Many Emirati men marry foreign women to avoid the high cost of marrying nationals and to avoid interfering in-laws, a local study said.
The study, quoted by the Gulf News, surveyed 440 men married to foreign women, and found that nearly 83 percent of these marriages occurred because national brides demanded high dowries beyond the means of most men.
There is also the huge cost of the wedding ceremony and furnishing the home.
It added that the poor financial status of the grooms is a major factor that prevents marriages between nationals.
Some 8.5 percent of national husbands surveyed were unemployed and lived off social security. Another 19.5 percent were involved in "free" business such as fishing and agriculture.
The study found that 12.3 percent of men married to foreigners earn less than Dh1,000 a month, and 60 percent earn Dh1,000 to Dh3,000.
Meanwhile, some men said they married foreign women to escape the "domination of national wives", whose expensive tastes most husbands cannot afford.
They felt that a foreign wife is less demanding. Moreover, she is away from home and family and always fears that her husband may divorce her. “This makes her more submissive,” they said – Albawaba.com
