Jul 12
nts of Obtaining a Driving License

Before buying that new car, you will need to consider the process of obtaining your drivers UAE license. To get your UAE drivers license, you need to be a resident of country, with a residence visa issued in any of the emirates. However, if you are a resident of an emirate but have a visa issued in another, then you need to obtain a transferal form allowing you to obtain your driver’s license from the former. You must be at least 18 years old to apply for the driver’s license. An International Driving License is valid for use ONLY up to the date on which you obtain your Residence Visa, after which you will need to apply for a UAE license.

Transferring An International License

If you already have a driver’s license from the United States, the United Kingdom, or any of the GCC countries, most European countries, or any of the countries mentioned below, you can transfer to a UAE driver’s license without having to take driving lessons or tests. It is only important to transfer to a UAE driving license if you are planning to reside in the UAE.

Drivers licenses from the following countries may transfer their licenses: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Iceland, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Slovakia, South Korea, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

If you do have a drivers license that you wish to transfer and are at least 18 years of age,

you can make your way down to the Dubai Traffic Police with the following: A valid driver’s license, a residence visa in the UAE, a completed driver’s license form, one passport size photograph, a copy of your passport (a photocopy of the main page and the visa page), eye test report (which you can get at any hospital), Dhs. 100, A No objection letter from your sponsor/employer, as part of the documentation.

If you don’t have a drivers license from one of the countries listed, you will have to obtain a UAE drivers license by taking driving classes and applying for the drivers test.

Criteria for Obtaining a UAE driving license

If you have never driven before or have a driving license that is not on the approved list of 36 countries, then you must go to a certified driving school, who will train you, so that you can pass the Dubai Traffic Police Driving Test and thus obtain your driving license. (If you are 18-21 year of age, you can apply for a probationary license). A reputed driving school will do most of the procedures for you, including internal tests.

Before you decide to get a driver’s permit, you should first decide which driving institute you wish to take driving lessons with. Driving institutes in the UAE can be grouped into two types, which are described below.

Type A - These driving institutes are large institutes. Initially a driving student needs to sign up with the driving institute and pay for the number of classes he/she will take, before beginning training. The student will also have scheduled lesson timings that has to be followed, and if a student misses a certain number of classes, then the classes will be cancelled without a refund. Most of these institutes have a typing office and eye test facilities, which will facilitate obtaining your driver’s permit. Students are also able to take road tests normally taken at the Traffic Department, inside the institute.

Type B - These smaller driving institutes are the most common in the UAE. The student can request lessons from the driving institute’s instructor whenever he/she has available time. The instructor will come to the driving student’s residence in order for him/her to take driving lessons.

So if you chosen to undergo driving classes with a Type B, then you must obtain the driving license application form from any driving institute near you. After obtaining the application form, you will then need to gather together 4 passport size photographs (4cm x 6cm), your original passport (which is only used for inspection) and a photocopy of it (main and visa pages),a ‘No Objection Letter’ from your sponsor (indicating that they don’t object that you apply for a driver’s license), and either a photocopy of your sponsor’s passport or your company’s trade license. When obtaining the ‘No Objection Letter’ from your sponsor, you should have him/her sign and stamp in the required place on the application form. Then take the application form and the other items down to any typing office in the UAE and have them fill out the form in Arabic using a typewriter, as the Traffic Department will not accept applications written by hand. The filled form should then be taken to any UAE government hospital, or any private hospital, clinic, or optical centre in the UAE for an eye examination. The eye examiner will fill out the necessary place on the back of the form and stamp it. The eye exam/test will cost around Dhs. 25-50. Finally, submit your application form and other items to the driving institute, so that they can take them down to the Traffic Department for the issuing of the permit. A fee of Dhs. 100 should be submitted with the filled application form. The driving permit is valid for one year and will cost Dhs. 40 for it to be renewed.

Taking Driving Lessons

Students can decide whether they wish to take driving classes using a manual or automatic vehicle. The cost for driving lessons will differ from institute to institute but normally it costs Dhs. 30 per class for manual lessons and Dhs. 35 per class for automatic lessons. Driving classes last for about 40 to 45 minutes. The number of lessons needed will depend on the student’s experience with a car, but students who have no experience will need around 40 to 50 classes, while students with some experience may need 10 to 20 classes. Driving institutes working hours are between 8:30AM and 1:30PM and again from 3:00PM to 5:30PM.

5 authorized driving schools are:

1. Belhasa Driving School - 04-3440276

2. Dubai Driving Centre- 04-3455855

3. Emirates Driving Institute-04-2631100

4. Galadari Driving School-04-2676166

5. Al Ahli Driving School-04-2722595

Signal Test

On the date assigned by your school, go with your passport, driving file+ 2 photos to Dubai Traffic Police, Driving License. Fill up application form & submit AED 35 for signal test. When your name is called out, go to the computer booth and identify the traffic signals. (In case you are not computer literate, you can opt for the manual test). Collect the pass print-out with your road test date (if you fail, pay the test-fee & you will be given another new test time and date) and submit to your driving school.

Road Test

On the date assigned, go with your passport, driving file+ 2 photos to Dubai Traffic Police, Driving License Section. Fill up application form & submit AED 35 for road test. When your name is called out, go along with the other three candidates and the inspector to the designated car. You will be given just a few minutes to demonstrate your driving and anticipatory skills.

If you pass, collect the pass paper from your inspector and go to the Pass Counter. Submit along with suitable ID & AED 100. Collect your test file and submit to Control Counter. After processing, pay required fee and proceed to photo area. When your name is called out, have your photo taken. Congratulations. In a few minutes, you will receive your DL and be eligible to drive in Dubai and the UAE.

Important note:

Zero-tolerance on drinking and driving: Do keep in mind that Dubai has a zero-tolerance policy on drinking and driving. Plainclothesmen travel about in unmarked vehicles and can legally stop you at any time to check.

If you find yourself in a precarious situation, don’t drive. There is a new private service called Safedriver, mainly available from major hotels, Safedriver can arrange to drive you and your car home for a small fee ranging from AED 80 to 120.

This, and other articles with useful tips and helpful information about living in Dubai can be found on ZOOZi by following the link to http://www.zoozi.com.

Robert asked:




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Jul 4
Priya Singh asked:


Dubai, a world business hub, is one of the seven emirates that represent the United Arab Emirates on the Persian Gulf and is one of the country’s main cities, occasionally called “Dubai City” to make a distinction it from the emirate. Dubai has the biggest population and is the second major emirate by area, after Abu Dhabi. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are the only two emirates to possess veto power over significant matters of national importance in the country’s administration.

Dubai International Airport the hub for Emirates Airline, services the city of Dubai and extra emirates in the country. Football and cricket are the most popular sports in Dubai. Five teams — Al Wasl, Al-Shabab, Al-Ahli, Al Nasr and Hatta — represent Dubai in UAE League football. Dubai is notorious for its nightlife. Clubs and bars are found typically in hotels due to the liquor laws. The New York Times listed Dubai as its travel choice for celebrations in 2008. Dubai has a glowing conventional network of print, radio, television and electronic media which service the metropolitan. Several international channels are available through cable, while satellite, radio and local channels are provided via the Arabian Radio Network system. For the duration of Dubai Shopping Festival, shops offer bottomless discounts on their goods, on a daily basis car raffles are drawn, and fireworks light Dubai’s night sky. Dubai - admired and called ‘city of gold’, the city of gold impression was coined during one of the Dubai Shopping Festival attentiveness campaigns, Dubai invited each person from all around the world to a international annual festival which came to be named as the landmark “Dubai Shopping Festival”, they came up with the narrative idea of a comprehensive village, a shopping village was conceived with all nations participating with their merchandise and styles in their conventional or literary ways, the settler ex pat inhabitants and the fly in visitors rejoiced in the carnival that took place and the assure was specified that from then on every year Dubai will host a festival for people from all around the world.

The tallest structure in Dubai is the 74-storey Almas Tower, which raises 360 meters in height. The Mall of the Emirates is a shopping mall in Dubai. It is currently owned by Majid Al Futtaim. It is currently the largest shopping mall in the Middle East. The mall will also host over 1,000 specialty shops located within the ten to fifteen distinct ‘malls-within-a-mall’. The Dubai Metro is a driverless, fully mechanized metro network currently under manufacture in the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai. The World’s biggest shopping mall, the South China Mall in Dongguan, China, Dubai Marina is a constituency in the heart of what has a moment ago become known as ‘new Dubai’, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The network will have two third rail compilation system motorized lines that will mutually run anti establishment in the city midpoint and on prominent viaducts elsewhere on double tracks. Dubai will be the boating world’s largest attraction next week, as the gates open to the 15th edition of the Dubai International Boat Show (DIBS), the foremost trade fair in the Middle East for the leisure time marine industry.



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Apr 30
RCI, the largest timeshare exchange company with world wide network and a part of Wyndham Worldwide, signed an affiliation agreement with property management company- Salwan, a subsidiary of Dubai Properties Group (DPG) to offer the RCI Points® exchange program to the owners at Salwan Hotel Apartments Dubai. RCI pioneered the concept of exchange vacations in 1974 and currently has an international network of over 4,000 affiliated resorts and three million members world wide.

Geoff Ballotti, President and CEO of Group RCI had high notes on Salwan Hotel Apartments while speaking at the signing ceremony at Salwan Hotel Apartments.

Owners of Salwan Hotel Apartments Dubai will profit from the large number of value added services and travel benefits offered by RCI and its global reach will provide an added incentive to prospective Salwan owners who will be having access to the largest portfolio of vacation resorts around the world. Also they will be supported by dedicated on-line, multi-lingual vacation guides in all of RCI call centres across the globe.

According to a Senior Official of Salwan the Dubai Hotel Apartments will provide the international clientele an opportunity to visit and spend time at one of the most sought after locations in Dubai. RCI and Salwan Hotel Apartments Dubai affiliation would create worldwide brand awareness and attract tourists from abroad. In parallel, number of RCI members will benefit by having access to properties at the exclusive Jumeirah Beach Residence and thereby enjoy modern living.

Salwan Hotel Apartments Dubai has dedicated 80 luxurious one, two and three bedroom units with five star facilities for RCI timeshare program. The property, located in the heart of new Dubai, offers close proximity direct to the beach (direct access), the Marina, and The Walk, showcasing the latest in designer shopping and haute cuisine spread across a 1.75 km beachfront boulevard.

In the coming years, Dubai is will transform itself into a most sought international tourism destination and this tie up will guarantee the visitor an array of options.



By: Jomy John

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