By Mohammed Rashad Hussain, Managing PartnerPublished 4 min read
What are your options for a personal driver in Dubai?
If you live in the UAE and want a driver on a regular basis, there are two routes.
| Monthly driver from a company | Sponsored private driver | |
|---|---|---|
| Employer | The company | You |
| Visa | The company’s | Yours, as a domestic worker |
| Car | Company car or yours | Yours |
| Cover when the driver is ill | Company supplies a replacement | You find one |
| Time to start | Days | Weeks, with recruitment and checks |
| Best for | Executives, short or flexible terms | Families on a fixed routine for years |
Visitors on a short stay need neither. They book a car with driver by the day or the hour.
Monthly driver service from a licensed company: how it works
You agree a daily schedule, the days per week and the car class. The company supplies a driver, and often the car, on a monthly contract. It handles the driver’s visa, insurance, leave and the replacement when someone is off.
Assure runs this through its private driver service and the monthly private driver page. A fixed monthly price is quoted on WhatsApp once we know hours and car. For what moves that figure, read monthly driver cost in Dubai.
Ask three things before you sign:
- How many hours a day are covered, and what overtime costs.
- Who pays for fuel, Salik tolls and parking. See Salik tolls in Dubai.
- What happens when the driver is on leave.
Sponsoring a private driver on your own visa: the steps
Private driver sits among the 19 occupations covered by the UAE domestic workers law, Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022. Recruitment goes through a MOHRE-authorised domestic worker service centre, the network formerly called Tadbeer.
In outline:
- Check that you qualify as a sponsor with MOHRE. Salary thresholds are quoted differently across sources, so confirm yours directly.
- Choose a driver from the centre, or have one recruited.
- Sign the employment contract through the centre.
- Complete the medical checks and the residence visa, with health insurance.
- Agree a start date and a written schedule.
We do not quote visa fees here, because they change. Get the current list from the centre.
Who pays for the visa, insurance, leave and end-of-service?
When you sponsor, you do. Legal summaries of the law list the agreed wage, health insurance or medical treatment, accommodation, meals and clothing as employer duties. They also list a paid weekly rest day and annual leave of at least 30 days, with a return air ticket if the worker spends leave at home. Sources differ on how often the ticket is owed. Check the decree or MOHRE for the exact rule, along with end-of-service payments.
With a company contract, all of this sits inside the monthly price. You pay one invoice, and the company carries the obligations.
Can the driver drive your car, or must the company supply one?
Both work. Many families keep their own car and hire a driver for it. A company can also supply a car, which suits an executive who wants an executive sedan from our car with driver service and no purchase or insurance to manage. If the driver uses your car, tell your insurer who will be driving. We do not give licence-conversion advice here: ask the Ministry of Interior about a driver’s licence status.
Working hours and rest days: what the law says
Legal summaries of the domestic workers law require at least 12 hours of rest a day, with 8 of them continuous, and a paid weekly rest day. A driver working a 7am school run, a day of errands and an evening pickup can hit those limits quickly. Write the hours down at the start. For school-run planning see school run drivers in Dubai.
Which route fits a family, an executive or a small company?
- Family with a fixed routine for years: sponsorship can make sense if you accept the employer duties.
- Executive or senior manager: a company driver gives cover for sick days and a car-class choice. See corporate chauffeur arrangements.
- Small company needing a driver for a project: contract a driver, with no visa tied up.
If you are weighing a company car against a driver, read company car vs chauffeur cost. For a wider look at hiring options, start at hiring a chauffeur in Dubai. If you only need a one-off long trip such as Dubai to Abu Dhabi by car lift, a personal driver is overkill.
Photos in this guide
A black Mercedes-Benz S-Class saloon, the kind of car used for executive driver servicesDinkun Chen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A grey Lexus ES 300h hybrid saloon parked at the kerbDinkun Chen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A dark grey Mercedes-Benz V-Class with a sliding side door, parked on a streetAlexander-93 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai with overhead signs for Zaabeel, Sharjah and Dubai AirportCoolcaesar / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
