Path one — Relocating for work
You have the job. We handle everything the job doesn't.
Residency route
Employment residence visa — typically 2 years, sponsored by your employer
For individuals and families moving to the UAE on an employment visa — whether your employer is handling the visa itself or leaving it to you. We run the parallel track: the residency admin, the home, the schools, the bank, the licence, the hundred small things that decide whether month one feels like a fresh start or a permanent queue.
Where the rules currently stand
- Health insurance is a legal requirement for residents in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and the sponsor is responsible for providing it.
- Dependants can generally be sponsored only once the primary applicant's Emirates ID has been issued.
- Many nationalities can convert a home driving licence directly without sitting a test — eligibility depends on the issuing country.
What's included
What we handle on this path.
Residency & Emirates ID coordination
Entry permit tracking, medical fitness test booking, biometrics appointment, Emirates ID issuance and delivery — coordinated with your employer's PRO so nothing falls between the two of you.
Family sponsorship
Spouse and children sponsored under your residency once your Emirates ID is issued, including attestation guidance for marriage and birth certificates.
Home search & Ejari
Area shortlisting against your commute, budget and school choice, viewings with RERA-licensed agents, contract review, Ejari registration, DEWA and internet activation.
School placement
Curriculum mapping from your current system, application timing, assessment scheduling and waitlist strategy across British, IB, American and Indian curricula.
Banking
Introductions to UAE retail banks that will open for your salary band and nationality, plus guidance on what documentation each one actually asks for.
Driving licence
Assessment of whether your home licence is eligible for direct conversion, RTA file opening, eye test, and booking — or the fastest realistic route to a full test if conversion isn't available.
Health insurance
Health cover is mandatory for residency in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. We compare compliant plans for you and your dependants and coordinate issuance before the visa stamping deadline.
Settling-in support
SIM, salary certificate, tenancy disputes, nursery lists, vet registrations, shipping and customs clearance — a named person to ask for the first ninety days.
The sequence
How it runs, week by week.
Indicative timings for a straightforward case. Government processing times, bank compliance and document attestation in your home country are the variables that move them.
- 01Week 0
Discovery call
Your offer letter, family situation, timeline and budget. We tell you what your employer is likely to cover and what they aren't.
- 02Week 1
Plan & document prep
A written relocation plan with dates, plus the attestation and document checklist specific to your nationality.
- 03Weeks 1–4
Residency track
Entry permit, medical, biometrics, Emirates ID — run alongside your employer's PRO.
- 04Weeks 2–6
Home & schools
Viewings, offer, Ejari, DEWA. School assessments booked in parallel so term dates aren't missed.
- 05Weeks 4–8
Life admin
Bank account, health insurance, driving licence, SIM, vehicle.
- 06Week 8+
Handover
The first key. Every document filed in your portal, every renewal date in your calendar.
Packages
Choose the whole path, or one piece of it.
Every package can be paid in full at the start, or released as each service completes. Pricing is quoted after your brief, because a single founder and a family of five are not the same job.
Landing
The essentials, fast.
- Residency & Emirates ID coordination
- Home search shortlist + 1 viewing day
- Ejari registration & DEWA activation
- Bank account introduction
- 30 days of settling-in support
Best for
Single professionals whose employer is handling the visa.
Landing + Family
Everything in Landing, extended to your household.
- Everything in Landing
- Spouse & dependant sponsorship
- School placement — up to 3 schools
- Health insurance comparison & issuance
- Driving licence conversion
- 90 days of settling-in support
Best for
Couples and families arriving together.
Concierge
We do it; you show up.
- Everything in Landing + Family
- Accompanied viewings and school visits
- Furniture, shipping and customs coordination
- Utility, telecom and vehicle setup
- Dedicated relocation manager, 6 months
Best for
Senior hires and time-poor executives.
À la carte
One thing, done properly.
- Any single service above, priced individually
- Ejari-only, schools-only, licence-only and similar
- No package commitment
Best for
People who only need to solve one problem.
Please note
Figures on this page were reviewed in August 2026 and are subject to change by the relevant UAE authorities. Thresholds, eligibility rules and fees should be confirmed for your specific case before you commit funds. FirstKey Dubai coordinates with licensed partners and is not itself a visa-issuing authority, a licensed real estate brokerage, or a bank.
Individual services
Or engage just one thing.
Residency
Residence visas & Emirates ID
Entry permits, medicals, biometrics and Emirates ID, tracked end to end.
Business
Bank account opening support
Personal and corporate introductions, with the file prepared properly.
Property
Property purchase & rental
Buying or renting, with someone on your side of the table.
Life admin
Ejari, DEWA & utilities
Tenancy registration and the services that depend on it.
Life admin
Driving licence
Direct conversion where you're eligible, the fastest test route where you're not.
Life admin
School placement
Curriculum matching, assessments and waitlist strategy.
Life admin
Health insurance
Compliant cover for you and your dependants, before the deadline.
Residency
Family & domestic staff sponsorship
Bringing your household onto your residency.
Questions
Asked and answered.
My employer says they handle the visa. What do I actually need you for?
Employers handle the visa. They rarely handle the tenancy, the Ejari, the school waitlist, the bank that will actually open an account for you, or the licence conversion — and those are the things that stall. We run in parallel with your employer's PRO rather than replacing them.
How long before my family can join me?
Sponsorship of dependants usually begins once your own residency and Emirates ID are complete. In a straightforward case that's a matter of weeks, but attestation of marriage and birth certificates in your home country is the step that most often adds time — we flag it in week one for that reason.
Can you help before I've accepted the offer?
Yes, and it's often the better moment. Cost-of-living modelling, school availability for your children's year groups and realistic housing budgets change how a package should be negotiated.