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I was just having a quick browse on here to see if there were any "moving to Dubai FAQs", but unable to find exactly what I was looking for.
I was asked before Xmas to apply for a job with one of my major customers (I am currently a director of my own Ltd company providing IT consultancy in UK), and after much discussion with Mrs Fats I submitted my CV today, which will generate the offer package, and if it all adds up financially I could be there in a matter of weeks. No-one else to interview for it - is just a question of if it is right for us financially.
Lots to think about with what to do with vehicles, house, pets etc (fortunately no kids), and a crash course in Tax accountancy as moving from Ltd company Director, to an expat package as non resident will take a lot of getting my head around. Early indications are Mrs Fats company would transfer her on a local package, which is at least one less thing to think about!
A few names I recognize from Biker Banter and Spurs thread on here - Chilli, IanUAE, and Asterix.
Sure I will be here asking some questions over coming weeks. If there is a FAQ guide - please point me in the right direction!
I was asked before Xmas to apply for a job with one of my major customers (I am currently a director of my own Ltd company providing IT consultancy in UK), and after much discussion with Mrs Fats I submitted my CV today, which will generate the offer package, and if it all adds up financially I could be there in a matter of weeks. No-one else to interview for it - is just a question of if it is right for us financially.
Lots to think about with what to do with vehicles, house, pets etc (fortunately no kids), and a crash course in Tax accountancy as moving from Ltd company Director, to an expat package as non resident will take a lot of getting my head around. Early indications are Mrs Fats company would transfer her on a local package, which is at least one less thing to think about!
A few names I recognize from Biker Banter and Spurs thread on here - Chilli, IanUAE, and Asterix.
Sure I will be here asking some questions over coming weeks. If there is a FAQ guide - please point me in the right direction!
shirt said:
as long as you finish work in the uk before the start of the new tax year it is dead simple.
i was a ltd. co. in my last year in the uk. i wound the company up the day before the new tax year started and moved to dubai a few weeks later. no tax to pay at all in the uk since then.
Out of interest are you paid locally in Dubai on a local package? i was a ltd. co. in my last year in the uk. i wound the company up the day before the new tax year started and moved to dubai a few weeks later. no tax to pay at all in the uk since then.
Or are you on an ex-pat package paid into UK?
I suspect that I will be the latter (where as Mrs Fats will be the former). Therefore I suspect that HMRC will take tax, and it will be my responsibility to obtain a rebate.
I have an accountant I will be discussing this with formally when I receive the offer - but I like to have some other real life understandings as well!
After_Shock said:
Spend her money and leave yours in the UK lol
That is the plan! 
The package should pay for the house, and car. Wife can pay for living, and I can save my salary for us to come back to.
However (from what I am hearing) at £10 a pint and expensive golf, that plan may not work!
shirt said:
unless they are paying you silly money i can't see why this would be an attractive option.
Silly money is only ever too little! As I say a lot of this is still open for discussion, so I can only comment on what "I think" I know. Should know more in the next few days. The way it was explained to me (by my prospective boss, who is from the US working in UK), is that there are two ways of getting me out there:-
1) Local package. Basically salary, healthcare, pension, car etc
2) Ex Pat package. Salary, healthcare, pension, car, relocation, house, maid, x number of flights to and from UK, visa for wife (if required), schooling (if we had kids).
The salary in option 1 would be less than in option 2. The rest of the perks obviously do not need explaining. Hence most people will go for option 2. I need to do the homework, but it looks like option 2 will be better for me - am going to see if they will swap schooling for golf club membership!
dxbtiger said:
Most people are on a sort of middle ground between the two.
Are you saying the option 2 will be paid into UK?
I don't know anyone who does that.
That is my understanding..... but I will be looking into further. It may be possible to get that changed - I believe the company have an off-shore payments facility from Bermuda for ex-pat packages globally. I need to find out more - as it may be more suited for them, than it is for me.Are you saying the option 2 will be paid into UK?
I don't know anyone who does that.
shirt said:
lots of good information - especially this piece:-
speak to your accountant, that's what i did and his advice was 100% accurate.
A lot of what you say there, seems to suggest the ex-pat piece will be better, as the security is within the role within the company, rather than the location. I think that is why it is the option most used. i.e. I am an employee of the company globally that just happens to be based in Dubai, rather than a Dubai employee that can have their package changed etc.speak to your accountant, that's what i did and his advice was 100% accurate.
I am going to stop wasting all of your time, until I find out more (have a meeting scheduled for this Friday to discuss further). Has been good for me though for some food for thought. Appreciated.
Edited by Fats25 on Tuesday 7th January 10:25
IanUAE said:
I used to get paid into my UK account minus the minimum AED 6000 per month and never had to pay any tax in the UK. I had no family or mortage in the Uk though.
That is one thing I have seen with regards to "ties". I do have a mortgage and a property, that I will be looking to rent out. I read somewhere that there will be tax on the repayment, but not on interest (could be the other way round!) - so is something I need to look into further. Possibly I will switch to interest only mortgage? Possibly I will pay repayments up front for 2 or 3 years (if allowed). Needs to be looked into further.
Aside from the property, once my wife joins me (realistically later on in the Summer), there will be no ties in UK (other than the property) to count towards me paying tax.
shirt said:
Fats25 said:
I am an employee of the company globally that just happens to be based in Dubai, rather than a Dubai employee that can have their package changed etc.
you would think so but if they really want to get rid of you they can do so at their will with no comeback. i have seen it happen and it is not pretty. I'm hoping not to need loans, I don't have them in the UK, and hoping to not require them in Dubai - so hopefully that is one I don't need to be concerned with. I just need money to live on, and hopefully a pot of money to come back with (or move on with to another country).
TNW said:
I also work for a global company and moved within it from the U.K to Dubai. I took a leave of absence in the U.K (to keep return options open) but am employed and paid on local contract. Best of both worlds
Your U.S boss might not get it as they get taxed by Uncle Sam wherever they are in the world.
Just curious - what do you mean by the bit in bold? Do you mean to give yourself an option to move companies whilst in Dubai?Your U.S boss might not get it as they get taxed by Uncle Sam wherever they are in the world.
Also - you are 100% correct re the US implications - they do not have the non-domicile/non-resident options we have. Hence I am not sure he has it 100% correct. I am meeting with HR on Friday, so will clarify.
I am also fortunate that a good mate of mine places ex-pats in Dubai (from UK - he lived in Dubai for years) and he is going to walk me through the options when I have the offer.
Chilli said:
Hello mate!
Golf will cost between 15,000 a year at the ranches, to...oh, 30,000 at the Emirates? I believe there's a waiting list there. Plenty of other nice courses though. Would you,play each week?
Any ideas where you want to live? Lively, in town,or out in the.....sand? Prices are high at the moment, but good deals can be had when agents realise that they can't always set their own, made-up prices. Let me know when you need a Gazebo....long story!
Good luck.
I wondered if you would join the thread - do you have a real job now taking too much out of your surfing time? Golf will cost between 15,000 a year at the ranches, to...oh, 30,000 at the Emirates? I believe there's a waiting list there. Plenty of other nice courses though. Would you,play each week?
Any ideas where you want to live? Lively, in town,or out in the.....sand? Prices are high at the moment, but good deals can be had when agents realise that they can't always set their own, made-up prices. Let me know when you need a Gazebo....long story!
Good luck.
How often do I play golf? Every day if I can! Even in the wind and rain if UK I play once a week, in Summer at least 2 or 3 times a week. Will need to continue my golf fix.
We have friends live in Arabian Ranches, so that was somewhere to consider, but i'll be honest have not even looked at the logistics of commuting, or even where my office will be, or where my wifes office is! Budget wise I was looking around the 250k AED price per year for property - only based on a couple of properties I saw online, and my prospective boss did not even flinch when I mentioned this when I spoke to him before.
So Nick - how comes no bike over there? Last time I was there was 15 years ago, so I know things have changed, but I can't imagine not having a road bike, and an Enduro bike over there! Why have you not got involved?
dxbtiger said:
Strange situation up there, you need to be sat at your PC at 6am the day the tee times get released otherwise you won't get a slot on Majlis at the weekend and yet they can't get enough people to fill a whole day of times for a monthly medal. Lots of casual/corporate members.
I think this is a global thing!I am up now in UK at 05:00 to ensure I get online at 06:00 to get a booking for 18th Jan....
I know full well when I play that after I have played 9 I won't see anyone teeing off the 1st.
dxbtiger said:
Have you been here before? If so have you played any of the courses?
Edit - if you are looking to swap school fees for club membership you have a pretty vaild 'networking' argument depending on which line of work you are in
I have only ever been to Dubai once - and that was 15 years ago. Edit - if you are looking to swap school fees for club membership you have a pretty vaild 'networking' argument depending on which line of work you are in
I did play "golf", but it was a course where you carried your piece of "grass" around with you, and you placed on the floor and hit your ball from there to an artificial green. I believe things have improved since then!
With regards to the networking bit, my proposed job will not have a lot of requirements for it, but I am still going to try it on anyway. The likelihood is that I will get a few opportunities to play the best courses with supplier invites as I do now in the UK, and I will be happy playing my regular golf at a friendly decent course where my 18 handicap won't embarrass anyone!
Alternatively I will have a fairly large budget, and I will need to decide if corporate golf membership is a purchase I need to make for the region
.I do hope my wife does not look at this thread - as if she knew golf was the top priority for information I was trying to find out - she will go nuts!
When we moved to our house 6 years ago, I managed to avoid driving past the golf club every viewing we had. That was despite the fact the golf club entrance is a Par 5 away from our front door....... I still pretend that I never even knew it was there!
When we moved to our house 6 years ago, I managed to avoid driving past the golf club every viewing we had. That was despite the fact the golf club entrance is a Par 5 away from our front door....... I still pretend that I never even knew it was there!
Chilli said:
dxbtiger said:
Road toll on Sheikh Zayed road.
You have a small RFID chip on windscreen, takes 4 aed out of your account everytime you driver under a toll gate.
Nothing to worry about really unless you are a taxi driver!
Or you buy a new car and forget to get a SALIK account. Then it's 400 for the first fine, and 100 for each trip through a toll until you get an tag. Especially nasty when they "forget to inform you" that these fines are racking up...You have a small RFID chip on windscreen, takes 4 aed out of your account everytime you driver under a toll gate.
Nothing to worry about really unless you are a taxi driver!
I would have believed the indecency explanation as well.
What is the "peak time" of the year in Dubai for golf?
I know from playing in India and other parts of SEA when on business before that I have tee'd off as early as 05:00am to try to beat the heat in the hottest parts of the year. I imagine there is a time of year where you need to do the same, and these would also be a b
h to book if you were not a member.
Realistically I have to be honest, certainly at the start I will probably not get away with golf whenever I want to. Is easy in the UK where my wife has her own hobbies, but when we get there I will probably need to re-evaluate and become a less frequent golfer, so will take my time, and try to play all the courses before I make a decision on any membership.
I will obviously offer the opportunity to anyone here to see my famousslice fade.
I know from playing in India and other parts of SEA when on business before that I have tee'd off as early as 05:00am to try to beat the heat in the hottest parts of the year. I imagine there is a time of year where you need to do the same, and these would also be a b
h to book if you were not a member.Realistically I have to be honest, certainly at the start I will probably not get away with golf whenever I want to. Is easy in the UK where my wife has her own hobbies, but when we get there I will probably need to re-evaluate and become a less frequent golfer, so will take my time, and try to play all the courses before I make a decision on any membership.
I will obviously offer the opportunity to anyone here to see my famous
shirt said:
Enough of the golf, are you bringing any of your bikes?
Cheap trackdays a plenty and the desert is your playground.
I certainly will not bring any - they will likely be sold before I leave. The stable was already looking for an Enduro to replace the KTM I sold last year.Cheap trackdays a plenty and the desert is your playground.
However I will still want a bike (and Mrs Fats also rides bikes as well) - I don't think I will do a Chilli and give it all up due to a bit of heat and sand!
A mate of mine posted this on Facebook yesterday of a recent day he has done in Dubai.
Cannot see why I cannot get myself an Enduro to do this myself?
So I need to move the thread direction away from finance, bikes, and golf.
Had a very long and productive meeting on Friday, and I am told I will be given the package within next 2 weeks to discuss further. I have agreed to accept the job in principle - subject to the package being what I need. I have told them what I want (there is a gap between what I need and want!), and it did not appear to be an issue from what was said in the meetings. So just need to wait for them to bat the ball back now.
So now for the thread diversion, and I am fully expecting some
here from what I read on PH!
Here goes....
We don't have kids, but we do have 2 x cats. The company package includes all the necessary costs to be met to emigrate pets to a new country. My understanding from brief reading is they get jabbed over here, a blood sample taken, and then it will take approx 24 hours to get them from UK to Dubai, and into new property - Costs approx £2000.
Questions are:-
1) Has anyone done this with cats (or perhaps dogs as I am sure is similar) and can explain the process from a real life perspective?
2) What is the culture for pets over there if living in one of the "communities"? Are they treated well by other people in the neighbourhood?
3) How much will pets limit us in property choices for rent?
I know that peoples views abroad to pets is very different to our own in the UK, and I am not going to risk their freedoms, and happiness, for our own want to take them with us - that is not fair on the cats.
If it comes to it that it is not appropriate to take them, we have a backup plan for them in the UK with someone we know, so it is not the end of the world. We just want to do what is best for these spoiled little cats.
Any advice most welcome - then we can get back to golf, bikes and beer!
Had a very long and productive meeting on Friday, and I am told I will be given the package within next 2 weeks to discuss further. I have agreed to accept the job in principle - subject to the package being what I need. I have told them what I want (there is a gap between what I need and want!), and it did not appear to be an issue from what was said in the meetings. So just need to wait for them to bat the ball back now.
So now for the thread diversion, and I am fully expecting some
here from what I read on PH! Here goes....
We don't have kids, but we do have 2 x cats. The company package includes all the necessary costs to be met to emigrate pets to a new country. My understanding from brief reading is they get jabbed over here, a blood sample taken, and then it will take approx 24 hours to get them from UK to Dubai, and into new property - Costs approx £2000.
Questions are:-
1) Has anyone done this with cats (or perhaps dogs as I am sure is similar) and can explain the process from a real life perspective?
2) What is the culture for pets over there if living in one of the "communities"? Are they treated well by other people in the neighbourhood?
3) How much will pets limit us in property choices for rent?
I know that peoples views abroad to pets is very different to our own in the UK, and I am not going to risk their freedoms, and happiness, for our own want to take them with us - that is not fair on the cats.
If it comes to it that it is not appropriate to take them, we have a backup plan for them in the UK with someone we know, so it is not the end of the world. We just want to do what is best for these spoiled little cats.
Any advice most welcome - then we can get back to golf, bikes and beer!
Thanks Shirt - some good info (if I have checked your profile picture first - I could have guessed you would answer!).
I thought they would like the sand as a massive litter tray!
We would be looking at a Villa, and providing we can find one with a cat flap (or we were allowed to put one in) sounds like this could be feasible.
What I didn't want was someone attacking them because they dared to be in their garden/environment, and me then getting wound up to the point of doing something silly. As I do not plan on doing anything silly if I get over there! Sounds like it should not be an issue.
If it all happens - the plan is I will be going to be over first on my own for a few months whilst I source a place to live etc, and then the Mrs can get them on the plane in UK and sort out all the red tape (interesting re KLM - need to look at that!) - and I can collect them the other end.
(Don't shoot me - but a quick search brought up a Mumsnet thread, and there is a woman in Dubai who deals with it all from when you drop at airport in your home country, and she gets them to your property in Dubai and deals with all the paperwork Dubai side for you).
I thought they would like the sand as a massive litter tray!
We would be looking at a Villa, and providing we can find one with a cat flap (or we were allowed to put one in) sounds like this could be feasible.
What I didn't want was someone attacking them because they dared to be in their garden/environment, and me then getting wound up to the point of doing something silly. As I do not plan on doing anything silly if I get over there! Sounds like it should not be an issue.
If it all happens - the plan is I will be going to be over first on my own for a few months whilst I source a place to live etc, and then the Mrs can get them on the plane in UK and sort out all the red tape (interesting re KLM - need to look at that!) - and I can collect them the other end.
(Don't shoot me - but a quick search brought up a Mumsnet thread, and there is a woman in Dubai who deals with it all from when you drop at airport in your home country, and she gets them to your property in Dubai and deals with all the paperwork Dubai side for you).
Have been looking at cars on that Dubizzle site this morning - and dreaming as to what we can get!
Mrs likes the look of this one for her:-
http://dubai.dubizzle.com/motors/used-cars/chevrol...
Property is a bit tougher as we do not yet know the areas. If the offer is acceptable in the next couple of weeks, we will probably come out for a flying visit weekend tour together, before I head out properly. Then we can start to look properly.
Is good to get an idea of the rates though from looking.
Also we will not have a dog.
How are the cats doing in NZ? I knew that Dubai was supposed to be a temp thing for you, hence the cats going straight down, but my Mrs would have had them on the flight back if we had stayed more than a month!
Mrs likes the look of this one for her:-
http://dubai.dubizzle.com/motors/used-cars/chevrol...
Property is a bit tougher as we do not yet know the areas. If the offer is acceptable in the next couple of weeks, we will probably come out for a flying visit weekend tour together, before I head out properly. Then we can start to look properly.
Is good to get an idea of the rates though from looking.
Also we will not have a dog.
How are the cats doing in NZ? I knew that Dubai was supposed to be a temp thing for you, hence the cats going straight down, but my Mrs would have had them on the flight back if we had stayed more than a month!
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