ISS Relocations in Dubai is over 20 years old and a member of many trade associations including: FIDI, PAIMA, Euromovers and BAR.  It is an IAMX Validated company.  But its global CEO, Abhilash Nair is disillusioned with some of the major trade associations because of, as he sees it, their inability to properly verify and assess the true capabilities their members.

He said that many companies are accepted as members without ever having been through a physical audit.  Even FIDI has confirmed that from 2026 FAIM audits, except for new members, will be performed virtually.  Abhilash believes that such systems are open to abuse. 

“Nobody is checking whether operating licenses are valid or the quality and extent of the facilities offered,” he explained.   “Some companies present questionable documentation that, with an on-site visit, would be simple to verify.”

He says many companies achieve association membership even though they have little or no assets.  This means that it’s very easy for the company to disappear when it suits the owner.  He has frequently received shipments for delivery from association members who then don’t pay his account and cannot be traced.  He feels that associations should be doing better. There are even consultants that specialise in helping these companies achieve membership with little or no effort themselves.

He is not looking to exclude companies, merely for their assessed capabilities to be clearer. “We could have a tiered membership, where it is clear if a company has been physically assessed or not. He points to Dubai as an example. “There are currently 75 IAM companies in Dubai, they are not all of the same standard.”

ISS Relocations in Dubai is over 20 years old and a member of many trade associations including: FIDI, PAIMA, Euromovers and BAR.  It is an IAMX Validated company.  But its global CEO, Abhilash Nair is disillusioned with some of the major trade associations because of, as he sees it, their inability to properly verify and assess the true capabilities their members.

He said that many companies are accepted as members without ever having been through a physical audit.  Even FIDI has confirmed that from 2026 FAIM audits, except for new members, will be performed virtually.  Abhilash believes that such systems are open to abuse. 

“Nobody is checking whether operating licenses are valid or the quality and extent of the facilities offered,” he explained.   “Some companies present questionable documentation that, with an on-site visit, would be simple to verify.”

He says many companies achieve association membership even though they have little or no assets.  This means that it’s very easy for the company to disappear when it suits the owner.  He has frequently received shipments for delivery from association members who then don’t pay his account and cannot be traced.  He feels that associations should be doing better. There are even consultants that specialise in helping these companies achieve membership with little or no effort themselves.

He is not looking to exclude companies, merely for their assessed capabilities to be clearer. “We could have a tiered membership, where it is clear if a company has been physically assessed or not. He points to Dubai as an example. “There are currently 75 IAM companies in Dubai, they are not all of the same standard.”