UAE expatriates are increasingly looking to complete a full working career in the country and then retire elsewhere, new research has revealed.
GWM, a UAE-based wealth management company, said the majority of people now see Dubai and Abu Dhabi as cities they will work in until they can retire.
Iain Ramsay, chief investment officer at GWM, said the way expatriates are planning their finances is changing with longer-term plans being analysed.
He said: “What we are noticing in the market is an increasing desire to plan for retirement when people are living and working in the UAE.
“It is much more long-term in recognising you can build a long and successful career here, raise a family and then have real retirement options. That is a shift from when expatriates often lived in the UAE for a few years and planned for the short term.”
GWM said it has also seen a shift in the way people approach them for financial advice – focusing on how it can fit in with life plans rather than looking at simple investment returns.
“The way expatriates are changing their attitude to wealth management is a reflection of the way society is changing. Rather than looking at financial returns, it is more thoughtful and the priority is how they can make their long-term life plans a reality,” Ramsay added.
Last month, the latest HSBC Expat Annual League Table showed that internationally-minded professionals seeking career progression, financial security and a great place to raise a family increasingly rank the UAE among the world’s best places to live and work.
Young professionals are a particular driver of the UAEs’ ranking in HSBC’s 12th Expat Explorer survey, with 62 percent of millennial expats citing career progression as a key reason for relocating – 15 points above the global average.
The top financial priorities for UAE expats remain saving and investing for retirement (82 percent), children’s education (47 percent) and property (43 percent), the report added.
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