Moving to Libya Next Month Insha ALLAH

Misurata is a great city and you'll find everything you need there so so need to overload your suitcases.

However you may find that buying spices is not always easy until you get to know the city well, they don't sell them everywhere and when they do it is in small little bags... Being from Pakistan i guess you'll be disappointed at first so pack a few bags of your favourite spices...

As for initial amount of money it depends on you, but if you already have accommodation and transport there, you'll be able to buy the rest quite cheap and again they have everything you need in Misurata, There are quite a few big shopping centres and for everything house related, check out "Bait Al Ma3mour" they have everything you need from bed sheets to cooker and spoons and knives... you can furnish the whole house just in this one shop. It's really brilliant for new expats.

Hope you have a safe journey, you're gonna love Misurata.

Thanks a bunch again Jameela for your support. Do you have any info regarding the other query which I have posted for Multiple visa entry ?

Mohsin bhi my name is mansoor frm lhr.,pakistan i also got job offer in tripoli do u know abt tripoli plz guide

Mankhan777, please try & read the other posts. There is a lot of information, and then maybe u will have more specific questions.

Mohsinciddiki,
I am not in Libya but please be aware there have been some posts about jobs offering things in a contract or ad that employees never got such as transportation. So keep that in mind when considering how much money you will need.

Lastly, please do keep posting when you get to Libya. We are all anxious to hear your discoveries as well as your frustrations.

Hi,

I am also planning to to move Misrata in first week of april from pakistan. Pls any one can guide me about multiplr entry visa or entry / exit process during my one year contract period.

Hi Danish,

i think it depends on your employer but know that in Misurata university for example they apply a Libyan law very strictly and that means that expats are not allowed out of the country except during the 30 days of the summer holidays.
There is a saying in Libya:
Laws are made in Tripoli, applied in Misurata and forgotten in Benghazi

this is pretty true, in Misurata they are usually quite strict with laws, so my best advice is to talk to your employer and find out exactly what you will be allowed or not. And take it from me, Libyans don't disclose information unless you ask specific questions so go straight to the point when you talk to them and make it clear you want straight answers too.

Hope that helps. Other than that you'll love Misurata, beautiful city, lovely people. Check out my blog if you'd like to see some pictures.

See you soon in Libya

@Danish,

That thing we need to discuss with HR department again during a mutual conversation. Because I have asked them they said that they cannot provide us multiple entry due to some regulations.

Hi Mohsin,

i think that regulation could be the one i mention above, expats are technically not allowed to leave the country unless it is the holiday period as discussed in the work contract, which is usually in one lump during the summer. You can't even break it down. For instance if they give you 30 days paid holidays, you can't take 15 and 15, you need to take the 30 in one go. If for any reason you have to leave the country (emergency) outside of those holidays, they will consider your needs and if they give you a visa, they may take money off your salary for every day out of the country (they do in university). This law is everywhere in Libya but on Misratan seem to apply it to the letter.

That is horrible, as we know that this is quite the same scenario we are facing these days. The employer asked me first that they will provide me multiple visa/entry, now they are denying. We still don't know if we get multiple entry or not. Now the same offer they have given us i.e. 30 leave per year. But according to you, if that is the case then we will be facing so much trouble as we won't be able to come back during Eid holidays.

it's best to ask your employer. I'm not surprised they are confusing you, this is always like that. This is why you need to talk to them seriously and make it clear you need straight answers. Take the name and contact number of the person you talk to so you can always go back to him or point to him if they change their mind later.
Explain to them your needs (family, Eid...) and ask them point blank what will be allowed or not. And if this is extremely important to you, make it clear to them as well.

Hi Danish,
First of all welcome to Libya. Your employer is the one responsible to arrange your registration in Passport office (Libya) and your residence visa. If you wish to visit Pakistan during your due leaves, then he will get you the Exit/Entry stamped.
Anyhow, things are fine here and if you have a good art in your hands, you can do well.

Wish you all the best in your future.

Regards

Jamila,

Regarding spices (Indian/Pakistani), all is available in downtown on Shara Rasheed. If he brings spices, he has to carry extra weight while airline just allow 30 kg/passenger. He should bring more cloths with him for both seasons.

Regards

Dear Mohsin,
He can arrange you a multiple entry visa as my employer has done. I have a 6 months multiple entry visa which is renewed after expiration.

I have just asked from HR, they are saying that government has changed its policy and now they are nor allowing any expat to have multiple entry/exit VISA. Can you update for the latest policy please ?

i think you need 2 updates

1- the legal one
2- the one that is actually enforced where you work

I guess yes. and I believe naiyersheen can update us very well as their employer already provided multiple entry. We have our flights scheduled for the first week of April

hello please can you help me get a visa to Libya?

mohsinciddiki wrote:

I guess yes. and I believe naiyersheen can update us very well as their employer already provided multiple entry. We have our flights scheduled for the first week of April

Dear Mohsin,
My boss is in Dubai now days for Arab Lab 2014. As soon as he returns, I will update you with the new visa policy. As far as I know, most of the rules are the same. Could you please tell me the nature of your job and the employer? Because the Oil Companies have there own rule & Regulations and even the Visa office is different than other industry.
Regards

Business Analyst for Al-Naseem Dairy for Foods, Misurata

Finally arrived at Misurata, Libya

Welcome to libya. So tell us all about it what are your first impressions? How do you find everything?
I wish you the best in your new job.

First Impression was, to be honest, not very good. At the time of landing, there was a problem in the landing gear or what we dont know. The pilot took so much effort to land the plane. Then at the airport, no one was there to pick us we asked a guy to lend us his phone to call the company. We waited there an hour for driver.
Overall, its a good experience while working in one of the finest Libyan company. The accommodation is average. Everything is available in our compound EXCEPT INTERNET which is very annoying. There is only one internet cafe which we use to call our family back via skype the service of which is not good either. So spending time longer than normal in office to use internet.
There is very much cold weather these days, no one asked me to bring some warm clothes with me so I have to buy from here
Rest, the city is good, although destroyed in war but rebuilding. There are few malls where everything is available and quite cheap. But , I dont know if it is right or not, but local people warned us not to go in the city area alone or during night, some SHABAABs (young boys) use to snatch belonging and harm people.
On average, it is quite good experience
If anyone want to have any recent update regarding living in Misurata, Job, Weather, Shopping etc. They are most welcome

-Mohsin

Mohsin,
Assalam alaykum,
Thank you for that post with all the details.
I really enjoyed hearing your perspective.
please continue to post about your experiences.
are you enable to get internet at your home even if you pay for it yourself?
I am curious about the warning do not go out at night. please let me know if you decide to go out anyway and tell me your experiences.
I am mostly concerned as to whether people go to the mosque for Isha since it is at night. Or do they just simply choose to stay home and pray?
Also what about during Ramadan when most people are inside avoiding the heat and they do the activity at night when they have food and water.
Do you think it is safe to go out at night during Ramadan?
I am a woman that will be traveling alone so please advise me about going out at night as a single woman during Ramadan, if you know. Thank you.
I hope we hear a lot more from you.

Dua,
Walekum Asalam
Thanks a bunch for your comments
Infrastructure is not quite good here. There are only two mobile networks available with above average coverage. Egde is below average. There are few internet companies available like wimax which is offering annual packages, but you have to compromise on speed. Its not upto the mark trust me, but yes you can do work with that. I dont have that internet at my home due to some local conflict issues so I use to to an internet cafe here where you cant even browse a website -_- so I only use skype to call my family, Cafe also serves the purpose of public call office which is very much cheap. for 10 mins call to my country I only charged 1.5-2 dinars.
Rest, the warnings, it is a little concern with young generation. After war, they are out of control so sometimes they create problem. So it is not advisable, specially for a single lady, to go outside alone after sunset (if you know Arabic then you can easily survive I believe but there Arabic is not like Saudi Arabia, even if you know, you have to be very much focused on what the hell they are saying, LOL)
Weather is tricky and , what I say, moody. There is raining 5 min before and now it is very much warm. So you cannot trust weather. Usually its cold after sunset you will require a sweater or jacket. In morning till sunset it is normal and quite pleasant. Today, there is nothing like summers here. Still waiting...
Ramadan, I dont have experienced yet but local people and some old expats are saying that Libyan people only do one thing in Ramdan- REST. Thats it. They dont work in offices, nor in shops. But for expats, it is like a regular day. But they do offer some great treats and meals for free at the time of Iftaari like saudi arabia so you dont need to worry about making your own meal to break the fast etc.

Thats all for your questions

Regards,
Mohsin

@Mohsin
let me explain the weather thing as i've been told when i arrived in Libya last year. The month of April is called the Mad Month in Arabic because of what you describe: constantly changing weather and unpredictable even 5 minutes into the future. Believe me with 2 weeks max this will be over and only heat will remain, although in Misurata like Zawia, you always get a little air from the sea so it's never really unbearable

@duadua
to answer your question, people DO pray Isha in the mosque and go out after dark in the summer but like Mohsin say right now in Libya there are some problems (i mean bigger than usual) and some political unrest and some thugs are using this as an excuse to create even more trouble for people. They don't have any respect at all, neither for expats nor Libyans and there are a problem for everyone unfortunately. Knowing that some people in some areas or at certain times prefer to avoid going out for no reason. Certainly women on their own avoid some places, especially after dark. As i said those thugs have no respect for anyone!

Hope that helps

Mohsin please keep sharing your experience in Misurata, i sooo miss the place it's nice to hear from you.

Yes absolutely the weather is totally moody here in April but now it seems to be getting warmer day by day. The most important thing that I miss here is my Pakistani food really I'm unable to eat their food even after putting lots of spices. So I have to cook myself ( which is ultimately more un-eatable than libyan food )
@Jameela
I'm planning to take some cooking classes or to search for some Pakistani/Indian spices. I hope you can help me finding here in Misurata. The ready made food recipes will be really appreciated though I couldn't find them yet.

InshaAllah I will keep updating here anything new which I come to know.

Regards
Mohsin

Indian/Pakistani style of spices are a little hard to find in Misurata, we struggled for a while. In the end we found some in some supermarkets but in tiny little bags... very frustrating. We ended up buying in bulk from the UK when we went there last summer.  I suggest to do the same, find someone who can deliver some to you straight from Pakistan or elsewhere.

As for take away food, we also find libyan places to be not to our taste, try Tunisian restaurants though, it's usually quite tasty, although of course not Pakistani food but nice anyway.

welcome

This is a good company

you will have nice time Misratha is very safe and very comfortable city

Yea but I'm having so much trouble while sending money to my country due to such lower limit

To Mohsen,

there are ways around the limits (i have written a post about that on my blog). 1st you can use other people to send money for you. Also, although this requires some double checking, it would appear that Libyans are not subjected to the same limits so if you happen to have Libyan friends, you could ask them to help you out.

Hope your new job is going well. How's settling in? Do you like Misurata?

I have asked few Libyan friends but uptill now they don't even know their limits, some of them said that their limit is even lesser than myself. Rest, from the last week, the limit for any expat is dropped from 1000 USD to 500 Dinars per day having an overall limit of 5000 USD in a year. Now I think I need to pay some extra money to some libyan people who have some backdoor ways to send money.
Rest, Misurata is good and peaceful. The beach is very pleasant and things are getting better day by day. At the moment, I only have two, actually three issues, one is of that sending money, second one is my visa, I have been here around a month and still I did not get my Iqama/work visa on my passport, even my company has not sent my passport to embassy, for no reason :-/
The last problem is with internet, the options available are not very well and quite expensive. So using internet in office these days.

Rest everything is fine including security Alhamdulillah

To Mohsin,

don't worry about your visa things take forever here, 4 months is the minimum for anything to get done... but you can still remind your boss about it regularly so he doesn't completely forget. As for internet, all the options are about the same, very expensive and not very good. The DSL works very weel i've been told but it is quite difficult to get it, you'll need a homeline to start with but apparently the connection is stronger and faster than the rest.

What you say about the limit to send money is worrying. Do you know if it is everywhere down to 500 USD or just in Misurata? this rule is a real pain in the neck, why make it so difficult for expats?

On the good side, happy you're finding it ok in Misurata, if you enjoy the beach, you should go to Al Jazeera, the best beaches and waters are there, drive along the coast road for amazing views until you find your perfect spot. We used to go every weekends with the kids, i loved it

Stay patient, things are slow in Libya but you'll get there eventually

Yea few people from my office told me that this limit for whole libya, need to confirm again though otherwise it will be really a great problem for expats, cannot keep our money in bank, cannot send, cannot keep it with us all the time.. have to find a way ...

Al jazeera is still to be visited So I will keep your advice next time visiting the beach, keep us guiding about misurata.
Rest the internet problem is really annoying, have to use internet via internet cafe which only runs on his mood -_-  so the only thing left is to stay late in my office in order to use internet.

mohsinciddiki are you still in Misrata ? I got a job in internet providing company in Misrata to solve your internet problem  can you please suggest me whether should i come or not ? because on the internet i am finding very confusing materials.

Thanks

how can i GET an electri welding work opportunity to libya

Hope you make it to Misurata, i lived there in 2013 and loved it.

Thank you so much for your reply Jameela.