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EWmums

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Gathering info - various questions

40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 July 2011 - 05:24

Hi everyone =)

Well I'm new here and this is my first post....sorry it's not exactly a short one! Got a lot of info but have some issues I want further opinions on.

We are a British family of 4; husband -wife - preschooler - infant.
We are hoping to move to Abu Dhabi before the end of this year. My in-laws live in Madinat Zayeed area and we are hoping to live a reasonable commuting distance from there. I quite like the Teddy Bear American Nursery in Khalifa City area and ultimately want our children to be schooled at The British School in Al Khubairat...so struggling to decide which areas we should settle in lol.
We will be working as Office Managers or similar and want to save as much as possible so don't really want to go over AED 95,000 unless we get a generous housing allowance. We're happy with a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment as long as it is within reasonable walking distance of a park or beach.

I'm also quite worried about visas. I'll be able to move over with the children about 2months before my husband can (due to unfinished business in UK). It's actually better for us if I secure work and we go sooner so hubby can downsize over here. I'm hoping that I could get the correct visa's/residency for myself and the children and then my husband arranges his own when he secures a job over here? (I'd be on AED 13,000 - AED 20,000 + benefits depending on the role I settle for.) And then later on he changes it to a family visa in his name? Is this at all possible??

What are the normal running costs for utilities, TV and internet? I see a lot of adverts saying water and electric is included in bills but want to know realistically what we'd be paying to live comfortably but not lavishly. Are there any hidden costs I should be aware of?

Thank you guys very much!
<em>edited by shahzadee on 09/07/2011</em>

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40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 29 July 2011 - 12:00

Things may be looking up! =) My husband has all his documents back now (including my passport yay!) and so will be able to move with us in around a month or so. I think he has decided against chasing the contract because he knows he wont want to leave UK if he gets it. I've now signed him up to the same job hunting agency. Trying to secure the work whilst we are classed as living in UK so we can ask for relocation allowance to live off for the first month until wages hit. Should make things a lot simpler =) We are probably going to stay at the in-laws until our probationary periods are up unless we get offered some nice company accommodation and the pets will go into boarding as well I think and then get shipped over once everything is secured. I don't want to stay there longer than we really have to, primarily because it's a flat with no amenities and not what I consider big enough to hold 6 adults and 2 children but I also like my own space and being queen of my own roost #^.^#

4747

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 27 July 2011 - 05:45

re residency usually it was only women who were in certain professions, teachers, lawyers, engineers, but it will depend on your company and your pro whether it is dooable. if you are coming over on your own i would come over with the least amount of stuff in the first instance until you have done probation and can be sure that the job is secure, there have been many a family who have come over spent loads of money on rent, cars, furniture etc and then fine they are terminated.

40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 26 July 2011 - 13:29

*bump* Still no replies about getting residency for myself and my children whilst husband stays in UK. Help would be greatly appreciated on this issue. Is it quite straight forward to do? Do I still just need an income of AED10k+ a month in order to do it? Also....international removals. I'll look for older topics but if anyone is replying already, can you let me know if it's worth using a removals company to bring some of your stuff over? I'm not going to bring any furniture I don't think, it'll be books, toys and possibly the odd sentimental ornament. Things that are too heavy to practically bring in a suitcase. I'm just wanting to bring clothes and essentials in the suitcases if possible.

40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 13 July 2011 - 00:49

Ok happy about most of my questions - many thanks. Still wondering though about the issue of trying to get residency for myself and the children under my own name and my husband not coming to UAE until a few months later. He is saying if he can get the contract he is after he may not even come over until a good 6months+ after I 'should' be in Abu Dhabi either starting or trying to secure work. I don't really want to have to sponsor him because although I've heard that these days if the woman earns over 20k a month + benefits she CAN sponsor the family regardless of being a professional like a lawyer or just a well paid manager...it's a lot of hassle and I think more likely I'll only get around 15k....so I'd rather he could get his own permit sorted when he comes over and then he could initiate a family visa for us all in his own name at a later date when required. Is this possible? Has anyone else done similar? Do we need to take extra steps to ensure that we are recognized as married? My husband is duel nationality British/Pakistani (I'm just British) and we got married in Pakistan in 2007. The UK home office recognizes our marriage and I was able to change the name on my passport etc as normal...however we don't have any UK paperwork ie. we're not on the UK registry.

4747

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 10 July 2011 - 20:35

what age is your preschooler? if you want to get any chance of getting them into BSAK you need to apply in the february time for september start. Lots of people commute from kca/kcb to bsak and its only 30 mins etc. In kca there are a number of nurseries now, but again still difficult to get into just as big school. Thanks for the heads up about split villas etc. My son is 3years old this October. Because of his birth date he's going to miss the school start in Sept 2012 and will have to start in Sept 2013 as one of the oldest in his class. It's a bit scary because I can't reserve him a place until we have residency, but I'll only have residency once my job is sorted and I need to start working....so leaves me a bit of a dilemma about what to do with the kids until there is a place free. Kind of resigned to the fact my daughter will need a nanny due to nurseries starting places a lot later over there (here it's normally either 6weeks old or 3months old). My in-laws are there as a fall back but they are older and suffer from medical issues, so concerned about how they'll handle two boisterous kids for more than a few hours. if you are requiring brit curriculum they have to be 3 by 31st august ie rising 4 in that academic year for nursery. anyway that is better as you will not have got him in for september.... so you have a chance for the following year. you do not need to have your visa sorted out before you apply, if you look at the bsak site it tells you that all you need is a letter from employer saying that visa will follow etc look here at page 5 http://www.britishschool.sch.ae/images/BSAK%20Primary%20School%20Application%20Form101213.pdf some nurseries did take from babies, but most people just use a maid. you really dont see nannies.

40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 10 July 2011 - 19:57

what age is your preschooler? if you want to get any chance of getting them into BSAK you need to apply in the february time for september start. Lots of people commute from kca/kcb to bsak and its only 30 mins etc. In kca there are a number of nurseries now, but again still difficult to get into just as big school. Thanks for the heads up about split villas etc. My son is 3years old this October. Because of his birth date he's going to miss the school start in Sept 2012 and will have to start in Sept 2013 as one of the oldest in his class. It's a bit scary because I can't reserve him a place until we have residency, but I'll only have residency once my job is sorted and I need to start working....so leaves me a bit of a dilemma about what to do with the kids until there is a place free. Kind of resigned to the fact my daughter will need a nanny due to nurseries starting places a lot later over there (here it's normally either 6weeks old or 3months old). My in-laws are there as a fall back but they are older and suffer from medical issues, so concerned about how they'll handle two boisterous kids for more than a few hours.

4747

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 10 July 2011 - 07:43

Hi everyone =) Well I'm new here and this is my first post....sorry it's not exactly a short one! Got a lot of info but have some issues I want further opinions on. We are a British family of 4; husband -wife - preschooler - infant. We are hoping to move to Abu Dhabi before the end of this year. My in-laws live in Madinat Zayeed area and we are hoping to live a reasonable commuting distance from there. I quite like the Teddy Bear American Nursery in Khalifa City area and ultimately want our children to be schooled at The British School in Al Khubairat...so struggling to decide which areas we should settle in lol. We will be working as Office Managers or similar and want to save as much as possible so don't really want to go over AED 95,000 unless we get a generous housing allowance. We're happy with a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment as long as it is within reasonable walking distance of a park or beach. what age is your preschooler? if you want to get any chance of getting them into BSAK you need to apply in the february time for september start. Lots of people commute from kca/kcb to bsak and its only 30 mins etc. In kca there are a number of nurseries now, but again still difficult to get into just as big school. braces it depends on your company policy most companies will only provide you basic medical insurance, which does not usually include dental (which is quite expensive here). braces can be in the region of upwards of 20k here. childminding does not really exist here, people use maids or have them in nursery. water and electric are not usually included in bills if they are you should stay away as quite often it is in places that split villas which they are not allowed to do, you should always have the bill in your name. some places have in owners name as a local they pay less, but that is not allowed and can cause major problems, when something happens and the owner is not able/willing to fix etc. ie your electric goes in the middle of the night in the middle of the summer. I'm also quite worried about visas. I'll be able to move over with the children about 2months before my husband can (due to unfinished business in UK). It's actually better for us if I secure work and we go sooner so hubby can downsize over here. I'm hoping that I could get the correct visa's/residency for myself and the children and then my husband arranges his own when he secures a job over here? (I'd be on AED 13,000 - AED 20,000 + benefits depending on the role I settle for.) And then later on he changes it to a family visa in his name? Is this at all possible?? What are the normal running costs for utilities, TV and internet? I see a lot of adverts saying water and electric is included in bills but want to know realistically what we'd be paying to live comfortably but not lavishly. Are there any hidden costs I should be aware of? Thank you guys very much! edited by shahzadee on 09/07/2011

40

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 July 2011 - 05:39

Sorry last minute questions..... #^.^# At the moment I'm not sure how involved my in-laws will be with childcare so don't know if we'll need a full time or part time maid/nanny. However I'm unsure how it works with giving them lunch breaks etc? The average working day is 8am-6pm + travel.....so there wouldn't be anyone around TO relieve them from work to take an official break. Are they like childminders in the sense that during their work hours they are never really 'off duty'? It's a stretch but does anyone know how much braces cost and if you can claim it on your medical allowance? lol! I managed to get them on the NHS but as soon as I leave will need to pay privately. By the time I arrive I'll have approx 12months of wires left and then another 6-12months with a retainer. I'd love to get less visible ones if possible, they don't offer clear on NHS!

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