Latest news with #MikeCoady
Khaleej Times
17-07-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
How to save thousands on your school fees in the UAE
While most schools may not start for at least one month, invoices for student fees are already being sent out. Fees can start from around Dh9,000 a year and go up to Dh120,000 dirhams for the top international schools. If you have more than one child, then the cost shoots up. Many parents have been looking into options to reduce the financial burden. There are options available such as paying annual fees upfront (as opposed to by term) to earn a possible discount, looking for interest-free school loans or taking out a credit card that lets you earn cashback on school fees. 'It's no surprise many families are looking for ways to soften the blow, and cashback credit cards seem like an obvious solution,' says Mike Coady, CEO of Skybound Wealth Management. 'There is opportunity here, but only if you understand the rules of the game.' The catch There are many credit cards available that offer cashback on spending. But you need to make sure your credit card explicitly includes education payments in its cashback categories, or you may be disappointed when that generous reward fails to land. 'Not all credit cards treat school fee payments equally. Some banks classify them under education, others under government services or quasi-cash transactions, which may be excluded from cashback altogether. So read the fine print,' says Coady, who is also a financial adviser. 'Too many people assume that just because they used their card, they'll earn cashback. But unless the transaction codes align with your card's reward criteria, you could walk away with nothing.' Deals and limits Also look out for limits on the cashback you can earn. Most UAE cashback cards cap their rewards somewhere between 200 and 1,000 dirhams per month. The CBD Super Saver credit card offers a maximum of 10 per cent cashback a month but it needs to be spread across different spending categories (bills, education, supermarket and transport). The most you can earn for education fees is 150 dirhams cashback a month – 1,800 a year. The ADIB Cashback credit card pays 4 per cent cashback which includes education costs, but with a 300 dirham monthly cashback limit. That works out at a maximum cashback of 3,600 a year – one of the most generous deals around. Emirates Islamic Cashback Plus offers education-specific cashback rates but you will need to check the criteria. Rehaan Nensey has one child at Brighton College in Al Barsha and uses the CBD Super Saver card. 'I know it offers up to 10 per cent cashback but it is capped and depends on spend. But I'd say I have saved about Dh2,500 so far on school fees. A friend mentioned that the monthly option is generally available, but not all schools advertise it. Some other parents just split school fees across different cards.' So, your first step should be to ask the school if you can pay your fees monthly. Not all schools allow this, and those that do may charge administrative fees. Speak directly with the school bursar or finance team. It's also worth checking out cashback cards from Sharjah Islamic Bank, Ajman Bank and Emirates Islamic, although check their cashback limits on education spending. While FAB GEMS remains the only card with an exclusive, branded school partnership (with GEMS Education), and pays up to 4.25 per cent cashback. Watch the interest 'It's only a win if you're paying off your balance in full every month,' adds Coady. 'Otherwise, that 3 per cent cashback is quickly erased by 30 per cent interest.' It's also worth exploring zero per cent instalment plans on credit cards. Many UAE banks partner directly with schools to allow parents to split large payments over 3–12 months interest-free, a smart way to ease cash flow pressure, even if it doesn't earn cashback. Stuti Sri, the co-founder of says that Emirates NBD continues to provide zero per cent instalment plans of up to 24 months on education expenses through popular cards like Go4it Platinum and Manchester United. ADCB also offers zero per cent Easy Payment Plans for school fees via its Touchpoint and Lulu cards, which parents often use to break up large annual payments. 'RAKBANK, through its Skiply app, supports fee payments to over 300 schools and allows parents to pay using RAKBANK cards with 0 per cent instalments and no extra processing fee. Ajman Bank also offers zero per cent profit instalments on education payments above Dh1,000 without any processing fee at all,' she adds. According to research, Al Hilal Bank provides an Education Cash feature where up to 80 per cent of your credit limit can be transferred directly to the school with 0 per cent profit (a one-time fee applies). Standard Chartered and HSBC both offer school fees deals with zero per cent instalment plans.
Khaleej Times
12-06-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
A comfortable retirement doesn't just happen to you
It may sound like a long way off for some, but retirement is something we all need to think about, especially if you are planning on doing it early. While living in the UAE has multiple benefits, it is still developing its pension provisions and retirement offerings for residents. Mike Coady, CEO of Skybound Wealth and long-time UAE-based adviser to global expats, puts it bluntly: 'There's no automatic pension scheme for most expatriates. No safety net. No monthly cheque arriving once you've clocked out of your career. That means your financial future depends entirely on you, and how early and wisely you start planning. If you want security later, you need to build it today.' While new government-backed schemes and changes to retirement planning have been announced in recent years, there is still a strong need for residents to put in place their own retirement savings plan. Most private companies offer an End of Service Gratuity (EOSG), a lump sum payout based on years worked and last basic salary. But this isn't considered enough money to comfortably retire on. So what can you do? Start saving, and start now One of the biggest mistakes is delaying the start of retirement planning. 'Many people view it as a distant goal and assume they can think about it later,' said Raji Kaippallil, the founder of financewithRaji. 'But the earlier you start saving and investing, the less you need to set aside each month - and the easier it becomes to reach your target, thanks to the power of compounding.' Her example hammers home the power of starting early. If you begin investing just Dh1,500 per month at age 25, assuming an 8% annual return, your investment pot could grow to around Dh2 million by age 55. However, if you wait until age 35 to start, you'd need to invest about Dh4,000 per month to reach the same Dh2 million by 55. Waiting even longer until age 45 means you'd have to save roughly Dh12,000 per month to hit that target. How much should you be saving? The figures above were just an example. Mike Coady says use the following as minimum amounts, based on an investment growth rate of 7% a year. At age 30: Save 15–20% of your income monthly. Age 40: Save 25–35% of income, Age 50+: You may need to save 40%+ or plan to retire later. It can be tricky trying to predict how much you will need each month to live on once you retire. Living costs, healthcare and other expenses are increasing all the time. But let's say you want AED 20,000 a month in retirement income, starting at 60. You'll need to build a pot of AED 4 to 5 million. And that means AED 10,000 a month in savings over the next 20 years (at 7% growth rate). If you have a 30-year savings time frame, then you need to save AED 6,000 a month to hit that target. Financial planner Michele Carby suggested another interesting idea. 'If you have moved from a taxable jurisdiction, the bare minimum you should be putting aside is the % that you were previously used to paying in tax as this goes directly towards looking after you in the future. As a rule of thumb at least 20% of your monthly salary should be considered as an effective starting point.' Where to save There is no one-size-fits-all answer on where to save for retirement. Expats are often advised to use international platforms, and hold their assets in tax-efficient, flexible investment accounts. Given the longer time frame, investing in equities is appropriate, and there are many equity funds to choose from, such as low-cost Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). And make sure you diversify globally across geographies, asset classes, and currencies. Many expats already have a pension plan in place before they moved to the UAE and may continue contributing to it, especially if they plan to retire back home. However, seven out of 10 residents want to retire in the UAE, according to a survey by YouGov commissioned by Zurich International Life. 'A key advantage is that the UAE doesn't impose income tax, so if you remain a UAE resident during retirement, your pension withdrawals wouldn't be taxed locally,' added Kaippallil. Mistakes Saving for retirement early makes so much sense, but the number who are doing it is worryingly low. Why? Carby, managing partner at Holborn Assets, said: 'Most commonly, expats will fall into bad spending habits given how attractive Dubai's entertainment lifestyle is. Before you realise it you are spending over Dh200 a weekend on a brunch. Even if half of this went into your retirement bucket that would make a significant impact. Unfortunately, not a lot of people consider this.' Coady says a big mistake among people is confusing the end-of-service payout with a retirement plan, when in reality it is rarely more than a few months' salary. 'Another mistake I see often is the 'expat illusion' - thinking the high salary means you're building wealth. The truth? Many high earners leave the region with little to show for it, while disciplined savers with modest salaries leave as millionaires.' Make sure you are the latter.
