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Labeeb Guide · Pay, packages & cost of living · last verified 25 September 2026 · informational, not financial or legal advice

Pay, packages and offers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia: how to read what you’re offered

How a UAE or Saudi pay package is built and what each line means: basic wage versus allowances, what gratuity, ILOE and GOSI are calculated on, medical cover, notice and probation, take-home and cost-of-living checks, and what is realistically negotiable. Each rule links the official text it comes from.

Quick answer: the eight questions to ask about any Gulf offer

An offer in the UAE or Saudi Arabia is not a salary. It is a bundle: a basic wage, allowances, statutory items the employer must provide, and items it may or may not provide. The gross figure tells you less than the answers to these eight questions.

# Question Why it matters
1 What is the basic wage, as a separate line? UAE gratuity, ILOE cover and leave cash-out at exit are all calculated on basic, not gross. Saudi end-of-service is on the “last wage”, which is broader, but GOSI keys off basic plus housing.
2 Which allowances are fixed, and which are conditional? A housing allowance paid monthly in cash is income. “Housing provided” or “subject to policy” is not the same thing.
3 Who covers medical insurance, and for whom? Employee cover is mandatory in every emirate and for expatriate workers in Saudi Arabia. Family cover is where the gap usually is.
4 What are the notice and probation terms, in days? The law sets ranges; the contract sets the number inside the range.
5 Is there an annual ticket, and for whom? Common, not statutory in the UAE. The employer-borne return ticket at end of service is statutory in Saudi Arabia.
6 Is the bonus contractual, discretionary or target-linked? Wording decides whether it counts as “wage” in a dispute.
7 Does the written offer match what will be filed? UAE: the MoHRE contract is based on the signed offer letter. Saudi: the contract is authenticated on Qiwa. What is filed is what a court reads.
8 What is the total cost of living I will actually carry? Rent, schooling, family medical and transport can move two identical gross offers apart by more than the salary difference.

If you take one thing from this page: ask for the basic wage in writing before you compare anything else.

Anatomy of a UAE package

The governing texts are Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 (the “Labour Law”, as amended) and its Implementing Regulation, Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022, both published by MoHRE (Sources 1–2).

Basic wage vs “wage”

Article 1 defines two things that look similar and are not:

  • Basic wage: the wage stipulated in the contract, paid in consideration of work, “which does not include any other allowances or benefits in-kind”.
  • Wage: the basic wage plus cash allowances and benefits in-kind allocated under the contract — housing, transport, cost-of-living allowances, a percentage of sales or profits.

Most of what the law gives you during employment is calculated on *wage*. Three things that decide the value of your exit are calculated on *basic*:

  1. End-of-service gratuity — Article 51. A full-time foreign worker who completes a year or more of continuous service receives “a wage of (21) twenty-one days for each year of the first five years of service” and “(30) thirty days for each year exceeding such period”, calculated on “the last basic wage the worker was entitled to”. The total may not exceed two years’ wage; unpaid absence days do not count as service. Our worked guide is the UAE gratuity page linked above.
  2. Involuntary Loss of Employment insurance (ILOE) — Federal Decree-Law No. 13 of 2022. The scheme pays 60% of the average basic salary over the most recent six months, capped at AED 10,000 a month for Category A (basic AED 16,000 or below) and AED 20,000 for Category B (basic above AED 16,000), for up to three consecutive months per claim, after at least 12 consecutive months of premiums (AED 5 or AED 10 a month plus VAT) (Source 3).
  3. Cash in lieu of unused annual leave at exit — Cabinet Resolution 1/2022, Article 19(2). “If the worker’s service ends, he shall be paid a cash allowance for the balance of his legally due annual leave, according to the basic wage.”

The practical consequence: AED 20,000 split as AED 8,000 basic plus AED 12,000 allowances and AED 20,000 split as AED 14,000 basic plus AED 6,000 allowances pay the same each month and diverge sharply at exit: over five years the second gratuity is 75% larger. Neither split is illegal; neither the Decree-Law nor the Implementing Regulation fixes a minimum basic-to-gross ratio (both texts read in full, 25 Sep 2026).

Allowances

The law names housing, transport and cost-of-living allowances as examples of what “wage” may include; it requires none of them. Housing is the largest line in most packages; paid annually in advance it solves the rent-cheque problem (see the family relocation page). “Company accommodation” is a benefit in-kind; value it at what you would otherwise pay. Education allowances are not statutory and are usually capped per child. An annual ticket is common practice, not an entitlement: the only ticket obligation in the Decree-Law is Article 13(12), “bearing the repatriation expenses of the worker to his place of recruitment” at the end of the contract.

Medical insurance

Article 13 obliges the employer to bear “the costs of the worker’s medical care in accordance with the legislation in force”. That legislation is emirate-level:

  • Dubai — Law No. 11 of 2013. Article 10: the employer must “bear the cost of enroling his employees in Health Insurance, and not charge such cost to Beneficiaries”. Article 11: the *sponsor* must enrol and pay for “the persons he sponsors where such persons are not provided with Health Insurance by an Employer” (Source 6).
  • Abu Dhabi — Law No. 23 of 2005. Article 5: the employer “shall undertake to provide health insurance coverage for all his employees/workers and their family members including an employee’s/worker’s wife and three children under 18 years of age”; the Executive Regulation adds that the employer “shall not pass on the cost … or any part thereof, to its Employees” (Source 7).
  • Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah. From 1 January 2025 employers must buy the MoHRE Basic Health Insurance package (AED 320 a year) “as a prerequisite for issuing or renewing residency permits” (Source 5).

Employee cover is a floor, not a negotiable. Family cover is the item to check: on the employer in Abu Dhabi for a spouse and three children; the sponsor’s cost elsewhere if the employer does not extend it.

Bonus structures

“Discretionary bonus at the company’s sole discretion” is not wage and does not accrue. “Performance bonus of up to X% of basic, subject to targets” is conditional; ask for the scheme document. “Guaranteed bonus of one month’s basic” is contractual; whether it counts as “wage” in a settlement turns on the contract wording, and no official guidance states a rule. Commission and profit-share are expressly inside the Article 1 definition of “wage”, which matters for notice-period pay (Article 43: “full wage for that period according to the last wage”).

Notice and probation

  • Probation — Article 9: not more than six months. The employer may end it on 14 days’ written notice; a worker moving to another UAE employer gives at least one month, and a worker leaving the country 14 days.
  • Notice after probation — Article 43: “not less than (30) thirty days and not more than (90) ninety days”, equal for both sides unless the difference favours the worker.

Our leaving-a-job page covers what these mean in practice.

The savings-scheme alternative

Article 51(8) lets the Cabinet “approve other alternative schemes for the end of service benefits scheme”. Cabinet Resolution No. 96 of 2023 created the Voluntary Alternative End-of-Service Benefits Scheme: voluntary for employers, funded by a monthly subscription “according to employees’ basic monthly salary” into a MoHRE/SCA-approved fund; workers keep gratuity accrued before joining (Source 4; rates in the Resolution text, Source 4a). If an offer mentions a “savings plan instead of gratuity”, ask which fund, the subscription rate as a percentage of basic, and whether pre-scheme gratuity is ring-fenced. DIFC and ADGM run their own funded schemes; if the employer is a free-zone entity, ask which regime applies.

Anatomy of a Saudi package

The governing text is the Labor Law issued by Royal Decree No. M/51 of 2005, as amended, most recently by Royal Decree No. M/44 of 2024 in force from 19 February 2025 (Sources 10–11).

Basic wage vs “actual wage”

Article 2 defines the basic wage as everything given to a worker for his work under the contract “in addition to periodic increments”, and the actual wage as basic plus all other due increments for effort, risk or the work itself, including commissions and allowances.

End-of-service award — Articles 84 to 86. “A half-month wage for each of the first five years and a one-month wage for each of the following years”, “calculated on the basis of the last wage” (Article 84). HRSD’s summary (Source 12) restates the base as “the basic wage in addition to all other due increases … according to the work contract”, so fixed housing and transport allowances are normally inside it. Article 86 lets the parties agree in writing to exclude only components “which are by their nature subject to increase or decrease”, such as commissions. On resignation the award is reduced: one-third after two to five years, two-thirds after five to ten, full after ten (Article 85); employer termination pays in full from day one.

GOSI

The General Organization for Social Insurance runs three branches (Sources 15–16):

Branch Applies to Rate Who pays
Annuities (pension) Saudi nationals 18% of contributory wage 9% employer, 9% contributor
Unemployment (SANED) Saudi nationals 1.5% 0.75% employer, 0.75% contributor
Occupational hazards Saudis and non-Saudis 2% Employer only

A Saudi employee sees 9.75% deducted; an expatriate sees nothing deducted (the 2% is an employer cost). GOSI’s employer FAQ defines the earnings subject to contributions as “the basic wage, and housing allowance paid in cash according to the amount agreed to between the employer and the contributor, or housing of which the contributory value is equivalent to a two-month basic salary”, between the SR 1,500 floor and SR 45,000 ceiling (Source 15).

For Saudis with no contribution record before 3 July 2024, the new Social Insurance Law raises the annuities rate 0.5 points on each side every July from 2025, to 11%/11% (GOSI awareness platform, Source 17). Existing contributors stay at 9%/9%.

Housing and transport conventions

The Labor Law sets no housing or transport allowance. Employers commonly express both as percentages of basic; the figures are practice, not law, and vary by employer. Ask whether the amounts in your offer are fixed sums or percentages of basic, because a percentage rides on every future basic increase. The allowance-by-allowance detail for Saudi offers is in our expat benefits package negotiation guide for Saudi Arabia.

Family status, iqama, levy and exit/re-entry

  • Family status: sponsoring dependants’ iqamas is an employer policy decision, not a statutory right. A monthly government fee is charged per sponsored dependant at iqama issue or renewal; the current rate is on the Absher / my.gov.sa fee schedule. Ask in writing who pays it.
  • Iqama, work permit and levy — Article 40. The employer “shall bear the fees pertaining to the recruitment of non-Saudi workers, the fees for issuing and renewing residence permit (Iqama) and work permit, and the fines resulting from their delay, as well as the fees pertaining to change of profession, exit and re-entry visas, and return tickets to the worker’s home country at the end of the relation”. Article 8 makes any contrary term void. HRSD’s schedule puts the work-licence “financial equivalent” at SAR 800 a month per foreign worker above the Saudi headcount and SAR 700 otherwise, plus a SAR 100 licence fee (Source 18); it cannot be deducted from you.
  • Exit/re-entry visas: employer-borne for the worker under Article 40; fees are on my.gov.sa (Source 19). Dependants’ exit/re-entry is usually the family’s cost unless the offer says otherwise.
  • Medical insurance: the employer must insure non-Saudi employees and their resident family members (wife, sons under 25, unmarried daughters) from the day of arrival (Council of Health Insurance, Source 13).
  • Probation — Article 53 (as amended 2024): not more than 90 days, extendable by written agreement to 180; either party may end the contract during probation without award (Article 54).
  • Notice — Article 75 (as amended, in force 19 February 2025): indefinite contract, monthly pay: 30 days from the worker, 60 days from the employer (Source 11).

What official statistics say about pay levels

The Labeeb GCC Salary Index does the benchmarking job properly. The UAE publishes no official economy-wide average wage; every “UAE average salary” you see is a commercial-survey estimate. Saudi Arabia’s SAR 5,795 a month (average wage of paid employees, Q4 2025, GASTAT via the Index; Saudis SAR 11,103, non-Saudis SAR 4,131) is an all-worker average that says almost nothing about a professional offer. Any “market rate” quoted to you comes from surveys and observed ranges, not government data; role-level ranges belong in the specialist guides the Index links.

Take-home and cost comparison

The tax position

  • UAE: “The UAE does not levy income tax on individuals” (u.ae, Source 8). VAT is 5%.
  • Saudi Arabia: ZATCA’s Income Tax page lists who is subject to income tax — resident capital companies on non-Saudi partners’ shares, and non-residents doing business through a permanent establishment or earning Saudi-source income; salaried employees are not among them (Source 9). VAT rose from 5% to 15% on 1 July 2020 (Source 9a).
  • Social insurance: UAE nationals contribute to GPSSA/ADPF; “there are no pension schemes for expatriate workers in the UAE” (u.ae, Source 8a), so an expatriate’s only payroll deduction is the ILOE premium. Saudi nationals contribute 9.75% via GOSI; expatriates in Saudi Arabia have no deduction.

A structure for comparing two offers

Fill this with your own figures; the page carries no invented numbers.

Line UAE offer Saudi offer Note
Basic wage (monthly) ___ ___ Drives UAE gratuity/ILOE/leave cash-out; Saudi GOSI base
Housing allowance ___ ___ Cash, in-kind, or % of basic?
Transport allowance ___ ___
Other fixed allowances ___ ___ Education, cost-of-living
Gross monthly ___ ___
Employee social-insurance deduction 0 (expatriate) 0 (expatriate) / 9.75% of contributory wage (Saudi)
ILOE premium AED 5 or 10 + VAT n/a UAE only
Net monthly cash ___ ___
Rent (annual ÷ 12) ___ ___ Official indices below
School fees (annual ÷ 12) ___ ___ Net of any education allowance
Family medical cover (if not employer-paid) ___ ___
Dependant fees n/a Per-dependant monthly fee × dependants (if you pay) Absher / my.gov.sa schedule
VAT on consumption 5% 15% On the taxable share of spending
Disposable after fixed costs ___ ___ The comparable number
Gratuity/EOS accrual per year (at 5 yrs) 21 days of basic half a month of last wage Exit value, not cash

The last row is the one people miss: a Saudi award on the last wage can be worth more per year of service than a UAE gratuity on a low basic, and the reverse is equally possible.

Cost-of-living components a professional household should price

Each has an official source; none has a single “average” worth quoting.

Component UAE source Saudi source
Rent Dubai Land Department Rental Index (transacted contract values by community; also governs permitted renewal increases) GASTAT CPI housing component
Schooling KHDA (Dubai) inspection ratings, published fee schedules and the School Fees Framework; ADEK for Abu Dhabi Ministry of Education licensed private/international school lists
Healthcare DHA minimum benefits (Dubai); DoH basic plan (Abu Dhabi); MoHRE Basic Health Insurance package AED 320/yr (other emirates) Council of Health Insurance unified policy
Transport RTA fares, Salik tolls, monthly published fuel prices Monthly published fuel prices, Riyadh Metro fares
General prices Dubai Statistics Centre CPI (Dubai); FCSC CPI (national) GASTAT Consumer Price Index — monthly, 582-item basket, 2023 base year

Our family-of-four page works through the five lines that decide a Dubai household budget from official sources; read it before you accept any headline “cost of living in Dubai” figure. A worked comparison of rent, schooling and transport against typical offers is in cost of living in Dubai vs salary expectations for expats.

Negotiation in practice

What is typically negotiable

  • The basic-to-allowance split. Neither law fixes a ratio. A higher basic within the same gross costs the employer a larger future gratuity/EOS and little else immediately; it is the single most valuable ask on most professional offers.
  • Allowances: housing amount and timing (annual in advance vs monthly), education cap and number of children, ticket class and count.
  • Relocation (flights, temporary accommodation, shipping): not statutory in either country.
  • Family medical cover and, in Saudi Arabia, family status and who pays dependant fees.
  • Probation and notice inside the statutory ranges. Longer notice is protection as well as constraint.

What is not negotiable

Anything the law fixes as a minimum: the gratuity/EOS formula and base, annual and sick leave, mandatory medical cover, employer social-insurance contributions, and the employer’s obligation to bear recruitment, visa, iqama and permit costs (UAE Article 6(4): the employer “is prohibited from charging the worker for the fees and costs of recruitment and employment”; Saudi Article 40). A term below the floor is void: UAE Article 65(3) — “each provision contradicting the provisions hereof … shall be deemed null and void, unless it is more beneficial to the worker”; Saudi Article 8. For the conversation itself, including what Saudi employers expect you to ask for, see how to negotiate a salary package in Saudi Arabia.

Timing and paperwork

  • UAE: a worker recruited from abroad receives a MoHRE offer letter before the work permit; the contract is based on the signed offer, a copy is stored in MoHRE’s database, and once signed the employer may not alter its provisions without both parties’ consent (u.ae, Source 8b). Negotiate before the offer letter is generated.
  • Saudi Arabia: the contract is authenticated on Qiwa, mandatorily from the start date including probation; once the employee accepts, it is approved by the Ministry (Source 14). Read the Qiwa contract line by line against the offer: the Qiwa version is the one that counts.
  • Both: keep the signed offer, the filed contract and every payslip. Our leaving-a-job page explains why the itemised settlement is where an unclear basic wage becomes expensive.

FAQ

Is housing allowance included in gratuity in the UAE?

No. Article 51 calculates gratuity on the basic wage, which the law defines as excluding allowances and benefits in-kind.

Is housing allowance included in end-of-service in Saudi Arabia?

Generally yes. Article 84 uses the last wage, which HRSD describes as basic plus all due increases under the contract; Article 86 only lets the parties exclude variable components such as commissions.

How much GOSI is deducted from salary in Saudi Arabia?

Saudi nationals: 9.75% of basic plus housing allowance (9% annuities + 0.75% SANED); the employer pays 9% + 0.75% + 2%. Expatriates: nothing deducted; the employer pays 2%. Saudis who first joined GOSI after 3 July 2024 are on a schedule rising to 11%/11%.

Does the employer have to pay my iqama and work-permit fees in Saudi Arabia?

Yes. Article 40 puts recruitment fees, iqama and work-permit issue and renewal, related fines, exit/re-entry visas and the final return ticket on the employer.

Is health insurance mandatory for employees in the UAE?

Yes, in every emirate, and employers may not pass on the premium. Abu Dhabi also obliges the employer to cover a spouse and three children under 18; elsewhere dependants are the sponsor’s responsibility unless the employer extends cover.

What does ILOE pay if I lose my job in the UAE?

60% of your average basic salary over the previous six months, capped at AED 10,000 or AED 20,000 a month by category, for up to three months per claim, after 12 consecutive months of premiums.

Is there income tax in Dubai or Saudi Arabia?

No personal income tax on salaries in either. VAT is 5% in the UAE and 15% in Saudi Arabia, which affects the cost of living rather than pay.

Related guides: the GCC career calendar lists dated rule changes and hiring seasons that affect when offers are made. How these pages are researched and checked: editorial standards.

Sources (verified-on dates)

Official — UAE

  1. Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 Regarding the Regulation of Employment Relationships, consolidated English text with amendments, MoHRE PDF — Articles 1, 6(4), 9, 13(12), 43, 51, 65(3) quoted from the full text. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.mohre.gov.ae/assets/download/e82f7872/Federal%20Decree-Law%20No.%2033%20of%202021%20Regarding%20the%20Regulation%20of%20Employment%20Relationship%20and%20its%20amendments_638990571068264034.pdf.aspx
  2. Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022, Implementing Regulation, MoHRE PDF — Article 19 quoted; full text read for ticket/ratio provisions (none). Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.mohre.gov.ae/assets/download/46bdbfda/Cabinet%20Resolution%20_Executive%20Regulations%20Decree-Law%20No.%2033.pdf.aspx
  3. ILOE official site — categories, premiums, 60% / AED 10,000 / AED 20,000 / 3 months / 12 months. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.iloe.ae/
  4. MoHRE, “Voluntary Alternative End-of-Service Benefits Scheme goes into effect by Cabinet resolution”, 1 Nov 2023. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://mohre.gov.ae/en/media-center/news/1/11/2023/voluntary-alternative-end-of-service-benefits-scheme-goes-into-effect-by-cabinet-resolution-aiming-t

4a. Cabinet Resolution No. 96 of 2023, uaelegislation.gov.ae (pointer; subscription rates are in the Resolution text, not restated here). https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/2309

  1. MoHRE, “The Basic Health Insurance Scheme” — five emirates, 1 Jan 2025, AED 320, residency prerequisite. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://mohre.gov.ae/en/guidance-and-awareness-portal-new/the-basic-health-insurance-scheme
  2. Law No. (11) of 2013 Concerning Health Insurance in the Emirate of Dubai, Dubai Legislation Portal PDF — Articles 10 and 11 quoted. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://dlp.dubai.gov.ae/Legislation%20Reference/2013/Law%20No.%20(11)%20of%202013.pdf
  3. Department of Health Abu Dhabi, Law No. 23 of 2005 Concerning Health Insurance and Executive Regulation (PDF, text extracted) — Law Article 5; Regulation Book 2, Article 6(1)–(4) quoted. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.doh.gov.ae/-/media/0BE585B5E6814D81913697DD6E644C02.ashx
  4. u.ae, Taxation — “The UAE does not levy income tax on individuals”; 5% VAT. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/finance-and-investment/taxation

8a. u.ae, Pension schemes for expatriate workers — “There are no pension schemes for expatriate workers in the UAE; however, they are entitled to end of service gratuity”. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/moving-to-the-uae/expatriates-working-in-the-uae/pension-schemes-for-expatriate-workers

8b. u.ae, “Receiving a job offer” — offer letter stored with MoHRE; contract based on signed offer; no alteration without both parties’ consent. Verified 25 Sep 2026 from the official page’s indexed text (page returned 404 to automated fetch; open in a browser before publishing). https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/jobs/expatriates-employment-in-private-sector/receiving-a-job-offer

Official — Saudi Arabia

  1. ZATCA, Income Tax — persons subject to income tax. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://zatca.gov.sa/en/Pages/IncomeTax.aspx

9a. ZATCA news, 18 June 2020 — VAT from 5% to 15% on 1 July 2020. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://zatca.gov.sa/en/MediaCenter/News/Pages/News-320.aspx

  1. HRSD, Labor Law (Royal Decree M/51, English, consolidated 2023) — Articles 2, 8, 40, 54, 84, 85, 86. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/sites/default/files/2023-02/Labor.pdf
  2. HRSD, Amendments to Labor Law Articles (Royal Decree M/44 of 2024) — Article 53 (90/180 days) and Article 75 (30/60 days) quoted from the extracted text. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/sites/default/files/2025-03/Amendments%20to%20Labor%20Law%20Articles.pdf
  3. HRSD Knowledge Centre, “End-of-service award regulations” (article 317). Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/en/knowledge-centre/articles/317
  4. Council of Health Insurance, Employer duties under the rules — non-Saudi employees and family members (wife, sons under 25, unmarried daughters) from arrival. Verified 25 Sep 2026 from the official page’s indexed text (site refused automated connections; open in a browser before publishing). https://www.chi.gov.sa/en/Insureds/Pages/Duties.aspx
  5. Qiwa, “How to authenticate contracts?” — mandatory from job start date including probation; approved by the Ministry on employee acceptance. Verified 25 Sep 2026 from the official page’s indexed text (site refused automated connections; open in a browser before publishing). https://www.qiwa.sa/en/business-owners/manage-current-employees/how-authenticate-contracts
  6. GOSI, Employer FAQ — contributory wage = basic + cash housing allowance (or two months’ basic for housing in kind); rates; SR 1,500 / SR 45,000. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.gosi.gov.sa/GOSIOnline/FAQ_Employer?locale=en_US
  7. GOSI, Contributor FAQ — 18% (9/9), 2% employer, SANED 1.5% (0.75/0.75). Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.gosi.gov.sa/GOSIOnline/FAQ_Contributor&locale=en_US
  8. GOSI awareness platform, “Contributions” (Arabic PDF) — new-law annuities schedule 9% → 9.5 → 10 → 10.5 → 11% each side, 0.5% a year from 1 July 2025. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://awareness.gosi.gov.sa/pdf/Contributions.pdf
  9. HRSD, “Financial equivalent of working licenses” (PDF) — SAR 100 licence fee; SAR 800/month (9,100/yr) above the Saudi headcount, SAR 700/month (8,400/yr) otherwise. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/sites/default/files/2021-11/07032022.pdf
  10. my.gov.sa, Issuance of exit/re-entry or final exit visa (pointer for current fees). https://my.gov.sa/en/services/269423
  11. GASTAT, Consumer Price Index page — monthly, 582 items, 2023 base. Verified 25 Sep 2026. https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/w/cpi-1
  12. GASTAT, Labour Market Statistics Q4 2025 — as cited by the Labeeb GCC Salary Index.

Official — cost of living (UAE)

  1. Dubai Land Department, Rental Index. https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/rental-index/rental-index/
  2. KHDA, School Fees Framework (PDF). https://www.khda.gov.ae/CMS/WebParts/TextEditor/Documents/FeeFramework-English.pdf

Labeeb

  1. GCC Salary Index 2026, Edition 1.1. /gcc-salary-index/
  2. What Is a Good Salary for a Family of Four in Dubai? /what-is-a-good-salary-for-a-family-of-four-in-dubai-2025-living-guide/
  3. Family Relocation Packages. /family-relocation-packages-what-uae-employers-really-offer-2026-insider-guide/
  4. Changing or leaving a job in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. /leaving-a-job-uae-saudi-arabia/
  5. End-of-service gratuity calculation in the UAE. /understanding-end-of-service-gratuity-calculation-in-the-uae-2025-update/

*Informational, not legal advice. Rules change; every rule above links the text it comes from so you can check the current version.*

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