I have a contract opportunity in Dubai for 2 years.I have a wife and two kids under the age of four.How much money would I need to earn (say, monthly) to be comfortable and put aside savings?

3 bedroom villa = $50,000 a year to rentMorning classes for pre-school x 2 = $6,000-$10,000, once they move to school about the same price eachCar and other living expenses = about 15-20% less than what you spend in the UK, except alcohol which is about the same amount more expensiveIn short, it needs to be a good offer.

Watch out on the accomodation front.Landlords can be a menace if you are renting direct. Frequent increase in rent, often unjustified and with a contract cancellation hanging over it.Also be very careful about location - aim for a gated estate with majority ex-pat community. This also keeps out the insane drivers (who are in the majority).Try to get the package to cover all of this and also membership to a some sort of beach/country club etc...Frequent flights back to Blighty would also be good. Your family would probably prefer to leave Dubai for the summer months due to the 40C+ temp.

it is great place for family, providing that the accommodation and schooling is covered either by your good earnings or by specific allowances. If your kids get into a decent school, they will be taught Arabic, which I suspect will be a very valuable skill as they get older.

Yeah, a great place for family life, it’s just the affording it that’s the tough part. Full expat packages with schooling do exist but in general most offers will only include a housing allowance – which will most likely not cover the full cost of your house – and that’s it. Expect at least some of your tax free earnings going on covering schooling and housing. On the point above, most expat schools here are based on the English curriculum but will have Arabic lessons. The schools are expensive, but are generally equipped to a very high standard.

Great thread, thanks for this info.