French national Sandra Pavlowsky had lived in London for 12 years and her French-Italian husband Alexandre Darre for 18 years before they moved to Dubai to “try something new” in 2012. Like many expats, they planned to stay in the UAE for five to six years before returning to the UK for their daughter Sasha, now 14, to finish her schooling there.
Then the Brexit referendum in June 2016 — when a majority voted to leave the European Union — changed everything for them. As EU nationals, the uncertainty of how the laws will be amended in terms of visas and doing business in the UK has led Ms Pavlowsky and Mr Darre, both 48, to postpone their plans.
“Our daughter is more likely to start GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) in Dubai, rather than being back in the UK as we planned, because we still don’t know — and nobody knows,” says Ms Pavlowsky, the founder and managing director of a financial consultancy company.
Brexit has not only been a factor in the plans of European expats living in the UAE, but also British expats. Some have chosen to stay longer to benefit from higher savings with the favourable dirham to pound exchange rate. Others returning to the UK will see their savings go further, but face an uncertain future when considering buying property there.
In the case of Ms Pavlowsky and Mr Darre, who is a hedge fund manager, working in the financial sector poses particular challenges. Distributing asset management products in Europe while based in the UK may not be feasible if the country is “not part of the European financial world any more,” says Ms Pavlowsky.
“Brexit is putting on the table the big question mark. You can see that a lot of financial institutions already left London to go either to Europe or Asia,” she adds.
In addition, it is unclear how they would be affected by any changes in taxation, residency and visa laws.
“You cannot plan your life when you have no insight into what the law is going to be for you,” Ms Pavlowsky says. “It’s OK if you’re single and 20, if you’re retired … but we have a daughter, we have school, we have a business. The risk is too high.”
Tom Sindall, a corporate security manager, and his wife, Anna, a schoolteacher, also moved to Dubai pre-Brexit in 2015. The plan was to stay for a “definite two years,” but they have since decided to stay longer after the Brexit vote resulted in a drop in the pound’s value.
“It benefited us because earning in a different currency has meant a better exchange rate, so it’s essentially a pay raise for the same job,” says Mr Sindall, 36. “We’re staying here because we’re in a different position now.”
In 2010, the Sindalls had bought a property in their home town of Southampton and another one in Pourtsmouth nearby. After Brexit, as house prices dropped, they decided to purchase a “cheap property” in 2018 in Accrington, north of Manchester. All three properties are being rented out with the intention to save up for the future and eventually put money into purchasing a long-term family home when they do return.
“It doesn’t really matter if the house prices drop because they’re all long-term investments anyway,” says Mr Sindall.
With a 15-month-old daughter and another child on the way, they have chosen the financial security of having stable jobs and medical care, along with the ability to save more. “Financially, having children, we are better off here,” Mr Sindall explains.
Mandy Summers, 59, and her husband Colin, 63, are returning to the UK in June after 31 years of living in Dubai.
“We are reaching retirement age and it’s also a good time in the girls' education for us to move,” says Ms Summers, who has a a 16-year-old who will have two years left in secondary education and a 17-year-old already in boarding school in the UK.
Ms Summers is working as a speech and language therapist, while her husband is already retired. Investing in property in the UAE, including the purchase of three houses in Arabian Ranches throughout the years, has also helped them earn money. They owned their latest property for 12 years and although real estate values have declined in Dubai, the lower pound to dirham exchange rate means transferring their savings to pounds has been advantageous.
“When we sold our house here, we got far more pounds for our dirhams,” says Ms Summers.
As for purchasing property in the UK, they are taking a wait-and-see approach for now as the March 29 deadline to leave the EU looms.
“We’re waiting to buy,” Ms Summers says. “We’ll possibly see more reductions — really depending on which way Brexit goes and whether there are more properties coming on to the market — people are definitely waiting to see what happens.”
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
A little about CVRL
Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.
One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases.
The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.
OPENING FIXTURES
Saturday September 12
Crystal Palace v Southampton
Fulham v Arsenal
Liverpool v Leeds United
Tottenham v Everton
West Brom v Leicester
West Ham v Newcastle
Monday September 14
Brighton v Chelsea
Sheffield United v Wolves
To be rescheduled
Burnley v Manchester United
Manchester City v Aston Villa
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 285bhp
Torque: 353Nm
Price: TBA
On sale: Q2, 2020
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
