How long did it take you to get your family out there... | ExpatWoman.com
 

How long did it take you to get your family out there...

19
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 00:42

My husband moves to Qatar in 4 weeks, all the schools say no places only waiting lists, how long should I expect it to take to get a school place (Year 1) and family residency visa?

How long did it take you?

Any tips on how to speed it along?
<em>edited by gem_nadine on 15/02/2013</em>

22
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 23:19
We arrived on 19 Sep 2012, hubby got his RP end Oct, and I got mine on 12 Dec, with a PRO that is very good at his job.
25
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 22:55
I arrived one week before Ramadan and it took less than 2 weeks for myself and two children to get our RPs.
362
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EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 09:58
Ours visas took 7 weeks, but that's because the pro was a bit useless. I second what mrsw2 said about the schools, I think 12 months would be the minimum on a wait list for one of the better schools. Edited to add, you cannot speed things up here, you can only nag the right people & hopefully they'll move things along if only to get rid of you! <em>edited by kimmc3 on 15/02/2013</em>
453
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EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 08:40
Well... things are likely to have changed since we came here in August of 2009. My husband had his RP within 2 weeks of arrival (despite having arrived one week before Ramadan) and I had mine a week later (so 3 weeks total.) I think it was 4 or 5 days after arriving when I was being dragged off for fingerprints and the medical. A lot of how quickly things progress depends on the PRO -- some know how to play the games a lot better than others.
105
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 February 2013 - 08:13
It took us 8 weeks or maybe 9 to get all our family visas, but there were some hiccups with these so I think it should be quicker than this. To speed it along just keen on top of the PRO at your husband's company. Which schools have you applied to? We have been here since the end of August and are still on the waiting list for school places at the schools I would prefer to have a place in but in the meantime my children go to a school that is good but smaller and with fewer facilities than the bigger, more established schools. I'm told it could take 12 to 18 months for them to get a place in the schools we would really like. My only tip is to get your application in and once it's in to call them regulalry or to get your husband to go along to visit their admissions department regularly, or once you are here you do that. <em>edited by mrsw2 on 15/02/2013</em>