Hiring a nanny in Dubai to look after the kids is not considered to be a luxury exclusively for wealthy families, but also a necessity for people who are occupied with full-time jobs or other commitments and, therefore, can’t care for their children at all times. Although the main aim of hiring a nanny is to allow yourself the peace of mind that your kids are in goods hands and the flexibility to manage your business and social endeavors, the hiring process itself can be troublesome. Before you actually start looking for a nanny, the all-important question you need to answer is whether you want a part-time or full-time nanny. Here are a few points you should consider:
- Ease of hiring: In most cases, hiring a part-time nanny from an agency means that you have less logistics and paperwork to deal with. Furthermore, you don’t need to get involved with sponsoring their residency visas since they are sponsored by the agency itself. Hiring a full-time, live-in maid is a more drawn out process. In most cases you would have to recruit the maid through a hiring agency. In order to do this, you would first have to qualify as an eligible sponsor based on criteria set by the GDRFA, and then follow a process that can take between 2 weeks and 2 months before your maid is ready to get started.
- Availability of substitutes: Most agencies that offer part-time nanny services will have someone else available if your regular nanny is on leave or cannot make it for the time slot requested. This means that you are less likely to find yourself calling up friends to request them to take care of the kids since your nanny is unavailable. However, if your full-time nanny is on leave, you will have to find a substitute yourself.
- Privacy: A part-time nanny can be contracted for a few hours when you have a work or social engagement. You will have complete privacy in your home for the remainder of the day. However, a full-time nanny will live in with you, which has its perks but does cut in on alone time.
- Cost: Part-time nannies are paid on an hourly basis, so bear your personal needs in mind when estimating costs. If you only need help for 2-3 hours a few times a week, a part-time nanny would prove to be more cost effective. However, if you require full-day assistance throughout the week, a full-time nanny would prove to be less expensive. The costs of sponsoring a full-time nanny are detailed below:
| Sponsorship Expenses | Cost (AED) |
| Refundable Deposit | 2,000 |
| Medical Test | 270 |
| Visa Issuance | 5,400 |
| Emirates ID | 270 |
| Visa transfer and status change (if the nanny is recruited from within Dubai) | 1,650 |
| Recruitment cost (if the nanny is recruited from her home country) | 8,000 – 15,000 |
| Entry permit cost (if the nanny is recruited from her home country) | 400 |
| Annual Expenses | Cost (AED) |
| Salary (as mandated by law, monthly minimum salary for a Filipina helper is AED 1,470) | AED 18,000 – 24,000 |
| Annual ticket allowance – round trip fare | AED 1,500 – 2,000 |
All data regarding documentation requirements and costs sourced from GDRFA.
Data regarding minimum wage sourced from The National.
On the other hand, a part-time nanny can be hired at an hourly rate of AED 50 to AED 75, with no additional charges.
- Relationship with children: Because a part-time nanny is only going to come in for a few hours, it may be difficult for younger kids to get used to and comfortable with their presence. This issue may exacerbate if you have not requested for a regular nanny from the agency and have a different person coming in each time. However, children are more likely to settle in with a full-time nanny – you will, of course, have to make sure you make the children interact with her and see how they both respond to each other before you close the deal.
Whether you are looking for part-time or full-time help with the kids, there are two main ways of going about this. You can ask around to find a referral through your acquaintances. Alternatively, simply log onto ServiceMarket and we will put you in touch with the most reputed agencies in Dubai that offer part-time nanny services, in order to ensure that you only have the most reliable pair of hands looking after your kids.
