SPECIALISTS IN RAK REAL ESTATE
MOVING TO RAK
Moving to Ras Al Khaimah
Moving here comes down to a visa, an Emirates ID, a home and a few accounts, roughly in that order. Here is each step, what it costs and where to check it, from the authority that sets it, with a section on bringing a pet.
Karolina Dean, Managing Director & Co-Founder
Updated 13 October 2026
Karolina and a friend in the sea at sunset, shot by Giles on his iPhone
01
VISAS
Six ways to live here
To live in the UAE you need a residence visa. Most people get one in one of these six ways. Visiting first is easy: UK passport holders get a free visa on arrival, for up to 90 days in any 180.
UK Foreign Office travel advice, 24 Jul 2026
ROUTE
WHAT YOU NEED
WHERE TO APPLY
A job
A job offer. Your employer applies and pays. The visa runs for two years and can be renewed.
u.ae, 7 Aug 2026
Property
Property worth AED 2m or more, one home or several added together. You apply from inside the UAE, and the authorities decide. It may bring the 10-year Golden Visa.
ICP, 10 Sep 2026
Your own company
A company licence. RAKEZ, the RAK free zone, sets one up from AED 6,000; each shareholder’s investor visa is then AED 4,620, or AED 3,800 for the fast service, before VAT.
RAKEZ, read 13 Oct 2026
Freelancing
A RAKEZ freelancer permit, from AED 6,100: one person, one activity, no staff. It makes you eligible for a residence visa.
RAKEZ, 30 Dec 2025
Family
A sponsor living here, earning AED 4,000 a month, or AED 3,000 with housing. They can sponsor a husband or wife, sons under 25, unmarried daughters and children with special needs.
u.ae, 28 Sep 2026
Retiring or working remotely
Retiring: aged 55 or over with 15 years of work, plus AED 1m in property and AED 1m in savings, or AED 180,000 a year in income; the visa runs five years. Remote work for a company abroad: a salary of USD 3,500 a month; the visa runs one year.
u.ae, 28 Jul and 7 Aug 2026
Visa rules change. Check the current terms with the issuing authority before you plan around them. We are not immigration advisers.
SETTING UP
Setting up, in order
Each step needs the one before it. Most are done online with UAE PASS, the national digital ID app, which you set up once you have your Emirates ID.
1
Residence visa
Your sponsor applies. You take a medical test here, and the visa is issued once you pass. RAKEZ runs a medical fitness centre in Al Hamra, open to anyone, with results in 24 hours.
EHS; RAKEZ; ICP, read 13 Oct 2026
WHERE TO DO IT
Book the medical test: Emirates Health Services →
The RAKEZ medical centre in Al Hamra →
2
Emirates ID
Every resident must have one, and almost everything else needs it. You apply with the visa and give your fingerprints at an ICP centre. RAK has two, in Al Mamourah and Al Dhait.
ICP, 9 Mar 2026; UAE Government portal, 17 Feb 2026
3
A phone number
Visitors can buy a SIM at the airport with a passport and visa. A resident line needs your Emirates ID. The two networks are e& and du.
UAE Government portal, 27 Aug 2026
4
A bank account
Banks ask for your Emirates ID, your visa and, if you are employed, a salary certificate. RAKBANK opens a current account within two working days.
Emirates Islamic, read 13 Oct 2026; RAKBANK, Aug 2026
5
A home
Your tenancy is registered with RAK Municipality on RAK Digital: AED 50, plus 5% of a year’s rent (at least AED 200) on your Etihad WE bills. Rents are usually paid in four cheques.
RAK Municipality, read 13 Oct 2026
6
Electricity and water
Etihad WE supplies RAK. Apply online with your Emirates ID and the registered tenancy contract: free online, AED 50 at a service centre, and on within 24 hours of any deposit.
Etihad WE, read 13 Oct 2026
7
A driving licence
You can drive on a UK photocard licence until your residence visa is issued. Then you swap it for a UAE licence, without a test if it is from the UK, most of Europe, the US, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. You need your Emirates ID, an eye test and a translation of your licence.
UK Foreign Office, 24 Jul 2026; UAE Ministry of Interior
8
Health insurance
Employers in RAK must insure their staff, on plans from AED 320 a year, and you need cover to get or renew a visa. Your family can join the same plan at the same prices.
UAE Ministry of Human Resources, 16 Dec 2024; UAE Government portal, 8 Sep 2026
Numbers to keep
999
Police
998
Ambulance
997
Fire
991
Power cut
800 3392
Etihad WE
UAE Government portal; Etihad WE, read 13 Oct 2026
WHERE TO LIVE
Where people live
Most people moving here from abroad live in the three established coastal communities. Two new districts have no finished homes yet.
A new business district beside the Al Hamra golf course. First homes due late in 2027.
Studios rent from about AED 28,000 a year, two-bedroom apartments from AED 65,000 and three-bedroom villas from AED 120,000.
Property Finder, 30 Sep 2026
Schools
RAK has 21 private schools that teach a foreign curriculum: British, IB, American, SABIS, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Filipino. Tuition runs from about AED 3,000 to AED 72,500 a year. British, American and IB schools start their year in late August; Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi schools in April.
RAK Department of Knowledge and the schools’ own fee lists, 13 Oct 2026
EVERY SCHOOL SIDE BY SIDE, WITH FEES, RATINGS AND DRIVE TIMES: SCHOOLS GUIDE →
21
schools teaching a foreign curriculum
AED 3,000 to 72,500
a year in tuition, lowest to highest
WHAT IT COSTS
What it costs to live here
The big costs are rent, school fees and a car. These are the prices as published, with their dates. There is no income tax.
COST
PRICE
SOURCE
Rent
From AED 28,000 a year for a studio, AED 65,000 for a two-bedroom apartment, AED 120,000 for a three-bedroom villa
School fees
AED 3,000 to 72,500 a year in tuition, plus books, uniform and the bus
Electricity
23 fils a kWh for the first 2,000 kWh a month, rising to 38 fils above 6,000 kWh, plus a 5 fils charge on each kWh
Water
AED 7.70 a cubic metre for the first 27 each month, then AED 8.80, then AED 10.12
Petrol
AED 4.28 a litre for Special 95 in October 2026; set every month
Home internet
From AED 159 a month (du, wireless) or AED 229 a month (e&)
Health insurance
From AED 320 a year, the basic plan employers must buy for their staff
Tax
No income tax on individuals. VAT is 5%
Food: no official price list exists for RAK. Numbeo’s figures, gathered from 18 people, put a litre of milk at AED 6.12, a dozen eggs at AED 8.65 and a cappuccino at AED 20.56 (Numbeo, 2 Oct 2026).
Dubai’s Salik road tolls are charged only at gates in Dubai: AED 4 to 6 a time.
Gulf News, 7 Oct 2026
GETTING ABOUT
Getting about, and getting away
Most people here drive. Dubai International Airport is under an hour away.
Dubai International Airport
52 min
By car from Al Hamra Village, by the fastest route in usual traffic. 291 destinations in 110 countries, and two-thirds of the world’s population within 8 hours by air.
Google Maps, 13 Oct 2026; Dubai Airports, 11 Feb 2026 and fact file
RAK International Airport
28 min
By car from Al Hamra Village. Flights to the Gulf, India, Pakistan, Egypt and Eastern Europe; none to the UK.
Property Finder, Oct 2026; Skift, 4 Feb 2026
Dubai by bus
AED 27
RAK Transport Authority buses to Dubai’s Union bus station, from 5am to 9pm. Buses also go to Sharjah, Ajman and Abu Dhabi.
RAK Transport Authority, read 13 Oct 2026
Taxis
AED 1.83
A kilometre, after AED 4 to start (AED 5 at night). Book with RAKTA’s Sayr app, Uber or Careem.
RAK Transport Authority, 27 Apr 2026
By train
Not yet
Etihad Rail runs between Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Al Dhaid and Fujairah. RAK has no station yet, and no date for one.
Gulf News, 1 Oct 2026
Road works on the E11
The E11 from Al Hamra Roundabout to the E311 is being widened to four lanes each way, with new bridges and tunnels at Dolphin Junction and Mina Al Arab. Lanes are closed and traffic is diverted while the work goes on, with no end date announced. From Al Hamra Village, Al Marjan Island and Mina Al Arab, drives can take much longer than usual.
RAK Department of Public Services, reported by Khaleej Times, 26 Aug 2025, and The National, 28 Aug 2025
BRINGING A PET
We brought Picu from London
We brought our dog Picu from London ourselves. From the UK it is mostly paperwork, done in the right order. These are the steps for a dog or a cat.
The rules to know
Pets from the UK need no rabies blood test: the UK is on the UAE’s low-risk list. Your pet must be at least 15 weeks old when it leaves.
Each person can bring two pets a year.
Some dog breeds are banned, including crosses: Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American Bully, Fila Brasileiro, Dogo Argentino, Tibetan Mastiff, Neapolitan Mastiff, Dogue de Bordeaux, Boerboel, Bullmastiff, Cane Corso, Bully Kutta, Presa Canario and Japanese Tosa.
MOCCAE, read 13 Oct 2026; UK export health certificate 3926, Jun 2025
Photo: Picu, our dog
FIRST
Microchip
Before, or at the same time as, the rabies jab. The number must match the one on the health certificate.
21 DAYS OR MORE BEFORE
Rabies jab
At 12 weeks or older. Dogs also need distemper, parvovirus, hepatitis and leptospirosis; cats need panleukopenia, rhinotracheitis and calicivirus.
UP TO 90 DAYS BEFORE
Import permit
From the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), online: AED 200 for each pet, usually issued in one working day, valid for 90 days.
14 DAYS BEFORE
Parasite treatment
Against worms and fleas or ticks, given by your vet and recorded on the certificate.
24 HOURS BEFORE
Health certificate
An official vet checks your pet and signs UK export health certificate 3926, which is valid for 10 days.
ON ARRIVAL
Release
Emirates flies pets into Dubai as cargo; Etihad takes small pets in the cabin to Abu Dhabi. A vet checks the papers and releases your pet: AED 500 for a dog, AED 250 for a cat. There is no quarantine period.
MOCCAE, read 13 Oct 2026; UK APHA, 6 May 2026; Etihad, read 13 Oct 2026
The UK health certificate: GOV.UK →
Living here with a dog
Al Hamra Village and Mina Al Arab are known as dog-friendly communities, with paths and open space, but each building sets its own rules: ask before you sign. Dogs must be kept on a lead in public.
dubizzle, 22 Sep 2026; UAE Government portal, 27 Oct 2025
The Ras Al Khaimah Animal Welfare Centre
Karolina volunteers there every week. The centre, in Al Jazirah Al Hamra, is funded by the RAK government. Its vet clinic is open to all owners, microchipping costs AED 73, and it rehomes over 500 animals a year. Opening hours differ across its pages, so call before you go: 07 243 3184.
Ras Al Khaimah Animal Welfare Centre, read 13 Oct 2026
MEETING PEOPLE
Meeting people
Facebook groups are where people in RAK ask each other for advice, from plumbers to schools. These are the largest active ones. Facebook groups are online discussion boards that anyone with a Facebook account can join.
Member counts as shown on Facebook, 13 Oct 2026
Volunteering is another way in: the Animal Welfare Centre takes volunteers from age 16.
QUESTIONS
Questions people ask before they move
How do I get from Ras Al Khaimah to Dubai?
Most people drive: about an hour from the coastal communities, longer at rush hour. Dubai International Airport is 52 minutes from Al Hamra Village in usual traffic. RAK Transport Authority buses run to Dubai’s Union bus station from 5am to 9pm, for AED 27. Taxis, Uber and Careem also make the trip.
Which airlines fly to Ras Al Khaimah airport?
Air Arabia, Air India Express and IndiGo, to the Gulf, India, Pakistan, Egypt and Eastern Europe. There are no flights to the UK, so most people from the UK fly into Dubai, about an hour away by car.
Can I bring my dog to Ras Al Khaimah?
Yes. From the UK your dog needs a microchip, a rabies jab more than 21 days before travel, a UAE import permit (AED 200) and a UK export health certificate. There is no quarantine period, and no blood test for UK pets. Some breeds are banned.
How do I get an Emirates ID?
You apply as part of your residence visa: after the medical test, you give your fingerprints and photo at an ICP centre. Every UAE resident must have one, and you need it for a phone line, a bank account, a tenancy and utilities.
Can I get a freelance visa in Ras Al Khaimah?
Yes. RAKEZ, the RAK free zone, offers a freelancer permit from AED 6,100. It covers one person in one activity, with no staff, and makes you eligible for a UAE residence visa.
Can I drive in the UAE on my UK licence?
Yes, on a UK photocard licence, until your residence visa is issued. Then you swap it for a UAE licence without a test, with your Emirates ID, an eye test and a translation of your licence.
RAK Transport Authority; Google Maps; Skift, Feb 2026; MOCCAE; UAE Government portal; RAKEZ; UK Foreign Office; UAE Ministry of Interior. All read 13 Oct 2026
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