Your first two weeks in Dubai: a checklist

Before you fly

• Print your entry permit (the employer emails it) and keep a copy on your phone.
• Pack the originals of your attested degree, passport photos with a white background, and your offer letter.
• Book your first month in a furnished monthly flat or a hotel apartment, not a hotel room by the night: it's cheaper by the month and comes with a kitchen, bills and internet. Ask HR first: many relocation packages pay for the first weeks.
• Tell your bank at home you're travelling, and bring a card that works abroad for the first weeks.

Your first stay: a monthly let, not a lease

Most newcomers don't rent a flat straight away. A normal lease runs for a year, is paid in a few cheques from a UAE bank account, and needs your Emirates ID for Ejari and DEWA, none of which you have in week one. A furnished monthly flat or hotel apartment needs only your passport, includes bills and internet, and gives you a few weeks to learn which areas you like and how long the commute really is.

Typical asking prices: a studio about AED 7,890 (≈ ₹2.0 lakh) a month, a 1-bed about AED 10,999 (≈ ₹2.9 lakh) and a 2-bed about AED 16,300 (≈ ₹4.2 lakh). Compare “all-in” prices, and ask whether the Tourism Dirham, a deposit and a cap on electricity come on top.

Days 1 to 3: phone, transport, paperwork started

1. 1

   Get a SIM card

   du and e& (Etisalat) sell tourist SIMs at the airport with your passport. Switch to a resident plan once your Emirates ID arrives; you keep the number.
2. 2

   Get a Nol card

   The Nol card pays for the metro, buses and trams. Buy one at any metro station. Taxis and ride-hailing apps (Careem, Uber) take cards.
3. 3

   Meet your company's PRO

   Most companies have a PRO (government relations officer) who books your medical test and Emirates ID appointment. Ask HR on your first day.

Week 1: medical test and Emirates ID

The medical fitness test is a blood test and a chest X-ray at an approved centre; results take a day or two. Then you give fingerprints and a photo for your Emirates ID. Your residence visa is issued electronically and linked to the ID. The whole visa usually takes 1–4 weeks from signing your offer. See every step on the employment visa page.

Week 1 to 2: a bank account

Your salary is paid into a UAE bank account through the Wage Protection System, so you need one before your first payday. Most banks want your Emirates ID (or the application receipt), your passport and a salary certificate from HR. Many employers have a bank they work with, which makes it quicker. Digital banks can open an account in a day.

Weeks 3 to 6: renting a flat, once you know the city

Rent only when you have your Emirates ID, a bank account and a few weekends of viewings behind you. Rent in Dubai is usually paid for a year upfront, in 1 to 4 cheques (post-dated cheques from your new bank account). Ask for more cheques if cash is tight; the rent may be slightly higher. Compare areas by rent, commute and schools before you view.

An example: a 1-bed in Jumeirah Lake Towers at AED 6,700 (≈ ₹1.7 lakh) a month is AED 80,400 a year. On 4 cheques, the first is AED 20,100. Add a deposit of 5% (AED 4,020), an agency fee of about 5% plus VAT, Ejari registration (AED 220) and a DEWA deposit (AED 2,000 for a flat, AED 4,000 for a villa).

1. 1

   View and agree

   Check the air conditioning, parking and who pays for maintenance. Ask whether chiller (cooling) costs are included.
2. 2

   Sign and pay

   You sign the tenancy contract and hand over the cheques, deposit and agency fee.
3. 3

   Register with Ejari

   The contract must be registered (the agent often does it). You need the Ejari certificate for DEWA, internet and family visas.
4. 4

   Connect DEWA

   Electricity and water: apply online with your Ejari and Emirates ID, and pay the deposit.
5. 5

   Book internet

   du or e& install home internet, usually within a few days.

Furnishing an empty flat costs about AED 11,000 (≈ ₹2.9 lakh) for the basics; many flats come unfurnished.

Your first month's money

Your first salary may arrive at the end of your first full month, so plan to cover a month of living costs yourself: about AED 9,150 (≈ ₹2.4 lakh) for one person, or AED 21,700 (≈ ₹5.6 lakh) for a family of three, including rent. See the full cost of living, and our 6-month pass works out the cash you need before you move.

Driving

Some foreign licences can be swapped for a UAE licence without a test, the UK's among them. Others, including India's, need driving lessons and a test. Check the RTA's licence exchange service (opens in a new window), which lists the countries, before you rely on a car, and use the metro and taxis until then.

Bringing your family: come first, then send for them

If you're moving with a family, it usually works best for the working partner to come alone for the first weeks or months. You set up the visa, Emirates ID, bank account and a flat you've seen for yourself, then bring everyone into a home that's ready. It costs less than a family-sized hotel apartment while you search, and you choose the area and school without rushing.

The rules point the same way. To sponsor your spouse and children you need a salary of at least AED 4,000 (≈ ₹1.0 lakh) a month (or AED 3,000 (≈ ₹77,800) with housing provided), says u.ae (opens in a new window), and GDRFA Dubai asks for an attested Ejari lease (opens in a new window) when you open the sponsor file: a hotel apartment isn't enough.

1. 1

   Your residence visa and Emirates ID

   Nothing can start before they're issued.
2. 2

   A lease registered with Ejari

   Rent the flat you'll live in as a family; the Ejari certificate goes with the visa application.
3. 3

   Attested certificates

   Your marriage certificate and the children's birth certificates, attested at home and in the UAE, the same way as your degree.
4. 4

   Apply and book schools

   Apply for their residence visas, and apply for school places early: good schools fill up, and most want the child's records and passport copy.

Read getting a tech job in Dubai from India for the papers to prepare before you leave, and UAE visas for the family visa and the other routes.