For this episode, Clare is joined by her long-term friend Matthew Young, who decided to move from the UK to Dubai when inspiration struck him during a shopping trip in the country. He shares what it is like to live in such a diverse country, adapting to working with so many people who do things differently from you and how to take full advantage of the high level of connectivity with the rest of the world that Dubai offers.
Matthew explains how he simply packed a bag and moved to Dubai. He shares how he arrived using a tourist visa and turned that into permanent residency.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Dubai is incredibly multi-national, which makes it a great place for people from everywhere to live.
- To live in Dubai, you have to be accepting of others and adapt to the fact that you are going to encounter multiple different ways of behaving.
- You really need to behave as a guest, even after you have been living in Dubai for many years.
- It is really easy to move to Dubai. You can arrive as a tourist, but if you want to stay getting a job is essential.
- The heat has an impact on the way the city works e.g. Everything is done online.
- Dubai is a virtually cashless society.
- The economy of Dubai is dependent on attracting new residents, so it is a great place to set up a business or work remotely.
- Like Singapore, Dubai is a very self-contained and locally controlled city.
- Dubai is not as expensive as you think.
- Remember that even though you live in Dubai some of your life will still be back in the UK. Work out how you are going to pull these two aspects together.
- The older you get the more the cost of your healthcare in Dubai goes up, so you may not be able to afford to live there all of your life.
- Your employer pays for your medical insurance, so if you lose your job, you lose that.
- Currently, the UAE is far more tolerant than its reputation suggests.
BEST MOMENTS
“The whole place was wondrous.”
“Everything is set up for digital…even the visa application process.”
“They want businesses to be here, and they want people to be successful because that helps the economy.”
“You see a country one way as a visitor, and you see it entirely differently as someone who's living there.”
“Dubai is in the middle of all sorts of places, so it's kind of equidistant to London and Bangkok.”
“Once you get a job, then you can open a bank account, then you can rent a place.”
“I'd say that since COVID, Dubai has become, a lot more relaxed in all sorts of things.”
EPISODE RESOURCES
Moving to Dubai - https://wise.com/gb/blog/moving-to-dubai-guide
ABOUT THE GUEST
Matthew moved to Dubai in January 2019 requiring a change of scenery and a fresh start. He was 49 at the time. In the UK, he had a career in the City of London working in financial services before he set up his own property management business in 2004. He was married for 21 years and has one son. Other than his professional interest in property management, Matthew is an avid supporter of Chelsea FC and have been qualified as a football referee since 1990.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewsyoung
Matthew's podcast:
MY Proper Property Management
https://podcasts.apple.com/ae/podcast/my-proper-property-management/id1819489117
ABOUT THE HOST
Clare Kay is a seasoned global mover – with an international career in sales, customer service, personal development, and as a flight attendant. She has sold books and TV programs globally, taught English as a foreign language, and supported non-native speakers through proofreading. Her own global moves – from the UK to Zambia, China, Taiwan, Nigeria, and the USA – bring direct experience, and her global outlook has given her the growth and connections to support others in creating a life abroad. Through her podcast Moving Countries 101, she inspires listeners with the confidence and courage to make their own move – and deepens the conversation in her Facebook Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/movingcountries101withclarekay/
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