Insights: General
Cultural awareness, expat life and practical guides for anyone building a life or career in the Middle East.
Latest Articles
Saudi to compare expat remittances to earnings
Authorities in Saudi Arabia are reportedly considering plans to introduce a new mechanism that will compare remittances to a sender’s income. The new mechanism could potentially impact millions of expats who live and work in the kingdom. Arab News reports that the project is the brainchild of the country’s Finance Ministry, the Saudi Arabian Monetary
Hospitality chain SFC Group says planning $16m UAE investment
Hospitality chain SFC Group has announced that it will invest AED60 million ($16.3 million) to expand its restaurant vertical SFC Plus in the UAE. The company said in a statement that it wants to add 25 new SFC Plus restaurants over the next four years to capitalise on the growing popularity of the quick service
Dubai property prices, rents may not rebound until 2018
Residential property prices continued to fall during the first half of 2016, with values expected to decline further until the end of 2017, according to a new report. Phidar Advisory’s latest Dubai residential research note said “soft demand” was behind the latest price drops rather than supply which has expanded slowly over the past 30
Oman allows three-month stay on multiple entry visas
Oman will reportedly relax rules on multiple entry visas for some countries in a bid to boost its economy. As of July 20, people visiting from 38 countries can stay for three months, an increase from the previous rules which allowed a three-week stay. It is hoped the extension will allow investors more time to
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES | Immigration Changes Affect Work Permits and Residence Visas
With the Middle East’s second largest economy behind only Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) relies heavily on foreign workers to sustain its economic growth. According to United Nations’ estimates, over 90 percent of its private market labor force is comprised of foreign workers. So any changes in immigration policies and processes always have
UAE’s hotel construction pipeline set to peak in 2018
The UAE’s hotel construction pipeline is forecast to peak in 2017 and 2018 as the country gears up for the World Expo event in 2020. According to a new report by TOPHOTELPROJECTS, there are 183 hotel projects and 54,000 hotel rooms in the UAE pipeline. The hotel construction report prepared for The Hotel Show Dubai
“I find it almost unbelievable, the amount of progress Qatar has made in the past 20 years”
Interview with Ambassador Nguyen Hoang, ambassador of Vietnam to Qatar What is your understanding and experience of living in Qatar? From the moment I first landed here in Doha until now, I have a very good impression about Qatar and its people. It’s not only the top-level Qatari officials who I find to be personable, but
Top 10 expat nationalities buying property in Dubai
149 nationalities invest Dh57bn in emirate’s real estate sector: DLD The biggest investors in Dubai property market have been UAE nationals followed by Indians in the first six months of 2016, according to Dubai Land Department (DLD). UAE nationals (Emiratis) invested a total of Dh14.523billion, through 4,543 investments, while Indians poured in Dh7.27billion during the
Expat Pakistanis remit $10bn from UAE, Saudi in past year
Remittances from overseas Pakistanis hit a record high of $19.9 billion in the year to June 2016, helped by large amounts sent from Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Statistics released earlier this month by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed that Saudi Arabia contributed 30 percent of total remittances amounting to just under $6
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