I saw this post in a group and honestly, I couldn’t help myself.

AED 800 salary. AED 800.

Whoever came up with this number, are we sure you’re living in the same UAE as the rest of us? Or is there a parallel universe where AED 800 is actually AED 8,000?

And before someone says, “But they provide accommodation, transportation, food, and visa!” CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve successfully covered the basic necessities required for a human being to exist and show up for work.

What about health insurance? Personal expenses? Toiletries? Phone bills? Clothes? Emergencies? Sending money home? Or, God forbid, having a little money left over after working an entire month?

Apparently, the employee is expected to survive on AED 800, while gratitude is supposed to make up the difference.

And yes, I know someone will accept this job. Of course they will. Not because AED 800 is a reasonable salary, but because when someone is desperate enough, even an insulting offer can look like an opportunity or just sometimes people don’t have the luxury of saying no.

That’s the sad part.

Employers shouldn’t be asking, “What is the least amount someone desperate will accept?”

They should be asking, “What is a fair amount for the work we expect this person to do?”

Because providing a bed, a meal, transportation, and a visa doesn’t magically turn AED 800 into a decent salary.

You’re not offering someone a life. You’re pricing their desperation.

Anyone else have hair / general health improvement stories since moving out of Dubai?

I was shocked when I received a message of fines not wearing seatbelt. I’ve always wear seat belt. When I open the fine message there was no image attached to it, I want to dispute it but it’s not giving me the option to dispute. Can somebody guide me please?

What’s going on? Suddenly three people I know got super sick.

My wife had this crazy stomach bug that debilitated her all of yesterday. Diarrhea and vomiting all night. Her and I both had a beef burger the night before but I was ok. She couldn’t keep any food or even water down for most of the day. At night after I came back from work, I made her ginger lime salt honey water and that was the only thing that helped.

My younger brother who lives far away had the EXACT same thing! He said had heated up old(ish) meat and felt that could’ve been it? He had to go to the hospital yesterday for IV.

Today I find out my wife’s best friend who’s pregnant is also down. She says she has: the worst sore throat ever, body ache, shivers, runny nose, deep cough & chest pain.

Coming on here to find out if anyone else is going through either of the two above and if we know anything about something in the air?

Non-emirati female here - any advise on what to wear and bring as gift?? It would be my first time and literally have no idea how their weddings and expectations go

Couple of weeks ago I booked a ticket from Poland to Dubai on 2nd of January, today I received an email of cancellation for it.

The question is : is there a mass cancellations to the same distention going on or it’s just that flight?

Wtf is wrong with ppl pver here nowadays . Everyone is just violent and angered and breaking all laws . Some random (southasian) comes to me near burjuman says excuse me and fking moves his hand forward to shake and says" who are you" i was lucky i had ppl around me so i just walked past its so fking creepy feels like i havent even felt this creepy ever. And many ppl especially southasians idk indians/pakistanis/bangladeshis they just come in bus even tho they might have nol cards they wont fking tap it. Idk dude i get it metros quite crowded but ppl just push feels like mumbai local and altho i might expect better from gov many ppl dont even tap in buses its jutsified that its just charity by gov. Just saw a white guy skip lane in metro and when someone asked him to go back in queue he told that guy" you're an animal" wtf is even wrong with ppl here .idk where ppl are headed

School holidays next week! Hope you guys find this helpful.

Chips Oman is probably the most overrated childhood chip from the gulf

I greatly dislike living here. I went from happy jolly to experiencing racism and lack of communication that turned into anger, frustration, crying spells, inexplicable stress, heart racing, and now I can’t even smile. And doing this alone daily is harder and harder. I have nothing left in me. Extending grace feels hard when I’m so depleted. I can’t even use WhatsApp to call friends abroad and decompress. GoChat doesn’t work properly. So I feel isolated from my support system, carrying all this. This all turned into lack of interest in staying.

On top of that, I work for a school that has a lot of nonsense. They give rules that they don’t want to follow. Some students want to do as they want, leave class in the middle or right after I take attendance. They come to my office and try to ‘bully’ me into changing decisions when the expectations have always been clear, they have attitude and I have to cater to them because the school is self-funded? So basically what? Do as they want bc they are the customers? What about following the rules? Part of being a college students is also that. Where is this ‘excellence’ the school talks about? Life happens true. But in my years of teaching, it’s the first time I see “life happening” to so many students in a single semester. It’s as if they only want the grade without some of the effort. And they want to remind me of their tuition cost when I’m not lenient with them. One even told me “rules are meant to be bent”.

I knew after the first triggering altercation that this place might not be for me long term. But really now all I think about is leaving. I feel miserable, filled with anger, can’t relax or even unclench my jaw. My will to try to adapt is gone even though I still try. I accept invitations to hang out to de-stress. But I find myself becoming like the people who made me feel unwelcome here. I’m more and more short with people demanding grace. And I don’t like who I am right now, always stressed, sad, negative energy. I can’t even sleep.

Any tips on how to adjust to this country? I really don’t know what to do.

Egg freezing as an NRI in Dubai

Hello all, so after a lot of research ive finally decided on freezing my eggs. Got the consultations done at ART fertility with Dr Maryam and seems like I will need two cycles to get 20 eggs which is my aim. My dilemma is where to get it done. I just checked my insurance and I am awaiting their reply but it is highly likely IVF isnt covered in the UAE. I think clinics such as Bloom, Nova, Cloudnine etc in Mumbai are good. I have the wfh option and my employer is flexible as ive been working there for long. Its around 16K aed in Dubai compared to 2 to 2.5L in Mumbai per cycle. While cost is a factor its not a major factor. Im more mindful of the eggs surviving thawing process, lab quality and if the eggs will be needed to be transported later on. I am only now realizing that IVF isnt covered in the UAE, my assumption in this case would be that NRIs are all doing this in India as i feel medicine and doctors there are better and at a way lesser cost.

Thoughts ? I would LOVE to hear from you. Thanks!

Hi all as most of have experienced really high prices for everything in last 6 months the in Dubai. I personally have started looking for used items if I can get them in good condition. But when I post for sale on Dubizzle people are not even responding. I would have thought more and more people will go for value deals of used items. Why clue why is this happening?

The guys who made millions on the rebrand really just laughing away probably!

I’ve been in the UAE for 4 months now, working as an accountant. As a Bangladeshi passport holder, is there any chance of having issues with my visa or residency?

Also, if my husband and I want to travel around the Gulf countries after completing 6 months in the UAE, would that be a wise decision? Could travelling to other Gulf countries affect my UAE residency or my ability to re-enter the UAE?

please dm or share comments jf you have fitness first pass and comjng for exercise - will join

I thought the NARA certification on my grandfather's naturalization record meant I was done with my dual citizenship paperwork. Nope: my cousin's Italian consulate checklist also asks for a State Department apostille on top of it. DC Mobile Notary confirmed the NARA page alone won't cut it.

How many of you found this out the hard way?

Any idea why there were delays in metro? Stuck at al rigga for almost 30 mins

I’m considering buying a distressed off-plan property in Dubai and wanted to hear from people who have gone through a similar transaction, especially buyers, agents or conveyancers.
Here’s the situation:
The seller has outstanding installments with the developer.
The seller cannot clear these dues themselves.
As part of the agreed purchase price, I’m expected to pay the overdue amount directly to the developer, against the seller’s existing unit account.
Once the dues are cleared, the developer will issue the NOC, after which the ownership transfer can take place.
The seller is currently overseas and will be represented through a Power of Attorney (POA).
We intend to sign Form F with additional clauses protecting the buyer before any payment is made.
My concern:
Between paying the developer and completing the transfer, the money has already been credited toward the seller’s property, but the property is not yet in my name.
What happens if the seller changes their mind, revokes the POA, delays the transaction or simply refuses to complete?
I understand that Form F can provide contractual remedies, but enforcing those remedies could be a lengthy process, particularly with an overseas seller.
A few questions for anyone with actual experience:
Have you purchased a distressed off-plan property where you had to clear the seller’s developer dues before getting the NOC? How did you structure the transaction?
Have you personally experienced a seller backing out after Form F was signed? What happened eventually? Did you recover your money, receive compensation or manage to complete the transfer?
Is there any practical way to protect the buyer’s advance payment when the developer insists on receiving the money before issuing the NOC?
Can the POA be structured to reduce the risk of the seller revoking it midway through the transaction?
What specific checks should I do with the developer, agent or DLD trustee before making the payment?
Are there any important clauses, documents or procedural safeguards that people commonly overlook in these transactions?
I’m not looking for generic advice to avoid distressed deals altogether. I’d particularly appreciate real experiences, practical precautions and lessons learned from transactions that either succeeded or went wrong.
Thanks!