Thinking Of Living Overseas? A Hong Kong Businesswoman Explains Why She Chose Dubai

What you say the word 'Dubai', you might think of the trendy Dubai chocolate. When it comes to holidaying in Dubai, you'd probably picture the glitz and glam. As for moving to Dubai? You'd imagine the tax relief. But for Agnes Pun Chen, a businesswoman from Hong Kong, Dubai was a place where she could call her new home and the best place for her child to grow up in!

Agnes first began working in Middle East property investment, and Dubai was a market she knew well. Years of advising Hong Kong investors on opportunities in Dubai and Abu Dhabi gave her deep insight into the region’s growth, policies, and long-term direction. Through her work, Agnes witnessed how quickly Dubai was transforming into a global hub for talent, education, and technology. Over time, her professional confidence in Dubai became personal. Earlier this year, she made a life-changing decision: relocating from Hong Kong to Dubai with her family.

Dubai might be a well-known 'tax haven', but Agnes sees this city as something much bigger: the 'best springboard' for the next generation. Agnes was driven to make the big move by a clear belief: that success in an AI-powered future will require far more than academic results alone.

In Dubai, Agnes saw an excellent education system. The city is home to more than 220 international schools, where students from dozens of nationalities learn side by side, compared to approximately 120 in Hong Kong. For her daughter, this means growing up in what Agnes describes as a "United Nations classroom" - an environment that builds cross-cultural communication skills and global connections from an early age.

Beyond the classroom, survival resilience is treated as a core life skill. Students take part in desert survival camps, enduring temperatures of 30 to 40°C with limited supplies. These experiences are designed to cultivate independence, problem-solving abilities, and mental toughness.

Technology and innovation were another major draw. Abu Dhabi has established the world's first university dedicated entirely to artificial intelligence, supported by strong government investment. Students are exposed to cutting-edge research from an early age, with opportunities to visit leading global institutions such as MIT and Stanford on field trips.

For Agnes, these elements combined to form a future where her daughter could develop a truly international outlook while staying close to the forefront of technological change.

What began as a professional connection to the Middle East ultimately became a deeply personal choice. For Agnes Pun Chen, moving to Dubai was not just for career prospects and tax advantages, it also to give her daughter a head start in a rapidly changing world.