Thinking about relocating from Oz

Hi Christine.

"ideally one of us would like to have employment before we moved".
You can't move here before you have employment, because you can only get a residence visa through your employer/sponsor. When one of you has that residence visa s/he can sponsor the other one. Or both of you can find your individual employer who will sponsor you.

Dubai was hit by the financial meltdown like most places so jobs are harder to find and pay less than in the boom years. There are jobs available, but competition for them is tough.

You'll stand the best chance if you come on a visit and see companies while you're here. Research as much as you can so that you can set up interviews in advance.

There are many Aussie companies here, so you could talk to them in Oz about the opportunities they may have in their Dubai operations.

A comment about the spousal sponsorships, if I may:

A husband can sponsor his wife from any job, provided he earns about AED 5,000 per month. A pathetic salary, but salaries are often  based on nationality as well as seniority - a Westerner can earn twice as much as an Indian doing the same job.

A wife can only sponsor her husband if she's a nurse, doctor or teacher - and has the relevant degree to prove it.

There's been talk here about this changing but, from what I've seen, I believe it basically still applies.

Sexist? Illogical? Yes to a Western eye, but that's the way things are here.

Good Luck!

Thanks guys, Will it be safe to assume that the only way we could get jobs is by visiting? Also I remember accomadation being packaged into your wage, is this still true or is it alot harder?

Visiting is not the only way to get a job, but it helps!

Try: bayt.com, seek.com, monsterjobsgulf.com. Also linkedin.com is a good networking site where you can post your CV's and join Dubai groups.

PS: There's a recruitment agency, Kershaw Leonard, based in Dubai to try as well.

Forgot to add: Accommodation depends purely on individual job packages, but you should aim for housing allowance (part of your salary package usually, but ideally on top of it!), health insurance, 30 days paid holiday and a paid return ticket home once a year. Your husband may get family insurance through his work, it's unlikely for a woman to get that.

Don't forget to get an international driving licence and to get your marriage certificate endorsed with an 'apostolic stamp' BEFORE you arrive - or you'll have problems re: sponsoring spouses.

The best chance of getting a job offer is to visit. You can do it from a distance but there are so many people right here available for personal interview that they have a better chance.

The packages are not as good as they used to be, fully paid accommodation inclusive is much less common now.

'Accommodation allowance' is included by some companies, but as there's no tax it really doesn't matter how what you're receiving is broken down or what it's called. You need to make sure that the total amount you're being paid is acceptable when you've worked out your costs.