Ins and Outs Of Work in Dubai, Part 3

There's more? Yup, working in Dubai is not a piece of cake. Here's more inside scoop:

You've done the job hunting and landed a job.
You've done all the paperwork.
You've submitted your paperwork to HR.

CONGRATULATIONS! You are on your way to becoming a true Expat.

But now what? Ah ha, yes, more logistical stuff.

The good thing is that your company is  now in charge of you. There are fees for all the things I am going to mention here, but the company pays for it. But finally, this is where the company actually helps you. Most all companies have what is called a PRO service, which HR usually organizes. Basically the PRO service is a dude that helps the workers with these next steps. Once you've submitted all your authentications/attestations and have your Employment Visa sheet of paper that you received a the airport, the PRO takes care of the rest.

Before you get your Employment Visa in your passport, to be a legit employer in U.A.E. you need to have an Emirate ID card. In order to get this, you have to have your fingerprints taken. I'm not talking about a simple thumb, it was all 4 fingers together, then my thumb, then each individual finger, then my palm, then the side of my hand. For both sides. Then you take a nice snapshot (no smiling. Really!). The PRO takes you to Knowledge City where this takes place. Once you get that done with, they take your passport and papers, and then you cross your fingers and hope for the best.

Next comes the medical screening. Every employee, from the taxi driver to the CEO of a company has to take a medical test. This includes a blood test to test for HIV and a X-ray to rule out tuberculosis. This is quite the amusing process. As I mentioned, GENERALLY, and this will make your life 2039843204 times easier, the PRO takes you there and as they usually come here at least weekly, they know the ropes. Otherwise I would be lost. It's at a government facility and as usual, no signs, and really no direction of where to go or what to do. The PRO pushed through these crowds of people, and somehow we found "Registration." Again, if I were by myself, I probably would have just stood in one of the lines and hoped for the best. Then it becomes the test of who can get away with what between the PRO's. Mine snuck my paper to his friend, who put my paper at the top of the list, and I was called next for the blood test, he he. I won't complain about that, but then I later got shafted while waiting to take the X-ray because someone snuck in front of me. Oh well, what comes around goes around. Basically, this whole process shouldn't take more than an 30-40 minutes, but it depends on how many people are there... and the sneakiness of the PRO.

Of note, when you are getting the blood test, have an extra form of ID with you. I fortunately had my drivers license with me, and used that, because as I mentioned, you submit all your paperwork either upstairs when you submitted it for the Emirates ID or at the Registration at the Medical  Office. I saw a lot of people running around trying to get their copy of the passport back.

As with most things in Dubai, there is a hierarchy. There are the "VIP" people that have that stamped on their papers (hot shots), and they get whisked the quickest. Next, the people with the PRO's are generally labeled "Express" and you're the next best. If you come without a PRO, you are basically waiting the longest because everyone is going to be cutting in front of you. Which brings me to another lesson,

Lesson # 15: Dubai is all about Titles... and stamping. Pretty much everything has a VIP section so people can feel important, and pretty much every formal document has to have some kind of stamp on it.  They looooooooooooooove stamps. 


Then it's just the waiting game. The employment visa should come fairly quickly, they say between 2 and 5 days. The Emirate ID card, 3-4 weeks. But again, no one really tells you anything and you ALWAYS have to keep asking questions. The other reason why is because things are always changing, so double check your resources!

Lesson #16: Don't assume you will get information because you asked for it. You have to keep asking, otherwise you will NOT get any answers and whatever you asked for will not happen. 

All and all, you pretty much CANNOT do anything in Dubai without:

1. Employment Visa
2. Emirate ID card

Now I am waiting for those things. After I get it, you can bank account, car, apartment/villa/home, etc.  Aaaaaand, that's a whole another topic of conversation. Stay tuned....