• Learning to drive from scratch involves passing a theory course then at least 10 lessons lasting two-hours. You must pass a practical road test at the end to get your licence. Christopher Pike / The National
    Learning to drive from scratch involves passing a theory course then at least 10 lessons lasting two-hours. You must pass a practical road test at the end to get your licence. Christopher Pike / The National
  • An instructor pictured at Emirates Driving Institute's Al Qusais campus. Rory's tip is to book your lessons for rush hour so you get used to the hectic roads. Christopher Pike / The National
    An instructor pictured at Emirates Driving Institute's Al Qusais campus. Rory's tip is to book your lessons for rush hour so you get used to the hectic roads. Christopher Pike / The National
  • Part of the learning process involves manoeuvers in a closed car park, followed by lessons on the roads. Leslie Pableo for The National
    Part of the learning process involves manoeuvers in a closed car park, followed by lessons on the roads. Leslie Pableo for The National
  • A masked instructor gives a student pointers. Going over the basics again and again is the key to passing the test. Leslie Pableo for The National
    A masked instructor gives a student pointers. Going over the basics again and again is the key to passing the test. Leslie Pableo for The National
  • The whole process takes about two months, depending on how many attempts it takes to pass. Most driving schools offer fast-track courses. Leslie Pableo for The National
    The whole process takes about two months, depending on how many attempts it takes to pass. Most driving schools offer fast-track courses. Leslie Pableo for The National
  • Taleb Mahmoud Ayub, head of operations at Emirates Driving Institute, talks to an instructor during a tour for The National. Leslie Pableo for The National
    Taleb Mahmoud Ayub, head of operations at Emirates Driving Institute, talks to an instructor during a tour for The National. Leslie Pableo for The National

How to apply for an International Driving Permit with a UAE licence


Kelly Clarke
  • English
  • Arabic

If you are looking to go away this summer and plan on renting a car, there are some things you should know before you travel.

Most countries require visitors to have an International Driving Permit if they want to drive outside of the country which their licence was issued.

While some car rental agencies may accept your local licence at their discretion, others may insist on an IDP and could refuse a rental without one.

Most countries require visitors to have an International Driving Permit if they want to drive outside of the country in which their licence was issued.

What is an International Driving Permit?

In short, it is a translation of your national driving licence and enables you to drive in foreign countries without the need for further tests or application forms.

It is important to note that an IDP is an addition to your national driving licence and not a replacement.

To be on the safe side, you must carry both licences when planning to rent a car abroad.

The permit, which is valid for one year, proves that you hold a valid driver’s licence in your country of residence.

It will also help protect you as a driver in the event of accidental vehicle damage or loss of legal identification, such as a passport, while abroad.

How to get an International Driving Permit in the UAE?

There are several ways in which you can obtain an IDP to carry alongside your UAE licence. It has to be applied for prior to travel. All IDPs are valid for one year, so regular renewal is necessary.

In the UAE you can obtain your IDP through:

  • Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE), which has offices in all seven emirates, or you can visit the website and have it delivered
  • Ministry of Interior mobile application
  • Emirates Post offices
  • Dnata office, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai

You will be required to fill in an application form online or in person and will have to submit:

  • A copy of valid Emirates ID
  • A copy of passport and residency status
  • A copy of valid UAE driving licence
  • Two passport photos

How much does it cost and how does the process take?

An IDP is Dh170 plus tax.

Online applications will be completed within three working days of receipt, so allow for five working days for all online applications to be delivered to your requested address.

Over-the-counter applications can be completed within half an hour.

What countries require an IDP?

The website of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE website lists 174 countries that require an IDP, including Spain, Oman, Germany, Britain and India.

Do I need an IDP to drive in the UAE?

The UAE signed two UN conventions that made it a legal requirement for visitors to have a valid IDP in order to rent a car and drive.

Each visitor who plans to drive in the Emirates must make sure they obtain an IDP in their home country or country of residence before they travel.

If you live in the UAE and have an Emirati licence, you do not need to obtain an IDP to drive here.

Drive from UAE to Qatar through Saudi Arabia - in pictures

  • Hamad Mohammed regularly drives from the UAE to Qatar through Saudi Arabia for work. All photos: Hamad Mohammed
    Hamad Mohammed regularly drives from the UAE to Qatar through Saudi Arabia for work. All photos: Hamad Mohammed
  • He says the journey takes about seven hours.
    He says the journey takes about seven hours.
  • The road trip could become part of plans for many international football fans priced out of expensive flights to Qatar for the World Cup this year.
    The road trip could become part of plans for many international football fans priced out of expensive flights to Qatar for the World Cup this year.
  • The World Cup takes place in Qatar from November 21 to December 18, the first time the tournament has been held in the Middle East.
    The World Cup takes place in Qatar from November 21 to December 18, the first time the tournament has been held in the Middle East.
Marathon results

Men:

 1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13 

2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50 

3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25 

4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46 

5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48  

Women:

1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30 

2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01 

3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30 

4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43 

5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01  

How to get exposure to gold

Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.

A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.

Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.

Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.

London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long

However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.

T20 World Cup Qualifier

Final: Netherlands beat PNG by seven wickets

Qualified teams

1. Netherlands
2. PNG
3. Ireland
4. Namibia
5. Scotland
6. Oman

T20 World Cup 2020, Australia

Group A: Sri Lanka, PNG, Ireland, Oman
Group B: Bangladesh, Netherlands, Namibia, Scotland

Results

2pm: Al Sahel Contracting Company – Maiden (PA) Dh50,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: AF Mutakafel, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)

2.30pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: El Baareq, Antonio Fresu, Rashed Bouresly

3pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,950m; Winner: Lost Eden, Andrea Atzeni, Doug Watson

3.30pm: Keeneland – Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,000m; Winner: Alkaraama, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi

4pm: Keeneland – Handicap (TB) Dh76,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Lady Snazz, Saif Al Balushi, Bhupat Seemar

4.30pm: Hive – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer

5pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – (TB) Handicap Dh64,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

PROFILE BOX:

Company/date started: 2015

Founder/CEO: Rami Salman, Rishav Jalan, Ayush Chordia

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Technology, Sales, Voice, Artificial Intelligence

Size: (employees/revenue) 10/ 100,000 downloads

Stage: 1 ($800,000)

Investors: Eight first-round investors including, Beco Capital, 500 Startups, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Hala Fadel, Odin Financial Services, Dubai Angel Investors, Womena, Arzan VC

 

Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

Rating: 3/5

Naga
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EMeshal%20Al%20Jaser%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EAdwa%20Bader%2C%20Yazeed%20Almajyul%2C%20Khalid%20Bin%20Shaddad%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tomb%20Raider%20I%E2%80%93III%20Remastered
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dr Graham's three goals

Short term

Establish logistics and systems needed to globally deploy vaccines


Intermediate term

Build biomedical workforces in low- and middle-income nations


Long term

A prototype pathogen approach for pandemic preparedness  

The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

Voy!%20Voy!%20Voy!
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Omar%20Hilal%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Muhammad%20Farrag%2C%20Bayoumi%20Fouad%2C%20Nelly%20Karim%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
List of officials:

Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.

Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.

Various Artists 
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
​​​​​​​

CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Enterprise-grade%20security%20and%20privacy%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Unlimited%20higher-speed%20GPT-4%20access%20with%20no%20caps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Longer%20context%20windows%20for%20processing%20longer%20inputs%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Advanced%20data%20analysis%20capabilities%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Customisation%20options%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Shareable%20chat%20templates%20that%20companies%20can%20use%20to%20collaborate%20and%20build%20common%20workflows%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Analytics%20dashboard%20for%20usage%20insights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Free%20credits%20to%20use%20OpenAI%20APIs%20to%20extend%20OpenAI%20into%20a%20fully-custom%20solution%20for%20enterprises%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Gran Gala del Calcio 2019 winners

Best Player: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Best Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta)
Best Referee: Gianluca Rocchi
Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
Best Team: Atalanta​​​​​​​
Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Serie B Best Young Player: Sandro Tonali (Brescia)
Best Women’s Goal: Thaisa (Milan vs Juventus)
Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
Best Women’s XI: Laura Giuliani (Milan); Alia Guagni (Fiorentina), Sara Gama (Juventus), Cecilia Salvai (Juventus), Elisa Bartoli (Roma); Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus); Valentina Giacinti (Milan), Ilaria Mauro (Fiorentina), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus)

UAE gold medallists:

Omar Al Suweidi (46kg), Khaled Al Shehhi (50kg), Khalifa Humaid Al Kaabi (60kg), Omar Al Fadhli (62kg), Mohammed Ali Al Suweidi (66kg), Omar Ahmed Al Hosani (73), all in the U18’s, and Khalid Eskandar Al Blooshi (56kg) in the U21s.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlanRadar%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2013%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EIbrahim%20Imam%2C%20Sander%20van%20de%20Rijdt%2C%20Constantin%20K%C3%B6ck%2C%20Clemens%20Hammerl%2C%20Domagoj%20Dolinsek%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVienna%2C%20Austria%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EConstruction%20and%20real%20estate%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E400%2B%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20B%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Headline%2C%20Berliner%20Volksbank%20Ventures%2C%20aws%20Gr%C3%BCnderfonds%2C%20Cavalry%20Ventures%2C%20Proptech1%2C%20Russmedia%2C%20GR%20Capital%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sugary teas and iced coffees

The tax authority is yet to release a list of the taxed products, but it appears likely that sugary iced teas and cold coffees will be hit.

For instance, the non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.

Cold coffee brands are likely to be hit too. Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.

The%20Crown%20season%205
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Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

Updated: May 11, 2022, 5:53 AM