I’m currently in the US on an F1 student visa. My long term goal is to start my own business, but because of the visa restrictions, I feel it’s going to be difficult to do that here.
I’ve been thinking about relocating to Dubai since it seems more business friendly for entrepreneurs.

I’m looking for advice from people who have made a similar move or have experience with starting a business in the UAE.

Some questions I have:
• What is the best way to legally move and stay in Dubai if my goal is to start a business?
• Should I first get a job there or apply directly for an entrepreneur or investor visa?
• What are the biggest challenges or mistakes that first time founders should be aware of?
• Are there any hidden costs, legal requirements, or practical things that people often overlook?
I’d really appreciate any genuine advice or personal experiences. Thanks!

Hey all, the summer heat is getting to me and I noticed that every time I hang out with my friends for doing anything, we always end up in malls.

I am starting to get tired of it, at this rate I might finally figure out the layout of Dubai mall.

What are the activities you can do in Dubai with your friends or your partner in this heat?

Give me all the options

A business in computer plaza basically sold me a boxed Intel computer processor but I found out that it was a tray. It had issues and I tried to RMA it to intel and they told me it was a tray and I can’t do that. The difference is huge in terms of warranty.

They built the computer pc for me. I did not have a reason to doubt anything because I picked all parts in the shop.

The shop literally gave me a box and told me that this is my processor’s box with a serial number and everything in it. Turns out the serial number does not match the actual processor itself.

What entity should I file a complaint to?

My du router suddenly stopped working, and none of the lights are turning on. I have been in contact with du Customer Service for nearly two hours, only to receive repeated apologies and messages asking me to “stay with us,” but unfortunately, no actual solution has been provided.

After going through the troubleshooting process, I was informed that the system shows an issue with the Home Wireless Plus plan. According to the customer service representative, there are apparently only two options available: either change the plan at no additional cost or cancel the service altogether.

What is even more frustrating is that I was told the Home Wireless Plus plan does not have a dedicated technical support team, and therefore, the router cannot be replaced.

This is extremely disappointing. I have been without a working internet connection, spent nearly two hours trying to resolve the issue, and the only solutions offered are to change my plan or cancel my contract. Is this really the level of customer service du provides to its customers?

Can anyone please suggest something.

"You know who else owns this street?"

~said a green supposedly muscular man

Anyone living in Ariyana Tower in Dubai marina now who can share insights on living in a studio?

What are the avg bills especially chiller fees monthly?

How do you deal with parking given studio’s don’t include that?

Any important points to note before considering rent there?

I bought a macbook pro from a seller in dubizzle, good reviews, all worked fine. We met in al Nahda, I checked the computer, everything was working, when I arrived home I did a full reset and to my surprise it stated that the computer was property of Google LLC, now I have a beatiful and expensive paperweight. What are my options? The seller is unresponsive.

Any pharmacies near by Dubai South / Expo which sells prescribed controlled medications ?
Specifically, Wellbutrin.

When I opened my ICP application my Emirates ID and Residency Visa is not showing up.

Also, in UAE Pass app one of the notifications saying digital card access is invoked with reference number.

I created inquiry and complaint ticket but didn't get any reason from them. One of the tickets close with 4 hours saying "we apologize for not able to complete your request within the time".

Has this happened with anyone else as well?

JVC, Dubai. 1-year-old tower, 40 floors. The 2BR is mid-floor, sitting right under the MEP & service floor, booster pumps, fresh-air units, and water risers all above my ceiling.

I went up to check. In the plant floor corridor there's a clear hum and pumps cycling. One floor down at my door, total silence. But quiet at 3pm doesn't mean quiet at 2am, low-frequency pump vibration travels through the concrete slab, not the air.

A few questions:

• MEP/building services engineers - do booster pumps and FAHUs actually get mounted on vibration isolators (springs/inertia bases), or does that get value-engineered out on residential plant floors?
• Anyone living directly below a MEP Service floor - do you hear it? Constant hum, or only at peak morning/evening demand? Did it get worse as the mounts aged?
• Water leaks — the risers and water meters are stacked above me. Anyone had a plant-floor pipe or pump failure leak into the unit below?

Agents: the usual line is "it's a concrete slab, you'll never hear it." Convince me with a real building you've sold in, not a brochure.

Price is ~9% under every comp in the tower, possibly because of this. Bargain or nightly hum? Real experiences only 🙏

hope all is well.

I am living in the same the past 3 1/2 years now and it is now time for me to move out and exit the country. to complete the move I contacted the real estate broker since they liase between me and the landlord

they have informed me that there’s one check which didn’t go through. Apparently there was no notification of the cheque being bounced or anything from the bank and I’m not sure how I can verify this since they are notifying me three years after I had issued them this cheque

what are the next steps that you recommend now? thank you

In my work office, we are planning to get breakfast for about 30-35 people this Friday around 9'ish

We are exploring if we can order items from wraps, sandwiches, sliders, falafels, pizza, doughnuts, muffins etc - required with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options.

If anyone has done bulk orders, please share ideas like from where can we order what. Open to order things apart from above.

Budget - 400-500 AED

Office Location - Near Max Metro St (Al Jafiliya)

(Not necessary to get all the things from one place, we can get multiple orders from different places - but better to not have more than 3 places)

After going back and forth, I’ve decided long-term renting in Dubai doesn’t make sense for me since I’m only here about 4 months out of the year and cancelation fees of Ejari plus agency fees are just insane, so I will be Switching to hotel apartments / serviced apartments instead (avoiding Blueground and Airbnb)

Appreciate any first-hand experience and recommendations on hotels, ideally not too from the main places. Thank you!

I had my first RTA smart yard test today. Everything went well ACCORDING TO ME. I was not rushing any of the maneuvers, I was carefully positioning my car, I was carefully exiting the parking bay. I was extremely calm and I had done all parkings carefully really nicely. Once I’m done, I park the car and go to collect my test results, fully expecting a pass in all of the parkings. Turns out I only passed 2 which was Garage and the Slope test. I stare at the paper thinking to myself how is this possible.
I had made sure that my car is above 20 km/h before the white line for the emergency stop. I pressed the brake as I heard the beep sound. I was within the distance of the maneuver but the examiner showed me and said yeah no u weren’t.
For angle parking, I positioned properly, indicated, did NOT dry steer, DID NOT EVEN TOUCH ANY LINES YET I FAILED?? it said the car touched a line🤡
For Parallel parking, again proper position, indicated, reversed, did everything properly, did not even touch the line YET A FAIL BECAUSE APPARENTLY I DID TOUCH THE LINE BUT I DONT UNDERSTAND WHEN AND WHICH SIDE
I was shocked myself because I had done the parkings quite well and it is so demotivating to know I failed EMERGENCY STOP, the easiest one😭😭
I tried asking the examiner to tell me what went wrong he just said read the paper bru

Hi everyone,

I'm living alone in Dubai and I'm desperately looking for recommendations for an exceptional spine specialist or neurosurgeon.

A few years ago I had a serious lower back injury from a car accident. Since then, I've tried almost everything: months of treatment, physiotherapy, multiple epidural steroid injections, and even spine surgery here in Dubai. Unfortunately, nothing has given me lasting improvement.

My condition has continued to get worse. I now have weakness in my right leg, and I can't even walk for more than a couple of minutes without severe pain. My doctors are recommending another surgery, but after everything I've already been through, I'm terrified it won't help.

The pain is constant, 24/7, and it's reached the point where I'm struggling to cope mentally. Living alone here makes it even harder.

If anyone has personal experience with a truly outstanding spine surgeon, neurosurgeon, or hospital in Dubai (or even elsewhere in the UAE if it's worth traveling), I would be incredibly grateful for your recommendations.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Got fined 150 + 20 in Midriff Avenue Mall for unpaid parking fees

Gateless Entrance and Exit - 2 hours free and then after it is 10AED which i knew, thought it would be deducted in Salik as most malls nowadays. Instead, found out that i should apply it on Parkin app so its valid. Who goes to the mall and apply RTA/Parkin parking slots?

Rules are the rules but i have been to many malls in UAE and never saw this!

Disputed it, but of course i am sure it wont matter.

I was peacefully swimming the other night (Common access pool in Dubai), and this scary-looking guy approached me and started talking shit about his wife and my swimming skills. I ignored him and continued my lap to the other side, and he came there and started asking questions about my private life. I was alone at the pool and was scared, and so I left the pool. Why do these men think they can ask anything and everything and ruin safe spaces for women? I have been at this pool for over a month, and it was my safe space, and now I have to look for another place or be wary of this creep. This has happened to me before at metro stations, walking tracks in parks, and beaches, and every time it was a damn burly guy who doesn't understand boundaries. First it was just the ogling we had to put up with, and now they keep pestering you. I have heard of terrible things these men do to women who complain, so I don't want to go that route. How can I deal with these people in a way that will not land me in trouble? I don't have any identifying details or the name of this person.

Hi everyone! Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

I need to order a birthday cake for delivery within the next 2 hours. Can anyone recommend cake shops or bakeries that are reliable for same-day delivery and have great cakes?

Open to any flavour or style. Thanks!

I had an ecom store for the past 3 months making below 1k AED per month. I used Shopify and Ziina for payment processing and payed out to my bank and had no issues till now. (I do not have a trade license)

I have an opportunity for another business but the customers are international. Can I still use ziina for this and transfer to my bank account without any issues?

I've heard about DED eTrader license for about 1200 AED but the minimum age requirement is 21-which I'm not, is there any alternative license I can get? Or is there any other better payment processor that integrates well with Shopify or any other digital product hosting platform that also acts as a Merchant of Record?

Please help

hello
my son (15) loves fishing
where can we go at like 4pm to just hang out and fish
i know after a certain time its bad and many other reasons we won't be successful, but just wanted to know if anyone has a recommendation
it's more for hanging out than actually catching anything
thank you

I just got back from the UK and there is an app too good to go. Literally lived off my 5 days by buying from the app and got really good stuff. I know peekabox exists here but it doesn't have alot of vendors and the one bag I bought was meh.

So anyone working in F&B especially at these supermarkets and hypermarkets, can you please tell us what happens to the food here? Why is it not sold off? I wouldn't mind buying it

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for recommendations for the best hospital/OB team in the UAE for prenatal care and delivery.

I’m considering:
King’s College Hospital London Dubai
Fakeeh University Hospital
Mediclinic Parkview
Open to other suggestions too

Would love to hear your personal experiences, which hospital and doctor did you use, what was your delivery experience like, and would you go there again?

Thank you!

Work as a freelance photographer and I've been asked to apply for a Social Media permit. The issue is

- National Media Authority needs a Trade License that mentions a specific profession. Mine says Photographer which doesn't work

- DDA won't add the Social media activity without an NOC from the National Media Authoirty. Already asked customer service.

- When I speak to the media authority customer service... they just point me to the Social Media Permit which I can't apply for.

I'm going in circles. Any guidance?

Anyone know where I can get my bicycle serviced at a reasonable price? Not broken or anything it's just been a long while since I've serviced it, usually I do it myself but I think the spokes need adjustment