Moving to Dubai: your first weeks, in order

Is it easy to relocate to Dubai?

The visa rules are federal and clear, and the sponsor files the paperwork, which for an employee means the employer. Dubai had 4.58 million residents at the end of 2025, about 332,000 or 7.5% more than a year earlier (Zawya, quoting the Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment). Abu Dhabi emirate counted 4,135,985 residents at the end of 2024, also up 7.5% (SCAD, 30 June 2025).

What takes effort is the order. The residence visa, the Emirates ID, the health insurance, the lease and the bank each ask for another document on the list. This guide gives the sequence. The detail of each step is in our guides to the residence visa and Emirates ID, health insurance and renting in Dubai, which we do not repeat.

What do I do first, second and third?

1. The residence visa. A residence visa can run 1, 2 or 3 years if sponsored, or up to 5 or 10 years if unsponsored. Applicants aged 18 and over take a medical test and pass a security check, then apply for an Emirates ID (u.ae, residence visa). Your sponsor files it. For an employee, that is the employer.
2. The Emirates ID. Applying is a legal requirement for all citizens and residents. You apply through the ICP website or an accredited typing centre, and you may need to visit an ICP service centre to give your biometric details. A card renewed more than a month late costs AED 20 a day, up to AED 1,000 (u.ae, Emirates ID).
3. Health insurance. It is compulsory in both big emirates. Dubai’s Law No. 11 of 2013 requires residents to be covered, with the Essential Benefits Plan as the minimum (DHA). In Abu Dhabi, Law No. 23 of 2005 makes the employer cover staff, a wife and three children under 18, and sets a fine of at least AED 300 for each month a person is not covered (Department of Health).
4. The lease. The tenant provides a copy of the passport, a valid residence visa, the Emirates ID and post-dated cheques covering the lease period. Registering the lease is compulsory to connect water, electricity, gas and telecommunications (u.ae, leasing a property).
5. Utilities. In Dubai, the connection is linked to the Land Department: after Ejari is issued, DEWA sends a welcome email with the account number, the security deposit details and a payment link. In Abu Dhabi, tenants can get service after registering the contract in Tawtheeq, and the application asks for passport, Emirates ID, tenancy contract and an account-closing letter from the previous tenant (u.ae, public utilities).
6. A bank account. The portal lists an Emirates ID, a valid residence visa, a passport, a salary certificate or employment letter and, in some cases, proof of address. It says approval usually takes a few hours to a few days (u.ae, banking).
7. A driving licence. Some expatriate residents can exchange a valid home licence; others learn through a private institute, pass the tests and get a UAE licence, valid for 2 years from age 21 (u.ae, driving licence).

Because the lease asks for post-dated cheques and the bank asks for your visa and Emirates ID, the visa and the ID come first. Ask your employer in writing who files each step and by which date.

How long does each step take?

The official pages give few times, so plan around the ones they do give:

• Ejari: at a trustee centre the service takes 25 minutes, excluding the wait. Online, the e-contract registration certificate arrives by email once an employee has approved the request (DLD).
• Bank account: usually a few hours to a few days after you apply.
• Utilities in Dubai: DEWA contacts you after Ejari is issued, so the lease registration sets the date your power and water start.
• Emirates ID: the 24-hour urgent service is for UAE and GCC nationals. Other expatriates can use it only to replace a card (u.ae). We found no official time for a first card.
• Visa: we found no official processing time.

Which three mistakes cost newcomers money?

• Letting the Emirates ID lapse. The late fee runs at AED 20 a day up to AED 1,000, and when a residence visa expires, the card expires with it. The government also says overstaying a residence visa costs AED 50 a day.
• Staying away too long. More than 180 days outside the UAE in a row nullifies a residence visa, apart from the listed exceptions (u.ae).
• An unregistered lease. Registration is compulsory to connect the utilities, and in Dubai the courts do not hear a dispute on an unregistered lease, as our guide to renting in Dubai explains.

Dubai or Abu Dhabi: where do the rules differ?

• Lease register. Dubai: Ejari, at the Dubai Land Department; AED 177.75 online, AED 220 at a trustee centre (DLD). Abu Dhabi: Tawtheeq system.
• Housing or municipality fee. Dubai: 5% of the yearly rent, on the monthly bills. Abu Dhabi: 5% of the rental value or the rental index, whichever is higher, over 12 months; minimum AED 450 a year; UAE nationals exempt for residential leases (Resolution 49 of 2018).
• Broker licence. Dubai: Brokers licensed by RERA, with a list on the Land Department’s site (DLD). Abu Dhabi: Law No. 3 of 2015: no one may act as a broker without a licence (ADREC library).
• Health insurance law. Dubai: Law No. 11 of 2013. Abu Dhabi: Law No. 23 of 2005.
• Private schools licensed by. Dubai: Knowledge and Human Development Authority. Abu Dhabi: Department of Education and Knowledge (u.ae).
• Rental disputes. Dubai: Rental Dispute Centre. Abu Dhabi: Rent Dispute Settlement Committee.

The Abu Dhabi fee has been quoted at 3% in some places. We checked: the portal and the resolution both say 5%, and we found no current official source for 3%.

What do the first weeks cost in official fees?

For scale, take an invented yearly rent of AED 100,000. This is our arithmetic, not an average rent. In Dubai, the housing fee at 5% is AED 5,000 over the year. A broker commission, which the government says some brokers ask for up to 5% of the total rent, would be up to AED 5,000. Ejari online is AED 177.75. That is up to AED 10,177.75 in fees on top of the rent, the deposit and the cheques, before insurance or the visa. We found no official visa or Emirates ID fee table to add, and our guide to the residence visa and Emirates ID sends you to the ICP site for the fees. Our guides on what a relocation company costs and renting in Dubai take the money further.

What about schools?

Dubai’s private schools are licensed by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority and Abu Dhabi’s by the Department of Education and Knowledge. The government says private schools cannot raise fees without the approval of the education authority (u.ae). We did not research ratings, curricula or fees.

When does a relocation company help?

The words matter here. A search for relocation companies in Dubai returns movers, who ship your belongings, as often as relocation consultants, who find your flat, shortlist schools and do the registrations. Movers have their own bodies: FIDI describes itself as the global alliance of professional international moving and relocation companies, specialised in moving household goods, and the International Association of Movers connects companies in moving, shipping and logistics (FIDI, IAM). Consultants are the destination service providers that EuRA lists in its own category (EuRA). Our guide on how to choose a relocation company in Dubai explains the difference plainly. For the search, read how to find an apartment in Dubai. For the paperwork steps and what a consultant can do for you, read settling in the UAE.

To see agencies for your move, get matched or open the United Arab Emirates directory. How we rank explains the order.

What we could not source

We did not find an official table of visa and Emirates ID fees, a processing time for either, or the DEWA security deposit amount. We did not research freezone visas, the golden visa, remote-work visas, Sharjah or the other northern emirates. The Abu Dhabi resolution text is the 2018 version in the ADREC library, so check for later amendments. This guide is general information, not legal advice.