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A Guide to the Labor Market in Dubai for Expats

When it comes to expats wishing to live in a peaceful, secure country, Dubai remains a favorite thanks to the economy consisting of various contributors such as tourism, trading, and foreign investments, as well as the lack of income tax for individuals. Plenty of employment opportunities are also available in various sectors like IT, healthcare, and more.

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Are you looking to work in Dubai? While the emirate lacks individual income tax, it’s important to remember that the UAE has a mandatory health insurance policy.

Dubai’s Economy and Infrastructure

When it comes to economic diversity in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stands out as a prime example. Dubai, as the emirate’s most vibrant city, is also known as a leading trading hub for the entire Middle East and Africa.

Trading, tourism, and foreign investments are currently the biggest contributors to Dubai’s economy. Despite the ever-changing market, more expats are leaving their home country in favor of Dubai, further contributing to the economic growth. Additionally, the city’s massive infrastructure encompasses large shopping malls, along with attraction parks, exhibition centers, and more.

Notable Fields of Prominent Employment Opportunities in Dubai

Every year, Dubai’s employment opportunities continue to increase and some of the sectors with the most employment opportunities available include the healthcare sector, IT sector, the hospitality sector, the tourism sector, and more.

Below are brief descriptions on each of Dubai’s most notable fields of prominent employment opportunities.

Healthcare

One of Dubai’s primary areas of emphasis when it comes to expansion and development is healthcare. An integral part of Dubai’s healthcare development is the Healthcare City, which is a free zone established in hopes of bringing together all core healthcare services for both expats and local citizens.

Dubai’s spontaneous advancements and expansions in the healthcare sector subsequently created an abundance of employment opportunities for doctors and nurses, along with laboratory technicians and paramedics.

Some of Dubai’s key healthcare companies expats can find employment opportunities include the Arabian Medical Enterprises, Siemens Healthineers, and Aster DM.

Tourism and Hospitality

Thanks to breathtaking skyscrapers, outstanding water parks, large shopping malls, and many other attractions, Dubai is easily a hotspot for tourists. Some of the world’s renowned hotel chains such as JW Marriott, Hilton, Atlantis, among many others, have branches in Dubai.

The hospitality sector is constantly growing each year with new hotels emerging in the city. You can also find various job opportunities in tourism and hospitality in Dubai such as hotel managers, chefs and bartenders, spa managers, shopping mall managers, and more.

Some notable companies in Dubai’s tourism and hospitality sector where you may be able to find job opportunities include the Jumeirah Group, Hyatt, and Emaar Hospitality Group.

IT (Information Technology)

Due to the city’s status as one of the world’s main business centers, Dubai’s IT industry has significantly grown over the past few years. Some of the most notable job opportunities in Dubai’s IT industry include software developers, graphic designers, IT managers, UX/UI designers, video editors, and cybersecurity analysts.

Examples of key IT companies in Dubai where you may be able to find job opportunities include Google, SAP Middle East, and IBM Middle East.

Construction and Property Development

Construction and property development is a long-standing industry in Dubai and the UAE overall, offering multiple job opportunities for both local citizens and expats alike. Some of these job opportunities include construction managers, design and project engineers, planners, quantity surveyors, property valuation specialists, and BIM (building information modeling) modelers.

Automobile

Dubai and the other emirates in the UAE have one of the oldest and most established automobile industries. Dubai’s automotive and its infrastructure is one of the largest in the region due to the low cost of fuel when compared to other nations.

Numerous Chinese, Japanese, German, and American automakers also have a large market in Dubai and the rest of the UAE. Dubai also exports and reexports vehicles to neighboring GCC regions and, thanks to being a wealthy city, there is also a huge demand for luxury vehicles.

Some job opportunities for the automobile industry in Dubai include marketing executives, sales managers, procurement officers, storekeepers, and automobile engineers.

Finding Jobs in Dubai

Now that we’ve discussed the various fields with numerous job opportunities in Dubai, let’s now move onto the next question expats probably have in mind: “Where can I find jobs in this sector in Dubai?”.

Once you have a good understanding of the job market and the field you’re interested in, you can then register your candidate profile on job-searching sites such as Talentmate or Linkedin to find jobs in the specific field you’d like.

If you have friends or family members in Dubai, you can also seek job recommendations from them if you find manual job-searching on your own difficult.

Conclusion

In conclusion, from healthcare to IT and automobile, the labor market in Dubai is full of possibilities for expats looking for jobs. You can use job-searching platforms such as Linkedin or Talentmate to find the position you’d like or seek recommendations from friends and family members.

As an expat in Dubai, regardless of whichever field you choose to work in, you are always at risk of illnesses and injuries and without Dubai’s mandatory health insurance, you will be forced to make out-of-pocket payments, which can be incredibly problematic in times of unemployment.

Having a health insurance plan, however, can help ease the blow of unexpected medical bills thanks to comprehensive coverage and any additional benefits you can tailor as you would like. While plan searching and comparisons may be daunting, it doesn’t have to be a headache and we’re here to help you.

As an experienced health insurance broker, Pacific Prime Dubai has helped not only local Dubai citizens, but also expats find suitable health insurance plans that match both their comfortable budget range and unique healthcare needs.

Whether you’re a local Dubai citizen yourself or an expat on the hunt for job opportunities in Dubai, we will be more than pleased to help you out with completely impartial advice available to you at no additional cost.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us or get a free quote with us here for plan comparisons.

Content Writer at Pacific Prime Dubai
Wish Sutthatothon (Nickname: Guy) is currently a content writer at Pacific Prime Thailand, an insurance broker that connects individuals and businesses with insurance providers worldwide. He creates and edits blog articles, guides, reports, webpages, and other types of digital content.

He graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Arts, Media & Communication major (concentration: Creative Content) from Mahidol University International College (MUIC). During the compulsory major elective period in the summer of 2021 and voluntarily during the summer of 2022, he also interned as a video and photo editor at Mbrella Films.

He has experience working as an English Content Writer at a real estate buying/renting/selling platform in Thonglor. There, he crafted company blog posts on a multitude of topics. Topics include market trends, legal issues and disputes in property businesses, financial guides, expat guides, home insurance, home decoration and maintenance, and weekly real estate news quick-recaps. Occasionally, as part of the blog-writing process, he would also translate existing Thai blogs to English.

In his free time, Guy enjoys doing scriptwriting and storytelling for comic strips, watching movies, and listening to music (particularly film scores).
Wish Sutthatothon