# Visa requirements for Polish girlfriend



## SummerSnow (Sep 27, 2012)

Hi all,

I've recently been offered a new job in Dubai and am planning on relocating from UK. Now I understand I will have my visa sorted by my employer but as my girlfriend will hopefully be coming with me, I am trying to find out the procedure as she has a Polish passport.

To begin with she woud like to come over for an extended stay and see if she likes it. I understand the legalities of living together and that is a separate issue we will have to consider. 

What I cannot seem to find out is whether she can come on a visitors visa and do the 'visa run' every 30 days. If not, what are the alternatives?

She will probably look for employment while she is in Dubai, can she do that while on a visitors visa? If she finds a job, even if not perfect to secure a visa herself, is it problematic at all to change jobs there if the employer is her sponser?

Sorry for all the questions, I have searched but cannot find answers clear enough for me to understand. There seems to be so much conflicting info out there.

Thanks for reading.


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## inka2000 (Sep 23, 2012)

No she can not do the visa run. She must exit country for at least 30 days to apply for another visa. The best if you marry her and she will come on wife wisa , much easier to find a job also.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

I'm in the same situation. My girlfriend has a Polish passport, what's the procedure for her to get a visit visa to come over to UAE for a holiday? Was hoping to get her a return flight only but who would be the sponsor if I cannot and she isn't staying in a hotel?


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

ExUK said:


> I'm in the same situation. My girlfriend has a Polish passport, what's the procedure for her to get a visit visa to come over to UAE for a holiday? Was hoping to get her a return flight only but who would be the sponsor if I cannot and she isn't staying in a hotel?


She can probably get a ticket through Emirates and apply for a visa through them. UAE Visas | Visa & Passport Information | Emirates


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

Fantastic, thank you.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

Next question along a similar thread. She would like to work here and support herself whilst studying. Studying will be distance learning so no student visa I guess. If she secured a fairly unskilled job in say a clothes shop in a mall, are those employers likely to sponsor her visa to live here?


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

ExUK said:


> Next question along a similar thread. She would like to work here and support herself whilst studying. Studying will be distance learning so no student visa I guess. If she secured a fairly unskilled job in say a clothes shop in a mall, are those employers likely to sponsor her visa to live here?


An employer would have to sponsor her. Bear in mind that any salary for the type of job you are talking about makes minimum wage in the UK look like a champagne lifestyle.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

That's ok, it's just to get started while qualifying for something for her. Not really about the money for her, just getting sponsored till we marry sometime down the road and a feel of contribution.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

The hours will likely be very rough as well. I'm guessing 12 hour days, 6 days a week is normal in retail here. Not to mention the a...holes she would have to deal with.

IMO you both really need to think this through. It could very easily be a very miserable existence for her, with long stressful hours and little money to show for it. If you love each other so much that she's prepared to do this to be with you, then you should think about marriage so you can sponsor her. This is not an easy town to be in without the right skills and experience. Sorry to be grim about it, but better you think through the realities now than later...


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## snoopstar (Jul 19, 2012)

Good info thanks M1key.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

Thanks M1key, that's good to know. It's all about gathering info at the moment. She is coming out on hols soon so will get a chance to see how much she likes it and wether its worth accelerating her plans I guess. She's a very traditional person so although marriage is the sensible and easiest thing to do, aswell as something we plan for the future, she would rather qualify and get here under a job in her own right. Long hard discussions I think when she is over on hols.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

Good luck to you both.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

Thank you.


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## ziokendo (Jan 7, 2012)

m1key said:


> The hours will likely be very rough as well. I'm guessing 12 hour days, 6 days a week is normal in retail here.


Flipping burgers for sure will land you less pay and more working hours that in the UK, but retail is not all the same, even in Dubai.

I work in the retail sector (not on the shop floor actually, but I know the reality) and I can tell you there are decent jobs in retail here as well (for sure better paid than UK minimum - or even running wage), especially if she speaks several languages (Russian or Chinese would be a strong asset, being Polish maybe she studied Russian).

You are right that it will be a six working days with long hours (9-10 hours), at least at the beginning. More experienced people usually are offered a 5,5 days workweek in my group.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

ziokendo said:


> Flipping burgers for sure will land you less pay and more working hours that in the UK, but retail is not all the same, even in Dubai.
> 
> I work in the retail sector (not on the shop floor actually, but I know the reality) and I can tell you there are decent jobs in retail here as well (for sure better paid than UK minimum - or even running wage), especially if she speaks several languages (Russian or Chinese would be a strong asset, being Polish maybe she studied Russian).
> 
> You are right that it will be a six working days with long hours (9-10 hours), at least at the beginning. More experienced people usually are offered a 5,5 days workweek in my group.


I was trying to paint a realistic but negative picture to make sure they understand the possible reality if they come out. I'm sure you are right that not all retail is the same out here as you say. The poster seemed to be indicating little to no experience and qualifications. Unless lucky she would be starting very close to the bottom. People at the bottom are generally treated poorly here. 

Better to understand the possible harsh reality rather than the occasional "come out it'll be ok" response I see on here (not suggesting you are saying that btw).


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## woodlands (Jan 13, 2010)

m1key said:


> An employer would have to sponsor her. Bear in mind that any salary for the type of job you are talking about makes minimum wage in the UK look like a champagne lifestyle.


REALLY ?
4000 aed / month - 730 gbp/month
= 33 gbp/day
= 4 gbp/hr
plus housing
plus transport
no taxes
1 flight home/yr
and sorry but a "white" shop asstt can make 6-8k aed/month here. 
poles get paid 6 gbp/hr at min wage level in uk. Philipino maids here have more disposable income than 40% of europeans. wake up, the world has changed my dear.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

woodlands said:


> REALLY ?
> 4000 aed / month - 730 gbp/month
> = 33 gbp/day
> = 4 gbp/hr
> ...


Thank you for your patronising post. 

Not everybody makes that level of money, particularly with no experience. But don't worry, lets just paint a lovely rosey picture of life here and hope. I've already said I'm painting a negative view. This woman is as likely to end up up a crap deal as the best scenario. Too many people come here thinking the streets are paved with gold. A little dose of reality might mean people think about their decision which is a good thing.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

woodlands said:


> REALLY ?
> 4000 aed / month - 730 gbp/month
> = 33 gbp/day
> = 4 gbp/hr
> ...


These 2 points highlighted in bold.....where do you get these statistics from? I'm interested in knowing.

@ Ex Uk: If your girlfriend is coming here on Holiday, especially at this time of the year, she will love it. It's a completely different ball game when you're working here. The hiring process is very race dominated. Your young Polish girlfriend who has no experience might not do so well if she tries her hand in the retail sector. She is white though (HUGE advantage here), she'll do better looking for receptionist jobs, etc within a company.

Good luck!


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## is200mine (Jul 23, 2012)

If she looks good, can speak English well, then she will definitely get a job working as sales staff for AED8k a month or more. If she was from the Philippines then she'd be making less than half of that. 


You guys ever been to Folli Follie? They have some hot looking ladies from Eastern Europe working there and I am sure they make 10k a month. 

Hell Patchi pays its store managers 12k a month + commission on the sales.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

is200mine said:


> If she looks good, can speak English well, then she will definitely get a job working as sales staff for AED8k a month or more. If she was from the Philippines then she'd be making less than half of that.
> 
> 
> You guys ever been to Folli Follie? They have some hot looking ladies from Eastern Europe working there and I am sure they make 10k a month.
> ...


I don't understand where you all are getting these figures from? Are they salaries that are confirmed by retail sales associates or just assumptions that you all are making?

There's a big difference between a Patchi Store Manager and a young woman presumably in her early 20s, still a student and no professional experience.

It would be nice if people do not assume what the salaries are and try and state facts only. I'm sure the OP will appreciate a realistic response rather than a rose tinted "I'm sure she gets 10K because she's hot looking" response.


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## ExUK (Dec 7, 2012)

Hi all. Thanks for all responses, certainly good to hear all sides. 

She should be TESOL qualified by the time she moves over to live here permanently albeit with zero experience in that field. 

Retail was a train of thought to enable sponsorship for her visa, not really worried too much about the amount of pay although obviously working conditions are more of an importance. 

Hopefully she will find a placement with her TESOL Quali, maybe anyone could shed any likelihood on that?

Again, thanks for your responses, much appreciated. 

ExUK.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

Can't help with TESOL, but if money not a problem then she could look at setting up in a freezone as a freelancer. This would provide a visa and she would be her own boss whilst looking for what she wants to do. There are some threads on here about setting up in a freezone. Not sure of the costs but I think 30k AED would cover it for 12 months.


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

With a TESOL qual she could work as a learning support assistant in any of the schools. Hours can vary school to school, ours are 7.30 til 3, 5 days a week. Not enough Dirham to live on, no sponsorship, but good environment to study in!


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## is200mine (Jul 23, 2012)

pamela0810 said:


> I don't understand where you all are getting these figures from? Are they salaries that are confirmed by retail sales associates or just assumptions that you all are making?
> 
> There's a big difference between a Patchi Store Manager and a young woman presumably in her early 20s, still a student and no professional experience.
> 
> It would be nice if people do not assume what the salaries are and try and state facts only. I'm sure the OP will appreciate a realistic response rather than a rose tinted "I'm sure she gets 10K because she's hot looking" response.


I work in the retail segment so I do know the salaries. I know that sales staff working in high end stores (D&G, Channel etc..) make that much. Hell, sales staff at Zara make 6k+. Of course I am not talking about people from Philippines or the Indian subcontinent (no offense to anybody), but "white folks", esp. if its a good looking lady and can communicate in English. 

So my advise may not be 100% factual, but it is definitely more factual than fiction! And I seriously doubt the OP was going to have his gf move out here just cause I said something. 

So much hostility in here!!!


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## woodlands (Jan 13, 2010)

pamela0810 said:


> These 2 points highlighted in bold.....where do you get these statistics from? I'm interested in knowing.
> 
> @ Ex Uk: If your girlfriend is coming here on Holiday, especially at this time of the year, she will love it. It's a completely different ball game when you're working here. The hiring process is very race dominated. Your young Polish girlfriend who has no experience might not do so well if she tries her hand in the retail sector. She is white though (HUGE advantage here), she'll do better looking for receptionist jobs, etc within a company.
> 
> Good luck!


I own a luxury retail shop in MOE...Lebanese guys make 4-6k, phillipinos ask for 3-4k, white Eastern Europeans start at 6k without English speaking skills. A few of my friends run retail in Paris, Lisbon and over there at the end of month the employees hardly have 100 euros left. It's less about being hot in the sense that you need to be decently looking but being a friendly person is important. Not for everyone. It's a very tough job for the right person. 
Personally I can't sell a luxury product with a phillipinos or Indians as sales staff...only shows I am being cheap...


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## woodlands (Jan 13, 2010)

m1key said:


> Thank you for your patronising post.
> 
> Not everybody makes that level of money, particularly with no experience. But don't worry, lets just paint a lovely rosey picture of life here and hope. I've already said I'm painting a negative view. This woman is as likely to end up up a crap deal as the best scenario. Too many people come here thinking the streets are paved with gold. A little dose of reality might mean people think about their decision which is a good thing.


It's best to keep facts in check, patronizing as it may sound. "champagne lifestyle " is not what most polish retail workers in London live on. You forgot about reality on that front. The one thing about Dubai that irks me are the low life chavs from UK raving about how good they have it in UK, sitting next to a fat ugly woman wearing a short fluffy skirts well above the knees and subjecting everyone to the discomfort of watching their ugly legs. Drinking and burping copiously on the side. 40 -45 yr old women dressed as teenagers
No offense, in general British gents and ladies are a cut above everyone else but u see so many of these chavs its distressing.


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

in the last two posts.. imo, the writer has managed to stereotype/generalize/disparage quite a few different nationalities/ethnic groups... that is rather distressing, disappointing and honestly revolting... I would have thought someone in the business of 'luxury goods' would have a bit more class... 

Apparently it is not possible to sell luxury products with certain nationalities as staff... it seems 'cheap'... yeah i guess the models from those countries draped over some of the posters regularly placed in the 'luxury' shops give off a 'cheap' feeling as well, along with the people from the mentioned countries that actually do work in the 'luxury' goods stores in this country... 

Speaking of which the other stores ('luxury' stores included) that do employ people on an equal opportunity basis, all across the world (including here), have it completely wrong... this new and novel idea of hiring 'expensive' nationalities as staff should definitely be championed...


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

saraswat said:


> in the last two posts.. imo, the writer has managed to stereotype/generalize/disparage quite a few different nationalities/ethnic groups... that is rather distressing, disappointing and honestly revolting... I would have thought someone in the business of 'luxury goods' would have a bit more class...
> 
> Apparently it is not possible to sell luxury products with certain nationalities as staff... it seems 'cheap'... yeah i guess the models from those countries draped over some of the posters regularly placed in the 'luxury' shops give off a 'cheap' feeling as well, along with the people from the mentiond countries that actually do work in the 'luxury' goods stores in this country...
> 
> Speaking of which the other stores ('luxury' stores included) that do employ people on an equal opportunity basis, all across the world (including here), have it completely wrong... this new and novel idea of hiring 'expensive' nationalities as staff should definitely be championed...


Need a like button!


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

lxinuk said:


> Need a like button!


Actually there is a like button on the bottom right of the post 

Again, woodland's post just reflects the actual situation on the ground so cannot dish him for it. Based on my observation, most stores in MOE do not have Indian staff in customer facing roles (apart from Home Center or the older chains like Grand stores). Probably the buyers of these stores (not people like me who cant afford to buy from there) do care about the signalling which the nationality of the waiting staff gives.

PS: Not trying to say that this attitude is not shameful.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

I wasn't going to reply but couldn't let it pass. Ban me if you wish mods.

Woodlands you are a prick. Just be glad you didn't say that to my face.


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

rsinner said:


> Actually there is a like button on the bottom right of the post
> 
> Again, woodland's post just reflects the actual situation on the ground so cannot dish him for it. Based on my observation, most stores in MOE do not have Indian staff in customer facing roles (apart from Home Center or the older chains like Grand stores). Probably the buyers of these stores (not people like me who cant afford to buy from there) do care about the signalling which the nationality of the waiting staff gives.
> 
> PS: Not trying to say that this attitude is not shameful.


I don't think there is a 'like' on my phone or pad! If there is can you inform me? I've scrolled but can't see!! 

L


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## Chocoholic (Oct 29, 2012)

m1key said:


> I wasn't going to reply but couldn't let it pass. Ban me if you wish mods.
> 
> Woodlands you are a prick. Just be glad you didn't say that to my face.


Don't we dislike the French anyway? lol


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

rsinner said:


> Again, woodland's post just reflects the actual situation on the ground so cannot dish him for it. Based on my observation, most stores in MOE do not have Indian staff in customer facing roles (apart from Home Center or the older chains like Grand stores). Probably the buyers of these stores (not people like me who cant afford to buy from there) do care about the signalling which the nationality of the waiting staff gives.
> 
> PS: Not trying to say that this attitude is not shameful.


What sounds ludicrous to me is the idea that a customer looking to buy Gucci, Prada, Armani, Louboutin (insert other 'luxury' brands here...) at a 'luxury' store, would base their decision off of the ethnicity of the person dealing with them, rather than the actual product... What exactly does the ethnicity of the person have to do with it ? There can be certain standards maintained such as the level of proficiency in a certain language/s, age, looks (hate to say it but yes, in the marketing/promotion industry these are pretty dominant characteristics), sales-savvy etc.. but these are all pretty generic traits, in the sense that they can be found in *every* culture/society/ethnicity. If this were not the case then the whole world would have the one 'ordained' ethnic group manning luxury stores... While it is true that most stores don't have 'Asians' working in customer facing roles, but as you mentioned some stores like Grand Stores, Paris Gallery, Jashanmal (might have spelt that wrong) do in-fact have a wide range of ethnicity under employ... They are some of the biggest 'luxury' stores out here.. Apparently they've got it wrong... 

In other threads and even across the world (out-sourcing), often people complain how 'Asians' work for low pay and thereby bring the wage-level down across the board.... What does not occur to most of those people is that the 'asian' community is often type-casted into a certain wage-level/role with most employers, hence most of the time they have no choice but to take the lower paying jobs, cue the whole discussion about certain nationalities taking western passports... It is because of the type of rationale being applied in the earlier posts, that this whole situation happens...

Perpetuation of a stereotype in most of the world is enabled by the thoughts/perception of people and not by anything else... People always complain about how things should change.. well why not try and change our own perceptions and see what happens.. just because something is being done a certain way, does not mean it has to be done that particular way forever...


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## Chocoholic (Oct 29, 2012)

saraswat, whilst I agree whole heartedly with what you're saying, have you not noticed how 'racist' the UAE is? Where else can you put a job advert up which states the age, sex, nationality and request a photo of applicants? er nowhere, because it's not allowed. Sadly it's a fact of life here that certain nationalities are paid less than others, it's not right, but it happens and far too much. Certain 'brands' pick people who best represent their brands and the audience/buyers they're trying to target.

What is the demographic of the UAE? Who makes up the majority of the population? Those from the sub-continent - speaks volumes really.


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

Chocoholic said:


> saraswat, whilst I agree whole heartedly with what you're saying, have you not noticed how 'racist' the UAE is? Where else can you put a job advert up which states the age, sex, nationality and request a photo of applicants? er nowhere, because it's not allowed. Sadly it's a fact of life here that certain nationalities are paid less than others, it's not right, but it happens and far too much. Certain 'brands' pick people who best represent their brands and the audience/buyers they're trying to target.
> 
> What is the demographic of the UAE? Who makes up the majority of the population? Those from the sub-continent - speaks volumes really.


It is allowed in a lot of the world! I've undertaken many jobs In Asia / ME which call for Native White Female English speaker. It's not just Dubai.


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## Chocoholic (Oct 29, 2012)

But I think it's more rife here and the fact that people are put on a pay scale due to the colour of their skin or where their passport comes from really needs to change. It's a sad story really.


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## lxinuk (Mar 18, 2012)

Chocoholic said:


> But I think it's more rife here and the fact that people are put on a pay scale due to the colour of their skin or where their passport comes from really needs to change. It's a sad story really.


I completely agree that it's a sad story, but I don't think it's any more rife here than many countries. Even in 'western countries' they may not be able to advertise 'wanted female English speaker' but that doesn't stop them selecting a 'native English speaker' through the recruitment process. Sexism, ageism, racism, they all still alive and kicking....not right but let's not kid ourselves.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

Anyone who has been on this forum long enough knows that Woodlands is Nouveau Riche.

Woodlands, you don't need to hire Indians to show that you're cheap. The fact that in spite of "owning" some luxury store, you wanted to sue some guy for a 5,000 dirhams bounced cheque is proof enough.


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## woodlands (Jan 13, 2010)

1.) I am not rich and best not to be personal about what you don't like. For some 1 m is rich for some 10 and i have friends who have a 100 m but feel poor. Its all relative. It's immaterial.
2.) If i am pissed at some jerk then yes i am going to sue him for a bounced cheque. Let me tell you this, it takes AED 20k to hire a lawyer for even a minor grievance. So its not about the money.
3.) If facts make you uncomfortable, apologies. I can cloud it in layers of hypocrisy but it doesn't change anything.
4.) I didn't design the system, i didn't set the wages, i don't control how my customers think or what they want. 
5.) I don't control that there are many more indians and the law of economics work as in demand and supply to set lower wages
6.) Coming back to the topic, all i meant was that wages are ok here and comparisons should be made on a like to like basis, i provided facts, which several others in the industry corroborate. Some lager lout feels angered i couldnt give a damn. 
7.) I understand you feel aggrieved as an Indian but sorry dude you have no luxury brands recognized globally. The only reason Aishwarya Rai sports Longines is because she looks amazing, not because they believe Indians would buy Longines because Aishwarya Rai sports it. The brits love their James Bond even when in real life he hardly looks a tenth as glamorous the touched up poster version...that's a branding message designed for an audience identifier ...there is none for an indian audience. if that changes in 20 years, luxury stores would get indian sales girls. Even your own cricket leagues field "White" dancers...Bollywood, same story...so pls don't judge everyone else. bottomline....this world is as it is....what you make of it is up to you but there is a reason it is the way it is.


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## AK47 (Feb 16, 2012)

Just browsing through this, and how did "visa for a polish girlfriend" end up again to race color and creed? 
Woodlands I like your bluntness and actually agree with you on all your observations in your last post. 

Although I'm still with the Brits - I still don't like the french


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## woodlands (Jan 13, 2010)

Yeah went off topic because people don't like salaries being based on colour and some couldn't believe the amount of difference. As for not liking the french, i have nothing in common with the 80m odd citizens there and i hope for you that you don't have much in common with all your fellow citizens either... i would put 20% of them as thieves, 15% adults aids afflicted and god knows what else. We are not there yet are we...in france.


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## AK47 (Feb 16, 2012)

Yes you are quite correct however you sure have something in common with the 90% of French that I have met- ARROGANCE


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## Roadworrier (Jul 3, 2012)

lxinuk said:


> It is allowed in a lot of the world! I've undertaken many jobs In Asia / ME which call for Native White Female English speaker. It's not just Dubai.


Yes and I have seen job ads here (especially sales) where they specify gender (e.g., female) race (usually Caucasian) and hair (usually blonde). In most of the rest of the civilized world (especially North America) this is a no no, legally and culturally. When they want to specify someone of a particular cultural background, the employer in the US or Canada will request specific language skills (ie, Spanish, Hindi) which is legal and logical from a business point of view. Whether that person is Indian, in a wheelchair, or wears a dogbone in their nose legally does not matter. What is frustrating in Dubai is when institutions that are ostensibly US (like American Hospital) specify particular nationalities for nursing jobs. 

When one sends dozens of CV's out and makes countless calls and gets not even one single reply (ie, my wife's 20+ years of nursing assistance background) and is told by one of her own doctors she will not get a job because she is not Filipina, I think the racial / nationality thing in this region cannot be understated - it colours every day to day relationship. And it makes Dubai a place that for all its diversity and diversions can never really be home.

If a spouse of someone who is transferred or hired here wants to work, unless they themselves are in a specialized profession like corporate or real estate law, they need to prepare themselves to take a different, likely lower paying job, or enjoy the beach and malls while their spouse is worked into the ground. Sorry, this is not opinion but cold hard truth. Almost everyone my wife now has met does not work, all for the same reasons my wife does not work. Wrong passport, wrong heritage.


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