What are Housing Fees and Getting a home landline/ internet Service

Getting anything done in the UAE- simple things like a home telephone or connecting your lights and water-require more time and energy than elsewhere so be prepared for this. Also, as I have said before, always have passport pictures and copies of your visa and passport, because you never know when you will need it.

Let’s start with the housing fees- this is a Dubai fee.

As I understand it from conversations with officials, housing fees are a sort of tax, paid every month to the municipality for the upkeep of the area you are in. It is about 5 percent of your annual rent divided into 12 months and tagged onto your DEWA bill.

You can register for it online on the municipality website, after registering for DEWA. For advice on registering for DEWA, visit a previous page of mine at http://uaeasy.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/getting-dewa-adwea-sewa-fewa-water-and.html

If you have any questions, the Municipality call centre people are mostly helpful and knowledgeable on 800 900 or visit this link https://portal.dm.gov.ae/SCWebUI/DataDetails.aspx?servicecode=4113&id=2188&parentid=0&name=SER485&DeptId=32

Getting a DU/Etisalat account is relatively easy but time consuming. You have to be 21 and over to get an account; the documents you will need, along with your credit card:

UAE nationals and GCC residents:

• ·      passport or national ID plus copies
• ·      tenancy contract or proof of property ownership plus copies

Expats:

• ·      passport or national ID plus copies
• ·      Copies of Visa page
• ·      tenancy contract or proof of property ownership plus copies

Companies:

• ·      Visa and Passport and copies of business owner or sponsor
• ·      Copy of valid Trade License
• ·      Power of Attorney

If I may offer some advice, Du has notoriously bad customer service, even the people who control their twitter account do not give timely responses. Etisalat (@EtisalatUAE) on the other hand, may take a while solving issues, but they are constantly accessible on twitter and on the phone, with knowledgeable customer service representatives who you don’t want to violently shake some sense into. So, if you’re someone that likes a challenge, go for Du. If you want an easier life, choose Etisalat.

There is one issue, it may not be possible for everyone to choose the provider you wish- it just depends on the area you are in. In the spirit of true competition between Du and Etisalat, the parts of the UAE that they serve are divided more or less equally between them. This is changing and there are few areas which give the customer the choice to decide on whether they want Du or Etisalat. But I have only heard these amazing places exist and can offer no more information.