For a couple with one school-age child renting a AED 120,000 flat on four cheques, the first month of a move takes about AED 57,327 from your savings in Dubai and AED 54,302 in Abu Dhabi, before the first UAE salary arrives. Most of it is rent: the first cheque, the deposit and the agency fee. A further AED 90,000 of rent is committed in post-dated cheques on the day you sign. The visa fees, flights, shipping and health insurance come on top, and for those Landed has no sourced figure, so get a written quote for each.
Last reviewed 3 November 2026. This guide is about the money; Moving to Dubai from the UK puts the steps in order. Every figure comes from Landed's first-month cash calculator, which lists a source and checked date for each line. Sources are listed at the end.
Where the money goes in month one
Dubai, month one
AED 57,327
Couple, one child, AED 120,000 rent, 4 cheques
Abu Dhabi, month one
AED 54,302
Same household and rent
Rent cheques that clear later
AED 90,000
3 cheques of AED 30,000, handed over at signing
Rent, deposit and agency fee
AED 42,300
74% of the Dubai total
The rent of AED 120,000 a year is the calculator's example figure, not a market average. Check current listings near your work and your children's school, then put your own rent into the calculator.
| Cost | Dubai | Abu Dhabi |
|---|---|---|
| First rent cheque | AED 30,000 | AED 30,000 |
| Security deposit (5% of rent, unfurnished) | AED 6,000 | AED 6,000 |
| Agency fee, with VAT | AED 6,300 | AED 6,300 |
| Tenancy registration (Ejari in Dubai, Tawtheeq in Abu Dhabi) | AED 220 | AED 50 |
| Electricity and water deposit and connection | AED 2,155 | AED 1,000 |
| Emirates ID for your partner and child | AED 600 | AED 600 |
| Medical fitness test for your partner | AED 320 | AED 250 |
| UK degree attestation | AED 840 | AED 840 |
| School application fee | AED 500 | None found |
| Back-to-school extras (uniform, books, device) | AED 6,000 | AED 6,000 |
| UK driving licence exchange | AED 1,030 | No sourced figure |
| Salik toll tag and first top-up | AED 100 | Not applicable |
| Bank account minimum balance | AED 3,000 | AED 3,000 |
| Mobile plans for two adults, first month | AED 262 | AED 262 |
| Total | AED 57,327 | AED 54,302 |
Three things drive the total:
- Rent is paid upfront. Landlords quote rent by the year and take it in one to four post-dated cheques, all handed over when you sign [1]. Fewer cheques means a bigger first payment. The Property guide explains each charge.
- The deposit and agency fee scale with the rent. In Dubai the deposit is market practice of 5% for an unfurnished home [2], and the agency fee is usually 5% of the annual rent plus VAT [3]. In Abu Dhabi the agency fee is up to 5% of the rent [4].
- Children add school costs at once. A Dubai school application fee is capped at AED 500 [5], and uniform, books and a device came to about AED 6,000 a child in a 2026/27 back-to-school estimate [6]. Tuition is separate; the Family Cost Gap guide covers it.
The fixed fees
These do not change with your rent:
- Tenancy registration. Ejari costs AED 220 at a Dubai trustee centre [7]; Tawtheeq is AED 50 in Abu Dhabi [8].
- Electricity and water. DEWA takes a AED 2,000 deposit for a flat and a AED 155 connection fee [9]. In Abu Dhabi the calculator uses a AED 1,000 deposit [10].
- Emirates ID. AED 300 for a two-year card for each family member [11].
- Degree attestation. About AED 840 to attest one UK degree yourself: the FCDO apostille, the UAE Embassy in London, then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs [12] [13].
- Driving licence exchange in Dubai. AED 1,010 to 1,050 through the RTA, depending on where you take the eye test; the calculator uses AED 1,030 [14].
What the calculator leaves at zero, and why
Some costs have no source Landed can cite, so the calculator starts them at AED 0 and asks for your own figure:
- The employment entry permit and residence visa. The Labour Law bars an employer from charging you recruitment or employment costs [16], so your own visa should not be yours to pay; ask what the employer covers for your family. The family residence visa guide lists what you pay for a spouse and children.
- Health insurance for your family. Ask whether the employer's policy covers them. The Health Insurance guide explains what each emirate requires.
- Shipping your belongings. Get two or three written quotes after a survey. The shipping and removals guide covers how quotes work.
- Flights and temporary housing. Check fares and short-let prices for your dates, and ask whether the employer pays either.
- A car. Price the model you want before you move.
Add a contingency of your own on top. Landed has no sourced figure for one.
How to bring the number down
- Ask the employer for part of the housing allowance in advance to pay the first cheque, or for a relocation allowance paid before you arrive.
- Ask the landlord for more cheques. Four cheques instead of one cuts the first payment from AED 120,000 to AED 30,000 on the example rent.
- Move into a furnished home for the first year if you are not shipping furniture. The deposit is higher (10% instead of 5% in the calculator), but you avoid buying furniture in month one.
- Start the attestation of your degree and marriage and birth certificates in the UK, before you fly.
- Keep the savings in a UK account you can reach from the UAE until your salary arrives.
What this guide does not cover
- School tuition, which the Family Cost Gap guide covers.
- Monthly living costs after you arrive. The cost of living tool compares them with the UK.
- UK tax on leaving. The P85 and leaving the UK checklist covers it.
Next steps
- Put your own rent, cheques and household into the first-month cash calculator.
- Run the Landing Check to see whether the offer covers these costs and leaves you more each month than you have now.
- Read the How to Read a UAE Job Offer guide for the relocation questions to ask before you sign.
Sources
Checked 3 November 2026, from the first-month cash calculator (src/lib/first-month-cash.ts, figures checked 21 October 2026, with the pages marked opened checked on the desktop on 26 October 2026). The rest were read from search results.
- All about paying rent in Dubai (Bayut): rent paid in one to four post-dated cheques at signing. Search results.
- How much is the security deposit in Dubai (Gulf News): 5% unfurnished and 10% furnished is market practice; the law sets no percentage. Search results.
- Real estate commission in Dubai (Property Finder): 5% of annual rent plus VAT is the market norm; RERA sets no rate. Search results.
- Leasing a property in the UAE (UAE government portal): Abu Dhabi agency fee up to 5% of the rent. Search results.
- KHDA Registration and Refund Policy for all Dubai Private Schools (KHDA): application fee capped at AED 500. Search results.
- UAE back-to-school cost calculator 2026/27 (Khaleej Times, 6 August 2026): uniform, books and devices per child. Opened.
- Register or renew an Ejari contract (Dubai Land Department): AED 220 at a trustee centre. Opened 26 October 2026.
- Tenancy contract registration (DARI): AED 50. Opened 26 October 2026.
- Activation of electricity and water (move-in) (DEWA): AED 2,000 deposit for a flat, AED 155 connection fee. Opened 26 October 2026.
- TAQA and DEWA deposits (The National, 4 September 2026): Abu Dhabi deposit of AED 1,000. Search results.
- Emirates ID issuance (ICP): AED 100 a year plus AED 100 smart-services fee. Opened 26 October 2026.
- Get a document legalised (GOV.UK): the £45 FCDO apostille. Opened 26 October 2026. The UAE Embassy London fee of about £70 plus £25 is from third-party guides; the embassy does not publish it.
- Frequently asked questions (UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs): AED 150 attestation fee. Opened 26 October 2026.
- Exchange a foreign driving licence (RTA, service 121): AED 1,010 to 1,050 in total, depending on the eye test. Opened 26 October 2026.
- The medical fitness test (AED 320 in Dubai, from a Takween Advisory guide of September 2026; AED 250 in Abu Dhabi, from SEHA), the Salik tag (YallaMotor), the Emirates NBD minimum balance (key facts statement, opened 26 October 2026) and the du Power Plan (opened 26 October 2026): each line's source is shown in the first-month cash calculator.
- Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 6, clause 4 (UAE legislation portal): an employer may not charge the worker recruitment or employment fees and costs. Opened 26 October 2026.
- Worked example:
computeFirstMonthCashin Landed's code with the calculator's example household, run on 3 November 2026.