afford a full/part time nanny. Better get saving


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

As twowheelsgood says, hiring a nanny / housekeeper seems to be the preferred option. I have a full time nanny too who picks up my son from school in the afternoons. It is expensive though, so do factor in those costs before moving forward.
If you do a search of the different threads on the forum, you should be able to see some new discussions about single parents moving to Dubai.
Personally, I think it's amazing that there are more single parents considering moving to Dubai. Hopefully as the numbers increase, there will also be more daycare businesses etc catering to the likes of us and also opportunities to find more people to relate to.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

How old is your son Pamela? 

Do nannies there go through vetting like CRB checks that we have in England or something similar? Is your nanny just a nanny, or nanny/maid/cook? 

Do you know what the ballpark figures are for a full time/part time nanny? I'll factor this into the budget. 

It would be a good idea to have like a babysitting club or something similar.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

My son turned 7 this month.

The term 'nanny' is used very loosely in Dubai. They're more like maids/cooks/housekeepers, etc. There are no nanny visas so the person that you hire as a nanny will be on a maid's visa and those are only provided to certain nationalities.

These visas are valid for just one year and you will spend about AED 6K to 7K each year for renewals. The minimum salary is actually pre-deteremined based on nationalities and you can get this informatoin online. They are also entitled on one day off each week. Sadly, not many people provide them with the benefits that they are entitled too.

You should be able to find all of this information the forum. Just search for key words and read through the threads


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

Aww a cute age. How was he found it in Dubai? Has he settled well? 

Thanks for your help Pamela, I'll have a look through the forums.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

He was born here so this is home for him...not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing haha


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## BringBackBuck8 (Sep 20, 2013)

I'll just chip in with it depends where you work; I know my school the package for teachers from England includes free schooling for 2 children (if you have them) and there are a number of single mothers on our staff. You'd also get a 2 bedroomed apartment as opposed to a single person's one.


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## safirah (Mar 5, 2014)

*teacher recruitment agencies*

Have you considered applying for a teaching position through recruitment agencies? I used TeachAway and they offer to pay childrens school fees. At her age the school should offer afterschool programs til your finished. However most of their UAE posts are in Abu Dhabi.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

BringBackBuck8 said:


> You'd also get a 2 bedroomed apartment as opposed to a single person's one.


Thanks for that, I was wondering whether it would be a 2 bed or 1 bed.


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## kaji (Jul 22, 2014)

safirah said:


> Have you considered applying for a teaching position through recruitment agencies? I used TeachAway and they offer to pay childrens school fees. At her age the school should offer afterschool programs til your finished. However most of their UAE posts are in Abu Dhabi.


I have thought about it, but the pay doesn't seem to be that great compared to when schools advertise themselves on the teaching job websites. Also from what I've heard, most schools offer an education allowance or free school places for children. Just need to make sure the the schools have good extra curricular activities.


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## BringBackBuck8 (Sep 20, 2013)

Again from the experience at my school there are a wide range of after school activities every night, though I think children are limited to attending 2 per week. There is also a paid after school club.


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