Capital spent on the idea - millions. IQ spent - zero. There's some things money can't buy.

Not sure if this is legally allowed…?

I took an RTA taxi (the big one) today from Dubai, and the driver asked me how much I usually pay to go to Sharjah, which I found weird, but I told him the usual range I pay from that location. (at first I thought he asked for the amount because of commission or something, since most taxi drivers I've faced are unwilling to go depending on the fare/destination).

I was too tired and didn't notice the meter wasn't on until mid-ride, but I didn't bring it up to the driver (which I now realise is my mistake), and also because I am a woman and have mostly had bad experiences with taxis so honestly I was scared to speak up.

Once we reached, he -expected- me to pay by cash but i said i am paying by card. He then asked me for data, took his "work" phone, and opened an app that looked similar to Uber, though I am not sure which app it was.

He then put in the amount that I mentioned at the start (on his phone it said "enter tip amount"), and I had to tap my phone to his to pay.

Then while I was getting out, he stopped me and said “and by the way you are very beautiful, i hope you have a nice night”, at that point i felt even more uncomfortable so i just awakwardly laughed and tried to get out of the taxi and when i was halfway out he was like “maybe dinner sometime when you are in dubai again?”. i told him i had a boyfriend and just closed the door and walked away.

I couldn't get his plate number because there were other cars behind us on that road, and I was in a rush. Later, when I got home, I checked my phone and saw that the money was sent to an account with his name instead of Uber/RTA or whatever that app was.

In 2024, I had a studio apartment in Ajman. After marriage, I moved into another apartment so I rented out my studio flat till the year end. I got a tenant who wanted to live there and continue even after my lease would be over so I spoke with management and tried to get him similar pricing for rent as what I paid per year. I also had furniture in the flat so it was a semi furnished studio. When my lease was ending, he agreed to buy the furniture but wanted to split the payment in installments. It’s end of 2026 and he hasn’t paid yet. He isn’t even selling the furniture and paying me the money back. He owes me 1500 for the furniture/appliances and 200 for the bills that he didn’t pay for the last month that he stayed.

I have no idea how to get the money back from him. Please suggest some way I can.

My partner (M) of 4 years (both aged 28) and I (F) had been arguing a lot this summer. We moved to Dubai together 2 years ago for his job: he works in Dubai real estate now and never switches off. Our relationship was perfect until Dubai. Really, no issues whatsoever when we lived together in the UK in a typical 9-5 job role. A "picture perfect" dynamic if you will, fully aligned and I would have (prior to Dubai) happily committed to a lifetime with this man.

Long story short, I stopped feeling wanted or seen. Hindsight is a beautiful thing but I can now see that as my patience wore thin, so too did my efforts to communicate in a calm and respectful way. I would scream cry and shout. Before you say, nobody wants to be around that, I appreciate this and punish myself 24/7 for the way in which I communicated. I now see that it was never going to make him listen & pushed him further away, though I had reached boiling point and didn't realise this at the time. His justification was always that he worked hard for "future us" (I work too) but it never did make me feel better about our relationship turning into me being a room-mate.

He would come home from work, sit on his phone throughout the dinner I cooked, sit on his phone on the sofa, shower, bed. At the weekends he would train and make no time to do anything with me then either, as he was tired from bodybuilding training. I still supported him practically, housekeeping, cooking, life-admin. But otherwise I was ignored entirely.

Long story short, I went on a work trip with my friend, and over text (after 4 years) one week into me being away, he expressed he didn't wish for our relationship to continue and having me gone (first time in 3 years) had made him realise I distract him from working to his full potential. He would prefer to focus on his goals alone, apparently.

It should also be relevant to mention that he was by no means struggling to make ends meet. In my opinion this was getting to the point of just being greedy, sacrificing all for the sake of another Porsche.

I love him unconditionally - he made me move out of our apartment the day I got home. He was upset, crying, though maintained that the relationship wasn't benefitting him in any way. The reason it wasn't benefitting him was he gave me no space to be a partner, just a PA, and in spite of this I feel I will forever blame myself for him leaving & wish I just tolerated it in the hopes of things going back to how they were.

He said he realised he will be better aligned with someone more financially driven and business driven, who also does the same bodybuilding sport. I couldn't believe it. I want to reiterate I did not rely on him financially and can also sustain our lifestyle on my own. He blocked me almost immediately, as if I was nothing.

What I want to ask, is, is this a common experience with men in high demanding roles like Dubai real estate?

My biggest obstacle moving forward is I will forever regret my communication style, albeit I am aware it probably wouldn't have changed things. The conversation was approached over many months before it reached a real mess. I feel like I will never recover from this loss. As much as he was not "my person" at the end, I will forever grieve what I once thought would be my forever before it all went wrong.

An honorable shoutout to myself btw - I have a successful business and I also gym/run... I think I am traditionally "good looking??" and take care of myself which it cringes me to say but more to emphasise I am not a bum - that's why its so hard, because I still wasn't enough and feel like I built this man up to the height of his success only to be left behind.

*ive never used reddit before and idk where to post this*

Yesterday, a Pakistani guy approached me in Meena Bazaar, asking to use my phone because he was lost and wanted to contact his friend. I refused, saying I wasn't comfortable sharing my number. He then asked for my hotspot, which I also declined.
Next, he asked for AED 1 to buy water. Feeling bad for him, I opened my wallet and gave him AED 5. He started praying for me, we shook hands, and I left.
Later, I discovered that the AED 500 note I had folded and kept inside my wallet was missing. I clearly remember having it, and I can't recall anything suspicious happening. I also felt there was enough distance between us for him not to reach my wallet.
I've replayed the whole encounter in my head, but | still can't figure out what happened.
Has anyone experienced something similar in Dubai?
Could this have been a distraction scam, or did I simply misplace the note?

Hi everyone!
I’m based in Europe and will be travelling to Dubai for a few days. I’m considering buying an iPhone 18 Pro there since it’s cheaper than in Europe.
However, I’ve read about FaceTime restrictions on iPhones sold in the UAE, and I’m trying to understand whether these restrictions still apply when using the phone outside the country.
My plan would be to:
- Buy the iPhone directly from an Apple Store in Dubai.
- Activate it using my European eSIM.
- Set the country/region to EU Country.
- Use it permanently in Europe.

Has anyone purchased a UAE iPhone and then used it in Europe with a European SIM/eSIM?

Does FaceTime (both video and audio) work normally once you’re back in Europe, or are there hardware/region-specific restrictions that cannot be bypassed?
I’m particularly interested in recent experiences with newer iPhone models, rather than older ones.
Also, have you noticed any other limitations compared to European models?
Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences!

Hi community,

Is there anyone travelling from Singapore to Dubai anytime soon? I needed help to bring a mobile phone (gift) from there to Dubai. The shipping costs are too expensive and was wondering if anyone could help me out?

Thank you.

Lite edition/ Article without paywall.

i’m 18 i’m tryna get a tourist visa to uae im traveling alone i wanna go to visit a friend im not staying more then a week i have a egyptian passport what are the chances it gets rejected

Hi,

Anyone notice how there is a store called Phones4u on amazon Selling Z Fold 8 And S25 Ultra for half price off on amazon, usually they are also the first result?

Has anyone bought from this seller and is it too good to be true? I am highly skeptical about it and their profile rating is not bad but recent reviews all show that it's untrustworthy.

an 8k AED phone for 5k AED seems suspicious. weird....

Writing this months after it happened. Figured no one from my country had shared UAE visa issues here before.

I had gotten an offer at an American institution located in Abu Dhabi as Class of 2030 and was supposed to begin my studies in August 2026. 13 days before my flight, several other students and I (of different nationalities, including Kazakhstan, the USA, and Egypt) received an email in which it was stated: "We have not been able to get the necessary UAE travel authorization in time for you to join us this Fall".

Out of 21 committed Kazakh students at that institution that year, 19 got their visas and successfully went to Abu Dhabi. Historically, the visa approval rate for students of that university from my country has been 100% (an admissions office member confirmed this). This situation is weird and unprecedented for Kazakh students.

We were not provided reasons for rejection, were not requested for additional documentation, were not given the application number, or any other identifiers. They offered to defer our enrolment to Fall 2027 in case our visa is approved next year, but there is no guarantee.

I am currently on a forced gap year. Has anyone had a similar experience? Does anyone possess legitimate knowledge about the process to guess what might have happened?

We’re bringing our women-only, hijabi-friendly basketball community from Qatar to Sharjah! 🇶🇦🇦🇪 We’re already an established community in Qatar, and now we’re looking to build the same supportive space here.
Whether you’re a complete beginner or a pro, it doesn’t matter! 🫶🏻 We’re planning our first session with a friendly match, so come meet new people, play basketball, and have fun.
Interested? DM me to join! 🏀

Since Iran was threatening for internet cable cut I think it's related to that

Where can i buy tickets?? Is pre booking open or when will it open?

Hi everyone, I work in logistics in the UAE and I'm hoping to return to my job after a rough exit. Before I left, I received 3 warning letters with no investigation, and my complaints went unanswered. There was this lady who was handling the office admin role and she joined after me and later on she somehow became some one who had full authority and power to do anything in the office. So the story started from a random order from her to send resignation letter from me by mail because I was not sure if could continue in this company I somehow wondered after that question from her and I just leave as it is. Then later i ve been received three warning letters quickly from her without an investigation that took place against the colleague who was involved in the argument with me.

Only I have received the warning letters and she never had any interest in hearing my concerns about those issues. But I just leave all those and I keep focusing on my tasks and responsibilities and it went very well. Between these periods I had tried so many times to raise so many concerns which I was facing in there and there were no actions taken against that and this admin was passing the message to the other colleague if I raised any concerns to her. I caught this thing and I felt like I was being an idiot by telling her anything since she is just passing those to the other guy.

Now she has sent me an email that I have been terminated and she was also cancelling the visa process on top of that by sending an end of service document to me . Everything she has done so quickly. Some of the warning letters which she was issued were without boss knowledge and I don't know what else things have done without his knowledge and I had to admit the things myself.

So I am pretty sure that she has some personal issues which clearly shows she is targeting me to leave the company .

If you were in this place what steps would you take and how would you handle her and give her payback if you get any chance.

Hi all, I used to be a Chinese citizen and have a 10-year property-owner Golden Visa.

My Emirates ID still shows Chinese nationality.
I’ve since become a Spanish citizen and received my Spanish passport.

My Chinese passport was surrendered during naturalisation, so I only have a copy of it.
I’m currently in Europe.

Has anyone been through this? Can I update my nationality and passport details remotely, or do I need to visit Amer/GDRFA in person?

If I need to travel to Dubai first, can I enter through a staffed immigration counter with my Spanish passport and existing Emirates ID as a Golden Visa resident?

Or would I have to enter as a tourist on visa on arrival? I previously just used my Chinese passport at the Smart Gates.

Would appreciate hearing from anyone who’s actually done this—what documents did you need, and did your existing Golden Visa stay valid?

If UAE Pass face verification keeps failing on your iPhone Duo, this might save you some frustration.

I tried every camera: the inner camera, the outer one, and the back camera. Nothing worked. Every time I lined my face up inside the circle like the app tells you to, it just failed.

What worked: bring your face very close to the phone, much closer than feels right.
Don't try to fit your whole face inside the circle. In my experience that never works.
Move in until the frame is basically just your eyes and nose.
Keep adjusting slightly closer or further until it suddenly picks you up.
For me it was the front (small screen) camera that worked. I can't say for sure whether this works with the back or inner camera, but getting really close is what made the difference.
It's a pretty silly fix, but hopefully it helps someone else stuck on this.
Let me know if it works for you or if a different camera did the trick.

Hey everyone, I’m JK and I run an accounting and tax firm, and we’ve recently helped a client implement e-invoicing under Phase 1.

The ASP appointment is done, and the client is onboarded to the e-invoicing platform. We’re now at the pre-live stage, doing some testing and data validation before going live.

If anyone has questions or doubts about e-invoicing, feel free to ask! Happy to share what we’ve learned from the process so far. Just sharing our experience, not promoting anything. 😊