A first conversation in Dubai. Your Australian visa work handled in Australia.
Dr Usama Iqbal is BIG STEP's trusted partner in Dubai, and the starting point for people across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman who are looking at Australia. Australian immigration assistance itself comes from our Registered Migration Agent in Australia. That separation is deliberate, and we set it out plainly further down this page.
Our Dubai partner coordinates, introduces and helps you get organised. He does not assess visa eligibility or give Australian immigration advice - that is done only by our Registered Migration Agent in Australia.
What are you trying to do?
People come to us from very different starting points. Pick the one closest to yours and we will take you to the detail that actually applies.
Based in Dubai. Supporting clients across the GCC.
Dubai is our regional base. It is the one place in the Gulf where a meeting in person may be arranged. Everywhere else in the GCC, we work with you remotely - which for most of what happens before an application is lodged makes very little practical difference.
- Dubai is our regional base, and the only GCC location where meeting in person may be arranged.
- If you live in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain or Oman, you work with the same people by phone, video and email.
- Wherever you live, Australian immigration assistance comes from our Registered Migration Agent in Australia.
BIG STEP does not maintain offices in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain or Oman. The six flags above show who we support, not where we have premises.
Flag of Oman via Wikimedia Commons, used under the Open Government Licence - Oman 1.0.
More connected than most people assume
Australia and the Gulf have decades of movement between them - students, professionals on assignment, and families who have relatives on both sides. If you are weighing this up, you are not doing something unusual.
Recognised qualifications
Australian degrees and vocational qualifications are widely recognised across the Gulf and beyond, which matters if you may return or move on later.
Family already there
Many Gulf residents already have a sibling, cousin or parent settled in Australia. That connection sometimes opens a pathway, and sometimes it does not - it needs assessing properly either way.
A long way, but a known one
Australia is a long flight from the Gulf, and the practical questions - schooling, housing, the cost of the first six months - are ones we would rather you asked before you commit, not after.
People living in Australia who were born in the Gulf
Estimated resident population as at 30 June 2025, rounded by the ABS to the nearest 10 - about 55,000 people in total. Being born in the Gulf is not the same as holding Gulf citizenship: a large share of these people are the children of expatriate residents. That is exactly the point - our service is not limited to GCC nationals.
Studying in Australia, starting from the Gulf
Most people who contact us from the GCC start here. Some are finishing school in Dubai or Doha, some are professionals looking at a postgraduate course, and some are parents working out what is realistic for a child. The work is the same: choose well, document it properly, and understand the cost before committing.
Choosing a course, not just a university
The right course depends on what you want afterwards. We start from that, not from a league table.
Documents from a Gulf education
Schooling in the GCC can mean a British, American, Indian, IB or national curriculum, and sometimes several across one childhood. Australian providers assess all of them - it just needs setting out clearly.
English language evidence
Requirements differ by provider and by visa, and they change. We confirm what applies to your course rather than quoting a number that may be out of date.
The real cost, in writing
Tuition, living costs, health cover and travel, set out before you commit to anything.
Health cover
Overseas Student Health Cover is a condition of the student visa. We explain how it works and what it does not cover.
Family coming with you
Whether a partner or child can be included, and on what basis, depends on your circumstances and is assessed by our Registered Migration Agent.
What the process actually looks like from the Gulf
Seven stages, and it is always clear who is responsible for each one. The handover to our Registered Migration Agent is a real step, not a formality.
- 1
Start with a conversation
DubaiAn introductory conversation with Dr Usama Iqbal in Dubai, in person by arrangement or remotely from anywhere in the GCC. No commitment, and no eligibility assessment at this stage.
- 2
Work out what you are actually asking
Dubai and AustraliaWhether your question is about study, family or work decides who picks it up next. Our partner helps you frame it and routes it to the right part of the team.
- 3
Education planning and applications
AustraliaCourse and provider shortlisting, entry requirements, applications and offers - handled by our education team, with documents coordinated through Dubai where that is easier for you.
- 4
Australian visa assessment and strategy
Registered Migration AgentWhich visa, whether you meet the criteria, and how the application should be built. This is immigration assistance under Australian law and is done only by our Registered Migration Agent in Australia.
- 5
Biometrics and health requirements
You, locallyIf your application requires biometrics or a medical examination, you attend locally. Where and how depends on your country of residence, and we confirm the current arrangements at the time.
- 6
Lodgement and managing the application
Registered Migration AgentPreparing, lodging and then managing the application, including anything the Department asks for afterwards.
- 7
Decision, and getting ready
Dubai and AustraliaWhatever the outcome, you are told plainly what it means and what the options are. If it is a grant, we help with the practical side of arriving.
Biometric and health requirements are set by the Australian Government and differ by country of residence and visa type. We check the current requirements for where you live when your application is prepared - rather than publishing a list here that could go out of date. Department of Home Affairs - biometrics.
Migration and family pathways
A high-level map only. Whether any of these fit depends on your individual circumstances and must be assessed by our Registered Migration Agent.
Living or working in the Gulf does not by itself create or remove an Australian visa pathway. What matters is your own circumstances - nationality, qualifications, work history, family and health - and that assessment is immigration assistance.
Who does what, and why it matters
Australian immigration assistance is a regulated activity. Only a Registered Migration Agent may provide it, and ours is in Australia. Our Dubai partner does real, useful work - but it is a different kind of work, and we would rather you knew exactly where the line sits.
Our Trusted GCC Partner - UAE
- Your first point of contact anywhere in the GCC
- Arranging and coordinating consultations with the Australian team
- General information about studying in Australia
- Helping you gather, check and send documents
- Keeping communication moving across the time difference
- Referring every Australian immigration question to our Registered Migration Agent
Registered Migration Agent - Australia
- Assessing whether you are eligible for an Australian visa
- Advising which visa to apply for, and when
- Preparing your migration strategy
- Preparing and lodging the application
- Dealing with the Department of Home Affairs on your behalf
- Advising on refusals, reviews and appeals
You do not need to be a GCC national to talk to us
The Gulf is home to people from almost everywhere. Whether your family has been here for generations or you arrived on a work contract two years ago, the questions about Australia are much the same.
Professionals working in the Gulf
Many people hold a good job and a residence permit in the Gulf while thinking about something longer-term. A Gulf residence visa is tied to your employment; Australian pathways work on a completely different basis, which is worth understanding before you plan around either.
Families
Decisions like this usually involve parents, a partner and children, often in more than one country and more than one language. We are happy to talk to whoever is actually part of the decision.
Students and recent graduates
You may be studying in the GCC without being a citizen of the country you live in. That is completely ordinary and it does not complicate an Australian application on its own.
Meet our GCC partner
Dr Usama Iqbal is our independent referral and liaison partner based in Dubai, providing a local point of contact and supporting introductions, communication and coordination for prospective clients across the GCC. Australian immigration advice and assistance are provided exclusively by our Registered Migration Agent in Australia.
Dr Usama Iqbal
Our Trusted GCC Partner
Education, Referral & Liaison Partner - UAE
Latifa Tower, Office 1901, Sheikh Zayed Road, Trade Centre 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Dr Usama Iqbal is a medical doctor and healthcare administrator by background, with a career that has taken him across Pakistan, the Maldives and China. He studied medicine in China as an international student himself, and has since worked in hospital management, insurance coordination and the training of junior doctors.
Now based in Dubai, he is also BIG STEP's local point of contact across the GCC - handling introductions, communication and document coordination, and connecting prospective clients with our Australian team. Australian immigration advice and assistance are provided exclusively by our Registered Migration Agent in Australia.
- MBBS - Chengde Medical University, China
- MBA Essentials, Healthcare Management - Acacia University, USA
Languages: English, Urdu, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese, Arabic (basic)
Biometrics, medicals and where you actually have to turn up
Some Australian visa applications require biometrics, a health examination, or both. Where you do these depends on your country of residence, not on your nationality - and the arrangements are set by the Australian Government and change from time to time.
Rather than publish a six-country table that could be wrong by the time you read it, we check the current requirements for where you live when your application is prepared. If you want to look now, the Department's own pages are the authoritative source and are linked below.
Processing times are published by the Department as a guide only. Nobody, including us, can tell you how long your application will take.
Reaching us from the Gulf
Call or email our Dubai partner directly using the details below, or book a consultation online - either way it reaches our team in Dubai and Australia.
Location
Latifa Tower, Office 1901, Sheikh Zayed Road, Trade Centre 1, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesBy appointment only
- Phone
- +971 502 956 860
- Office hours
- Sat-Thu 9:00am-7:00pm · Fri closed (GST)
Latifa Tower, Office 1901, Sheikh Zayed Road, Trade Centre 1, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Get directionsOffice visits are by appointment only - please book a consultation first.
Dubai and Muscat are UTC+4; Riyadh, Doha, Kuwait City and Manama are UTC+3. Our Australian office is in Perth, on AWST (UTC+8). Neither the Gulf nor Western Australia observes daylight saving, so the difference never moves: Perth is four hours ahead of Dubai and five hours ahead of Riyadh, all year. A 10:00 am appointment in Dubai is 2:00 pm in Perth.
Questions we get from the Gulf
Short, direct answers. If yours is not here, ask it in a consultation.
Does BIG STEP have a partner in Dubai?
Which GCC countries do you support?
I live in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain or Oman. Can I still work with you?
Can the Dubai partner tell me which Australian visa to apply for?
So who actually gives me immigration advice?
Do I have to be a UAE citizen, or a GCC national, to use this service?
Can I apply to study in Australia while I am living in the Gulf?
Where do I do biometrics or a medical examination?
Can my spouse and children be included?
How do consultations work between Dubai and Australia?
Can you guarantee an Australian visa?
What does it cost?
Start with a conversation, not a commitment.
Tell us what you are considering. You will leave knowing what is realistic, what it costs, and what the next step is - whether or not you go ahead with us.