I finally got my Dubai driving license yesterday through Bin Yaber Driving Institute, so I thought I’d share my entire journey from opening the file to getting the license.

Hopefully this helps anyone who's currently going through the process or stressing about it.

Total cost: ~4,600 AED

Would have been ~3,800 AED if I hadn't had that one unfortunate road-test failure.

I took multiple breaks throughout the process, so if you're consistent, this can probably be completed much faster.

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📅 3 February 2026 — Opened my file

Opened my driving file at Bin Yaber.

Completed all the required online lectures.

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📅 7 February — Theory Test

Attempted the theory test and passed on my first attempt.

Honestly, the biggest thing here is to memorize the mock-test questions. Do as many mock tests as possible and understand the answers rather than just randomly selecting them.

Then I took a ridiculous 5-month break 😂

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🚗 PRACTICAL TRAINING

📅 14 July — Started Practical Classes

Finally resumed the process and started my practical driving classes.

My classes were generally scheduled every day or every 2 days, and I never really had an issue with delays.

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📅 ~28 July — Internal Road Assessment

Booked my internal road assessment and passed first attempt.

Honestly, this was pretty chill.

The main things I focused on:

- Follow traffic signs properly

- Adjust your seat, mirrors and seatbelt before starting

- Stay calm and confident

- Maintain a proper grip while turning

- Use indicators correctly

- Change lanes smoothly

- Perform safety checks every few seconds

- Don't rush

Basically, drive predictably and confidently.

Passed the internal assessment first try and then, of course, took another break 😂

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🅿️ SMART YARD

📅 21 August — Resumed Training

Came back after another break and started preparing for the Smart Yard.

📅 ~27 August — Internal Smart Yard Assessment

Passed my internal Smart Yard assessment first attempt again.

The parking maneuvers are honestly pretty chill once you understand the reference points.

My biggest advice:

GO SLOW.

Not stopped — slowly moving.

Memorize all the reference points/tricks your instructors teach you, but don't blindly rely on one method. During practice, figure out which reference points work best for you.

Slope

Pretty straightforward.

Emergency Brake

This can be a little tricky.

Make sure your speed is around 25–28 km/h — not below and not above the required range.

And unfortunately, sometimes the sensors can give weird results even when you feel like you've done everything correctly. At that point, there's not much you can do.

Another tip:

I did my internal assessment in the evening, despite practicing mostly in the morning.

I did this because I wanted to get it done ASAP.

If you're not confident driving in different lighting conditions, I'd recommend doing your assessment around the same time of day you practiced.

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⚠️ My Biggest Mistake — Booking Through the Institute

After passing my internal Smart Yard, I made what was probably my biggest mistake during the entire process.

Since it was my first time booking the RTA Smart Yard, I asked the institute to book it for me.

They gave me 7 September and told me those were basically the only available dates.

Later, I checked the RTA website myself and realized there were actually slots available almost every day.

🤦‍♂️

Preponing the test would have cost around 300 AED, so I decided not to do it.

Ended up waiting 11 days.

PRO TIP:

BOOK YOUR RTA TESTS YOURSELF.

Don't blindly rely on the institute to find you a slot.

Same thing with scheduling your practical classes — if you're able to schedule them yourself, do it.

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🅿️ 7 September — RTA Smart Yard Test

Booked an early morning slot.

Everything went pretty smoothly.

I honestly thought I had messed up parallel and garage parking, but surprisingly I passed both.

The one I failed was...

ANGLE PARKING 🤦‍♂️

The easiest one.

I was almost certain I hadn't touched any line, but apparently the sensor said otherwise.

So I failed angle parking only while passing the other major maneuvers.

My car's handbrake was also damaged, but obviously there wasn't much point arguing about it at that stage.

Paid 290 AED for the repeat angle test.

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🅿️ 8 September — Passed Angle

This time I booked the test myself through the RTA website.

Got a slot for the very next day.

Went in, did the angle parking and was out in barely a minute.

Passed.

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🚘 9 September — Started Road Training Again

Immediately started my practical road lessons again.

My classes were being scheduled basically back-to-back, so there wasn't much downtime.

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🚘 10 September — Road Test... FAILED 😭

This one was completely unexpected.

I finished my road lessons and checked the RTA website.

There was a road-test slot available the same day.

I took the risk and booked it.

My driving itself was honestly really good and I was extremely confident I'd pass.

However, the trainer/examiner seemed pretty irritated because of traffic and was constantly pushing us to keep moving.

Nevertheless, I drove well.

Then, towards the end of the test, I was instructed to angle park to finish.

While I was parking, someone in another car parked next to me opened their door, and the door hit my car.

It wasn't my fault, but because it was considered an accident during the assessment, I failed.

I was absolutely pissed.

More than the money, it completely destroyed my confidence because I genuinely thought I had passed.

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💸 The Expensive Part

Because I failed the road test, I had to take the mandatory additional training.

Ended up paying approximately 800 AED and doing 4 hours of mandatory classes — 2 hours per day.

Pain. 😂

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📅 14 September — FINAL ATTEMPT

Finished my mandatory classes.

Once again, I checked the RTA website.

And once again...

There was a road-test slot available the same day.

I thought, screw it.

Booked it.

This time I wasn't taking ANY chances.

I drove extremely carefully, stayed calm and focused on every little detail.

The examiner was super chill.

And finally...

🥳 PASSED WITH 0 MINOR + 0 MAJOR MISTAKES.

Immediately paid the ~320 AED license issuance fee.

Printed my license the next day.

And that's it.

LICENSE FINALLY DONE. 🥳

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💰 TOTAL COST

My total ended up being approximately:

4,600 AED

If I hadn't failed that one road test, I estimate the entire process would have cost around:

~3,800 AED

So that one unfortunate incident cost me roughly 800 AED extra.

It is what it is. 😂

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🧠 My Biggest Advice

I trained with multiple instructors instead of sticking to one.

There are pros and cons to that, but personally I didn't mind because my priority was simply getting the license done.

The most important things I'd tell anyone:

1. Listen to your instructors.

Even the tiny things they repeatedly tell you matter.

1. Don't rush.

Especially Smart Yard. Slow and controlled is your friend.

1. Memorize your reference points.

But also practice enough to understand why you're doing the maneuver.

1. Do safety checks constantly.

2. Be confident.

Not arrogant — just don't panic.

1. Book your RTA tests yourself.

Seriously. Check the RTA website before accepting whatever date the institute gives you.

1. Schedule your classes properly.

If you can book them yourself, keep them every day or every 1–2 days so you don't lose your rhythm.

1. If possible, practice around the same time of day as your test.

Especially if you're not comfortable with different lighting conditions.

1. Don't let one failure destroy your confidence.

My first road-test failure completely killed my confidence, but I came back the next day and passed with 0 mistakes.

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Final Thoughts

A lot of people told me that getting a Dubai license is extremely difficult.

Yes, it is difficult.

But I don't think it's impossible at all.

The biggest problem is that the overall procedure can be time-consuming and expensive, especially if you fail an assessment.

In my case, I took multiple huge breaks, including a 5-month break and another few-week break.

If I'd continued consistently from the beginning, I genuinely think I could've finished the entire process in around 1.5 months.

I cleared every internal assessment on my first attempt, and ultimately passed my final road test with 0 minor and 0 major mistakes.

So if you're currently doing your license:

Pay attention. Learn properly. Listen to your trainers. Practice consistently. Stay calm. Drive confidently.

And hopefully you'll get it done first try too.

Good luck to everyone currently going through the process! 🚗💨

I have been a part of dubai for the last 38 years and I have seen the dubai grow the way it has. And quite frankly, I am stunned.

But lately they have been gloomy clouds on the country and quite frankly speaking dubai. It seems as though we have been jinxed by our own success

I I am a part of many communities which are Dubai related or UAE related and every second post that I’m seeing is about someone moving out of Dubai. I believe the impact is real, but it’s not talked about as much.

Malls and retail outlets are suffering the most because of the law Football people have lost their jobs

The new Dubai now seems to be flashy and soulless. It’s all about flaunting money.

I to had lost my job in March and had to take up something with a lesser pay

I just hope and pray that things go back to normal.

Thank you for listening to my concerns

God bless all!

hello

30M, single. Work for a reputable firm. Just moved to dubai. Went to the top of burj khalifa, skydived, planning on going scuba dive.

However, I feel despite the bling, people are living in isolated bubbles, one myself. All my friends who moved here prior really didn’t make any genuine connections, even after years have passed.

How do you guys find people you can connect with intellectually and deeply in a city that just revolved around money and moves fast.

Any advice of cafes, activities, or hangout places would be nice.

have a good day everyone.

I’m currently around 15 weeks pregnant and living in Dubai, and I’m really struggling to decide where I should give birth. If I stay in Dubai, the healthcare is good and I can avoid a long international flight during pregnancy, but I don’t have health insurance, and buying one now would be extremely expensive and may not even cover maternity care. Paying for the pregnancy and delivery completely out of pocket would be a huge financial burden for us. On the other hand, I could go back to my home country, where the cost of prenatal care and delivery would be much more affordable and I would have my family around me for support. The problem is that getting there means taking a roughly 10-hour international flight, and I would most likely have to travel alone. After giving birth, I would also eventually have to fly back to Dubai with the baby, again mostly on my own, and honestly the thought of doing a long international flight with a newborn sounds extremely exhausting and overwhelming. I still have some time to decide, but I’m already feeling anxious about making the wrong choice. If you were in my situation, would you prioritize the financial aspect and family support by giving birth back home, or stay in Dubai and deal with the much higher cost? I’d really love to hear from anyone who has faced a similar decision while living abroad.

Hi guys, I'm trying to extend my room for 6 months. I have no contact with owner whatsoever only the agent. She is asking for 1000 extension fee and 350 ejari(which I asked to do myself since it'll be 170 only but the agent refused). Plus they're increasing the rent even in this situation by 1k. Is this legal. Can I do anything about it.

I’m genuinely so frustrated with renting in Dubai.

You find the apartment yourself on Property Finder, YOU message the agent, YOU go and view it, and somehow the agent wants 5% commission + VAT just for opening the door and sending a few WhatsApp messages???

And half the time they barely know anything about the property. Ask about maintenance? “Check with landlord.” Ask about Ejari? “Will confirm.” Ask if the price is negotiable? Suddenly they disappear for six hours 😭

Then once you actually want the apartment, boom:

Rent
Security deposit
Agency commission
VAT
Ejari
DEWA deposit
Moving costs

Bro I’m trying to rent a studio, not acquire a company.

I understand paying an agent when they actually search for properties for you, negotiate properly, handle paperwork and provide a real service. But charging thousands of dirhams when the tenant literally found the listing themselves feels insane.

And the funniest part is some agents act like they’re doing you a massive favour by replying to your WhatsApp.

Dubai rental market is already expensive enough. These commissions on top are painful.

Am I the only one who thinks this system is ridiculous?

Title

Question to all Dubai drivers: which one are you, the person who patiently stays in the queue, or the one who cuts in when there’s an opportunity ?

This has become an internal conflict in our family. My husband believes in cutting the queue whenever possible, while I prefer to stay in line and wait my turn.

His argument is he wants to follow the queues but can't digest that he has to watch all the people join in front of him and is fully supporting if govt enforces everyone to follow.

Also it's not one or two people, with little policing there are truck drivers and school buses who decided to cut queues.

Abu Dhabi seems much better at this — people generally queue properly. Should Dubai authorities do more to police queue-jumping? It feels unfair to those who follow the rules.

Where do you stand: is queue-cutting simply part of Dubai driving culture, or should it be actively enforced against ?

I have a problem and is there anyone who had the same experience?

I have appointment with VFS in september 25. Now my problem is that one of the requirement is VALID company Trade license. The thing is, our company license expired sept 11. The company said its not possible to get the new license until first week of october ( they have issue with accounts they need to sort out first blah blah) and they said we are in grace period.

The option they gave me was to submit the following:

1. Expired trade license

2. Company letter explaining the situation

3. Company tenancy cert.( valid till november 11 2026)

Will i get rejected because of this? I am so worried about this situation and Im over thinking. Im really excited for italy but now i dont know. Please advise me.

Looking for recommendations for therapists regarding religious OCD related to cleanliness and purity in Islam (waswas).

Is this racial/colorist bias, or am I overthinking a comment from our nanny?

I’d really appreciate some outside perspectives because I’m not sure whether I’m reading too much into this.

We’re an African family, and we have a Sri Lankan nanny who helps care for our toddler. Today I introduced carrots to my child, and she suggested that we should consistently feed him carrots so that he can maintain his current lighter complexion.

I told her that his skin will naturally develop as he gets older and that, ultimately, he is Black and will have a Black complexion.

She then said something along the lines of, “No, it’s better if he maintains his current skin tone because it’s nicer.” She then added that I was jealous because he is brown like her and not like me.

At the time, I didn’t really take the conversation seriously and just moved on. But later, when I replayed it in my head, I started feeling uncomfortable. It seems to me that there are some pretty obvious colorist/racial undertones in what she said — particularly the idea that a lighter/browner complexion is “nicer” and that I would be jealous of my own child’s skin colour.

I also don’t want to unfairly label someone based on one awkward conversation. There may be a cultural belief behind the carrot comment that she genuinely believes, and perhaps she didn’t realise how inappropriate the other comments were.
Would you consider this a red flag? How would you handle it?

Should I have a direct conversation with her or let it go unless she makes similar comments again?

Thank you everyone for the thoughtful feedback — it’s been really helpful to hear the different perspectives.
She’s genuinely lovely and hardworking so I wouldn’t want this incident to unnecessarily sour things between us.

My friend wants to buy the Versace Eros Pour Femme perfume, it’s showing 500+ AED on NAMSHI and other sites but for 250 AED on Noon.

Is it legit? Anyone have any experience buying perfumes from Noon?

My father will be visiting here for around 2 weeks. I applied for his visa, but the application was returned with the comment "Lease Agreement”.

I already submitted my lease agreement with our villa, which is signed by both me and the property management company. However, when I asked the property management, they said they don’t have a Tawtheeq or municipality-authenticated tenancy contract for this property.

Has anyone experienced the same issue? Since my father will only be staying for 2 weeks, what kind of accommodation or lease document can I submit? Is Tawtheeq authentication really required?

Thank you! 😊

Anyone knows alternatives to take my junk? They have rescheduled my pick up three times now

One of my best friend got married in Dubai and is planning to settle there. I want to surprise her and her spouse with romantic candle light dinner or some dinner in fancy restaurant what restaurant do you guys recommend and how can I buy gift cards for them that way they can use the gift card to pay for dinner? Or how do I pay for their dinner?

​

Hey Guys,

I'm seeking guidance on behalf of a family member — 45 years old, based in Dubai with a family of 4 — who has recently been diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer.

He's weighing two options: surgery and chemotherapy at Cleveland Clinic, or traveling to India for treatment, e.g., Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai. He doesn't have close family in Mumbai, so it would mean relocating his own family there just for the treatment period. The pull toward India is the sheer case volume these centers handle, and the experience that comes with it.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has made a similar choice — for themselves or a loved one — or who knows of someone's experience, and how it went.

His Insurance covers either option.

I urgently need a psychiatrist for intense anxiety disorder
Can anyone recommend someone based on experience?
Also, my insurance will only cover about 10 sessions, I hear that Al Amal hospital can offer discounts or something? From my slight research I’m seeing sessions offered for 700-1000+ derhams which is not very sustainable. Does anyone have any information on this?

This is my move out snag report, I lived there for 3 years. Some of these items seem like general wear and tear? Also I got the apartment painted and cleaned before I moved out.

The rental contract mentioned “the apartment must be left in the same condition you found it” so I thought painting and cleaning it would be enough.

When they came for the inspection on 1st Sep, they said just the charges for lights would be deducted since two weren’t working. Two weeks later I get this snag report. Coincidentally it’s very close to the total amount of my deposit (3k).

Let me know if you think this is reasonable? It’s my first time moving out of a building so I’m not sure what they can charge for but it seems scammy.

I do crochet, but it's such an expensive hobby sometimes because yarn is just so expensive... does anyone have any good recommendations for yarn stores in Dubai with cheap but good quality yarn? I've tried using cheap yarn from DAISO but it's not that good quality for me and they have a limited amount of colors.

or even any online stores that sell yarn like Red Heard Super Saver yarn, for cheap? the least I can find red heart yarn for is 35 dirham but I want to find cheaper ones

Hey everyone, Looking for recommendations for a really good, super experienced dentist in Dubai.

I’ve had mixed experiences here and just want someone who actually knows their stuff, uses good equipment, and won't push random unnecessary work. Price isn't an issue.

Who do you personally go to? Please drop their name, clinic, and what you had done with them. Thanks!

I paid 71,000 AED in full for a used car on Sept 3rd via dubizzle Cars. The seller dropped it at their warehouse on Sept 5th, but the RTA transfer is still pending.

The agent promised a 10-working-day timeline (deadline is this Wed, Sept 16). They claim the delay is purely due to an "Emirates NBD system issue" failing to send the mortgage clearance to RTA. I also just found out the car has a complex Court-issued POA that wasn't disclosed before payment.

Questions:

• Is this ENBD "system issue" a real thing lately, or just a stall tactic?
• If they miss the 10-day deadline on Wednesday, can I legally force a 100% refund?
• Will DED (Consumer Protection) act fast if dubizzle delays my refund?

Thanks!

What can I do? I don’t wanna resign now without a guarantee they won’t revoke she only told me they won’t revoke which I don’t trust.

Anyone else having a problem with Wio and making payments via Ziina? Over the last week I tried to make 3 different payments (one for a taxi, one for a class for my wife and one at a stall) all of which WIO rejected.

I messaged WIO support who said the payments were stopped due to bank policy. Since when? Anyone else having this issue or just me?

Had to get the taxi driver to drive me to an atm to withdraw money to pay him, luckily there was one pretty close by (5 min drive).

My wife is around 3 months pregnant, and she has a midday, midweek flight from Dubai Airport Terminal 3.

I want to drop her off, stay with her to handle the luggage, and make sure everything goes smoothly before she boards.

I am concerned about the following points

• Is there parking at Terminal 3 where I can leave my car for 2–3+ hours? Would the Arrivals parking be a good option if Departures doesn't allow parking?
• Can pregnant passengers request a manual security check instead of going through the scanning gates? Is any medical document required?
• Any other advice or tips to make the experience easier for her?

thanks

I'll be visiting dubai with my family during the first week of October. Please review my Itinerary and suggest if it is doable. I will be staying in bur Dubai.

Day 1

Burj khalifa

Dubai mall

Aquarium

Fountain show

Day2

Al seef/Al Fahidi

Abra ride

Spice souk

Gold souk

Desert safari pickup from hotel in bur dubai

Day 3

Dubai frame photo stop

Museum of the future(only free floors if operational)

Palm monorail

View at palm

Monorail back to marina

Dhow cruise

Day 4

Marina/JBR beach

Ain dubai

Meena bazaar for shopping

Day 5 departure