I recently read from a blogger that heavy luxury in Dubai is not brands like Chanel or Gucci, but a child. And you know what? I completely agree with this! Expenses on children are generally not small everywhere, but in the UAE this expense item eats up a decent part of the family budget. Let’s count.
I have always been of the opinion that you need to be prepared for the birth of a child not only in terms of health and relationships, but also financially. In the Emirates, only this approach has the right to exist.
Let’s start with the fact that there is nothing free here. Of course, there are no payments or benefits for newcomers. You have to pay for pregnancy and childbirth, you have to pay for any examination of the baby or mother, kindergartens, schools, clubs – everything costs money. And not a small amount. So, for the kindergarten alone you will spend about a thousand dollars. For example, we pay a little more than 15 thousand dirhams for three months. This is about 1300 dollars a month for half a day, my daughter is in the kindergarten from 8.00 to 14.00. And when there are two children? Three?
If I hadn’t had health insurance, I would have had to leave more than $4,000 in the hospital where I gave birth just for the birth (2 days of stay). At the same time, even with good insurance, I remember that 50 dirhams (~$14) flew out of the family budget for each visit to the doctor during pregnancy. Without insurance, it’s about 500-600 dirhams per appointment. How do you like these amounts?
My daughter is not even two yet, and with older children it is even more difficult financially. Schools, extracurricular activities, clubs, tutors – everything requires money. For example, my friend pays 13 thousand dollars a year for school alone, which is still quite normal. In addition to this, you need to buy a uniform, pay for the bus, pack a lunch box for the child every day, and so on.
Even the regular playrooms in shopping malls where I took my daughter last summer ate up $20-40 for each visit. Or right now I came across an ad for a summer camp for $220 a week. And that’s from 9:00 to 14:00, without food… It’s so hot outside in the summer, you can’t go out, so either leave Dubai for that period, or pay for at least some entertainment for the child.
Add here the standard expenses for food, clothing, hygiene products, some toys… In general, it is not cheap to have a child in Dubai. To be fair, I will say that some employers help families with children. At a minimum, they provide medical insurance and pay for the child’s education in kindergarten/school in full or for a certain amount. And this is already significant support.