Could you advise me about employing an au pair in the UAE? I have two daughters and would like to invite somebody from Europe to help me to look after them. Is it legal to invite au pairs to the UAE? If yes, what type of visa should they have? - SR Sharjah
There is no official au pair programme in the UAE and it is illegal to take someone on to work in your home unless they have a proper work-related visa. There are specific rules that apply if a person wishes to sponsor a maid or domestic servant. These relate to minimum salary, the sponsor not being a bachelor, age restrictions and so forth. If the person you wish to employ is of the same nationality, special dispensation is also required. In addition, under current legislation, maids and domestic staff may only come from the following countries: Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, the Philippines or Sri Lanka. This means that it is illegal to take on an au pair from Europe and you would have to either hire someone from an agency on an hourly or weekly basis, or sponsor a maid yourself, who is able to take on childcare duties.
I am American, but worked in the UK from July 2008 to October 2010. My employer contributed on a monthly basis to a pension scheme run by Scottish Widows, the insurance company. I chose to "contract out" of the government's State Second Pension because it was unlikely I would be in the UK at retirement age. This was recommended by the Scottish Widows representative when my account was set up. Each working year, I noted on my annual statement that I was receiving a lump sum from the UK government, which I understood to be the contracted-out payment. What concerns me is that I just received my 2011 pension statement as well as another of these lump-sum payments (even though I did not work or reside in the UK in 2011). This doesn't seem right. I have learnt that the contract-out programme has been discontinued. Therefore, I assume I will not receive any more of these payments in the future. However, do I need to worry about owing the UK government money that it should not have given me? I would also like to consolidate my finances and transfer my pension fund out of the UK and to the US. Is it possible to transfer a UK pension fund into a US Individual Retirement Arrangement or equivalent and, therefore, avoid any tax penalties in the UK or income-tax obligations in the US? - JP Abu Dhabi
If you are contracted out of the State Second Pension (an option to have part of your National Insurance contributions redirected to a personal pension), then the start date is usually the start of the tax year, when you put in the application. Even if you did not apply until, say, January, your start date will be April 6 in the previous year. This means the redirected payment is made in arrears, so it is entirely possible that a payment received for the 2010-2011 tax year relates to 2009-2010. Payments relate to PAYE (Pay As You Earn) earnings, which are taxed at source, so cannot be made in error. You need not be concerned about any overpayment and no further payments should be made. The scheme has not been discontinued, but is perhaps not as valuable as it once was. Unlike the European Union, the US doesn't recognise pensions from other countries in terms of being able to transfer them to a US pension. Taking income from a UK pension and paying UK taxes on it can be taken as a credit on your US taxes, but you cannot draw on a UK pension until age 55. Alternatively, and depending on where you are living at the time, you could ask the UK pension provider to pay it gross of tax and then pay tax on the US side.
I am British and have recently divorced. I would like to know if my will is still valid. I am planning to remarry next year, but am concerned that my ex-wife would receive my assets if I should die. We didn't have any children, but I have a few assets. - TL Dubai
If your marriage is ended by a court order, like a divorce or annulment, your will does not become void or invalid. What happens is that any gift to your former spouse takes effect as if she had died on the date your decree became absolute (the date the divorce is finalised). This usually means that the gift falls back into residue for the residual beneficiaries. If you had left everything to her, then the effect is as if you had died intestate, that is, without a will. Similarly, if you had appointed your ex-wife as an executor or trustee, the will still takes effect as if she had died on the day the divorce became final. It is best to make a new will immediately after a divorce, but you should be aware that under English law, a will is invalidated by marriage. However, this is not necessarily the case under Scottish law.
Keren Bobker is an independent financial adviser with Holborn Assets in Dubai. Contact her at keren@holbornassets.com or onyourside@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Global institutions: BlackRock and KKR
US-based BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with $5.98 trillion of assets under management as of the end of last year. The New York firm run by Larry Fink provides investment management services to institutional clients and retail investors including governments, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, banks and charitable foundations around the world, through a variety of investment vehicles.
KKR & Co, or Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, is a global private equity and investment firm with around $195 billion of assets as of the end of last year. The New York-based firm, founded by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, invests in multiple alternative asset classes through direct or fund-to-fund investments with a particular focus on infrastructure, technology, healthcare, real estate and energy.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Visa changes give families fresh hope
Foreign workers can sponsor family members based solely on their income
Male residents employed in the UAE can sponsor immediate family members, such as wife and children, subject to conditions that include a minimum salary of Dh 4,000 or Dh 3,000 plus accommodation.
Attested original marriage certificate, birth certificate of the child, ejari or rental contract, labour contract, salary certificate must be submitted to the government authorised typing centre to complete the sponsorship process
In Abu Dhabi, a woman can sponsor her husband and children if she holds a residence permit stating she is an engineer, teacher, doctor, nurse or any profession related to the medical sector and her monthly salary is at least Dh 10,000 or Dh 8,000 plus accommodation.
In Dubai, if a woman is not employed in the above categories she can get approval to sponsor her family if her monthly salary is more than Dh 10,000 and with a special permission from the Department of Naturalization and Residency Dubai.
To sponsor parents, a worker should earn Dh20,000 or Dh19,000 a month, plus a two-bedroom accommodation
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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MATCH INFO
RB Leipzig 2 (Klostermann 24', Schick 68')
Hertha Berlin 2 (Grujic 9', Piatek 82' pen)
Man of the match Matheus Cunha (Hertha Berlin
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Frida%20
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Challenge Cup result:
1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults
Red Joan
Director: Trevor Nunn
Starring: Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson, Tereza Srbova
Rating: 3/5 stars
'The Ice Road'
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh
Stars: Liam Neeson, Amber Midthunder, Laurence Fishburne
2/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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FIGHT CARD
Bantamweight Hamza Bougamza (MAR) v Jalal Al Daaja (JOR)
Catchweight 67kg Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) v Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lighweight Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) v Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg Mostafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) v Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
Middleweight Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) v Badreddine Diani (MAR)
Catchweight 78kg Rashed Dawood (UAE) v Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight Sallaheddine Dekhissi (MAR) v Abdel Emam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg Rachid Hazoume (MAR) v Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG)
Lighweight Mohammed Yahya (UAE) v Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg Omar Hussein (PAL) v Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
Middleweight Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Godzilla%20x%20Kong%3A%20The%20New%20Empire
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