CERTIFIED NEWBIE. I NEED GUIDANCE - cost of living.

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewforum.php?id=555

Hi jinion,

Welcome to expat-blog!

Your post was moved to the Manama forum for better visibility.

Regards,

David.

Hi Jinion. You should read this post. It will answer most of your questions.

The Definitive Guide to Bahrain for New Expats: https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=231960

Good luck! And welcome to the Bahrain forum.

You can get unlimited download internet for BD40 a month. Buying fruit/veg off the street vendors is very cheap but look at all the stalls before choosing. Some are really very good and go to the market daily, some others are not so good. You could live comfortably on BD150 a month easily as all your other costs have been taken care of

hi sir!thank you very much for the very helpful article you suggested!

but i have another question.

my employer told me that ill be the one to pay for my electricity snd water bill. he hasnt said anything about the municipality tax (is that how you it?)
so how do i know how much illbe payng for the tax?
Thank you, thank you  very much.

Municipality tax is 10% of your rent.  So if your rent is 500bd it will be 50bd a month.

thank you all for the very reassuring information!!

new question:
what are the shopping sotres or grocery sotres in riffa???
and please advise me as to the transportation to and fro bahrain and riffa.
lastly, is there an age requirement for getting driver's license in bahrain because i think ill be needing to rent a car as i have been told that taxis are expensive..

hi scottrace!
thanks for that! so do i get to pay for that one (municipality tax) as well or my employer will be the one paying for it as he did only mention that ill be paying my electricity and water bill....?

thanks a lot!

You need to clarify with your employer if the municipality tax is included or whether you will have to bear it.

Reason being electricity, water and the municipality tax all come in one bill. If you do not get a clarification, you will end up bearing the tax since its in the same bill.

Since the tax is 10% of the rent of the premises, you may end up paying more for the tax than for electricity and water!

You need to be 18 years or older to qualify for a driving license. No other age restriction currently if my informaiton is correct.

There are enough of stores, groceries and other facilities in Riffa. Its also a very safe place.

Travel time between Manama and Riffa is about 20 minutes one way by car and a lot longer by bus. Distance is about 20 kilometres. Yes taxis are indeed expensive.

thank you very much Farhaz.
okie ill have to clarify with my employernif about who gets to bear the tax.
thank you!!

as to the license, can i convert my drivers license here in the Philippines to international driver's license (or perhaps the one's you got there) that easily? or ill have to do all the stuff all over again?
thanks once again!

You will probably have to go through the process all over again, I am afraid. The authorities here do not readily transfer driving licenses of most countries. They have a list of countries that are accepted. All others have to go through the mill.

The international license is permitted for tourists. But I am not sure of its permissibility for residents. Perhaps one of te others can help.  I also think this topic has been covered on another post. Cant remember where now

okay.thanks a lot fornthat one again, Farhaz..been such a great help...
ill be starting aother topic since ill be signing this week my work contract in Bahrain..i just want to have the knowledge of what I have to look for in the contract specially its Bahrain as Im totally clueless as to what to look for in it......thanks again!

Found the link! Take a look at this: https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=172165

A good discussion about driving license and could answer most of your questions.

Good luck!

thanks for that one Farhaz....i think it will take me ages before i get to have my own license...

regarding the municipality tax, i have talked to my employer about it but he does not know any.
Then again, i forgot to mention thatbill be living in riffa...so is there still a municipality tax in riffa???

Thanks much!

Try to get your employer to pay all the bills. Most fully furnished apartments come "all inclusive" which means the rent pays everything.

One question of yours that wasn't answered fully is about age and driving.

You need to be over 25 to hire a car in Bahrain. Over 18 to drive a purchased car.

It would be much easier for you to transfer your licence into an International one before you come here.

Also come armed with about 30 passport sized photo's as they are hard to get here

25???seriously???
so i have to suffer the expensive taxi fee for 4 years...jeez...

okie ill be armed with passport size picture...thanks for that one

You can buy cars very cheaply here though so that may be an option. Also there are a lot of drivers who aren't official taxis who only charge around BD2 per trip. Only get one that is recommended though

Re: Municipality tax - its there all over Bahrain. Its called "Baladiya" in local lingo. Maybe your employer would know it better if you used its local name.

As for passport size pictures, a set of 8 pictures costs BD2 in a local studio. But no harm in bringing 30 if it would help.

Lol thanks Farhaz re pics. Just I find it hard to get to the studio's which is why I suggested it especially as Jinion will have limited transport to begin with.

Good luck with your move Jinion and feel free to ask us anything. We are here to help you

That is true Jo ... Jinion will face transport challenges initially.

And yes, Jinion, keep firing us your questions. We'll do our best to answer.

As for me, I keep losing the reference numbers and the tiny envelopes with the pictures. So end up at these studios quite often. Its strange how different I look each time.

thank you, thank you, thank you very much!!!
really forward to moving soon