As of March 2024, the estimated population of the United Arab Emirates is 9.5 million.
The currency in the UAE is the United Arab Emirates Dirham (AED). The currency symbol is Dh or د.إ.
In the United Arab Emirates, unlimited and permanent employment contracts are prohibited. Employment contracts can be extended when both parties are in agreement or if both parties continue to implement the contract after the expiration date, thus implicitly extending it. Any extension or renewal of the employment contract terms will be added when calculating an employee’s end-of-service benefits.
Written employment contracts are mandatory in the UAE. When the contract is concluded in writing, it has to be duplicated, and a copy is to be provided to the employee and the employer. The agreement must include the date of its conclusion, the date on which the job begins, the nature and place of work, the duration of the contract in case of limited-term agreements, and the amount of remuneration. The law permits employers to include non-compete restrictions in employment contracts. These restrictions must be limited to the extent necessary to protect the business’s legitimate interests and defined in respect of time, place, and the nature of work. The maximum restrictive period is two years from the date of the employment contract's expiry.
The labor law of the United Arab Emirates defines temporary work as work that requires a specific period or is based on a certain task. Temporary work must be covered under a contract. Foreign temporary workers are not entitled to end-of-service benefits if their contract is for less than 1 year. The UAE also permits the hiring of temporary workers through employment agencies. These agencies make temporary workers available to third parties (beneficiaries) for specific work. Beneficiaries may be natural persons or legal entities. If the Ministry administratively suspends a company for committing violations relating to the application of the labor law, agencies are prohibited from providing workers to this company. Additionally, they must not provide workers to another agency engaged in temporary employment to employ them on behalf of a beneficiary with a suspended license. All employment agencies are required to hold a license to operate.
In the UAE, the probationary period is counted towards the period of employment. Employers are required to provide a minimum of 14 days' notice to employees if they wish to terminate employment during the probationary period, and employees are required to give 1 month's notice to employers for the same. Employees are not entitled to paid sick leave during their probationary period.
According to the Labour Law of the United Arab Emirates, the standard limit is 48 hours per week or 8 hours per day. Separately, outdoor work under the sun is prohibited between 12:30 PM and 3:00 PM from June 15 to September 15. Employees under 18 are prohibited from working more than 6 hours a day.
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According to the Labor Law of the United Arab Emirates, an employee is entitled to annual leave with full pay, which accrues as follows: Annual leave is 2 days a month for employees who have worked for more than 6 months but less than 1 year. For employees with more than 1 year of service in the company, the annual leave is 30 days for each year of extended service. Part-time employees are entitled to annual leave in accordance with the actual working hours and subject to a minimum of 5 working days per year.
In the UAE, employees are entitled to 90 days of annual sick leave upon completing the probationary period. The employee must notify the employer about their sickness within 3 working days. Employees cannot be dismissed while on sick leave. If they use all 90 days of sick leave and are unable to report to work afterward, employers are allowed to terminate the employment agreement.
In the United Arab Emirates, the law provides 60 days of paid maternity leave to female employees starting from the delivery date. The leave is paid with full salary for the first 45 days and half pay for the remaining 15 days. If the female employee gives birth to a sick or disabled child, the employee is entitled to an additional 30 days of maternity leave with full pay, starting at the end of maternity leave, with the option for an additional 30 days without pay.
Private-sector employees are entitled to 5 working days of paid parental leave, which can be taken at any time from the child's birth up to 6 months. This leave is available to both the mother and the father. There is no separate statutory paternity leave entitlement.
Either the employer or the employee may terminate the employment contract for any legitimate reason by providing at least 30 days' notice, but no more than 90 days' notice, in writing. The employee will continue to work during the notice period and be entitled to their normal wages upon completion of the period. The employer and employee may agree to waive the notice period, but the employee must maintain all of his rights. If the duration of the notice period is shortened, it must be the same for both parties or more favorable to the employee. The party (employer or employee) that did not abide by the notice period must pay the other party compensation equal to the employee's wage for the full notice period or the remaining time. If the employer terminates the employment contract, the employee shall have the right to be absent during the notice period for 1 working day without pay per week to search for another job. They must notify the employer at least 3 days before the absence day.
The Labor Law of the United Arab Emirates states that employees must be provided with end-of-service remuneration if they have completed 1 year of service with the employer. Foreign full-time employees who complete 1 or more years of continuous service are entitled to a severance gratuity, calculated on the basic wage. Under federal law, the gratuity is payable on termination of service, whether by resignation or by the employer, as follows: 1 to 5 years of service - 21 days' basic wage for each year of service More than 5 years of service - 30 days' basic wage for each additional year, provided the entire compensation does not exceed 2 years' pay Employers are obligated to have a bank guarantee of AED 3,000 for each employee or an insurance policy that covers every employee's severance entitlements in the case of bankruptcy. Employers can register with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation for a voluntary program that is an alternative to the statutory end-of-service benefits. It is known as the Savings Scheme. In this program, employers contribute 5.83% of an employee's basic wage monthly for any employee with less than 5 years of service. The contribution rate increases to 8.33% for employees with 5 years or more of service.
In the United Arab Emirates, 2 federal pension schemes are currently in operation, depending on when an Emirati national first entered the workforce. For employees registered before October 31, 2023, the standard retirement age is 60 years. An employee becomes entitled to a pension upon reaching age 60 with a minimum of 15 years of contributions. For employees registered after October 31, 2023, the minimum retirement age is 55 years, with a minimum subscription period of 30 years. Working mothers are entitled to apply for retirement at a younger age and with a shorter minimum subscription period. The pension for both schemes is calculated monthly at 60% of the pension account salary for a contribution period of 15 years, increased by 2% for each additional year of contribution beyond 15 years, up to a maximum of 100% of the pension account salary. If the service period exceeds 35 years, the employee receives a bonus equal to 3 months' salary for each additional year, calculated on the pension account salary. For the old scheme, the last pension account salary used in the calculation must not differ by more than 20% from the average pension account salary of the preceding 4 years (or the actual subscription period if shorter). The minimum pension is AED 10,000 per month. Under the new scheme, the pension account salary is calculated on the average of the last 6 years of the subscription period, or the entire contribution period if shorter. The maximum pensionable salary is AED 70,000 per month for private-sector employees and AED 100,000 per month for public-sector employees.
In the United Arab Emirates, 2 separate federal rules govern survivors' benefits depending on when the deceased insured employee first entered the workforce. The amount of the survivor's pension is equal to a percentage of the old-age or disability pension that the deceased employee was entitled to, distributed among eligible survivors. The minimum monthly benefit amounts are as follows: AED 800 (United Arab Emirates dirhams) for a widow or widower AED 600 for each surviving parent AED 400 for each remaining beneficiary For employees who joined before October 31, 2023, the distribution is fractional by category. For employees who joined on or after October 31, 2023, the distribution percentages are established as follows: 40% for the widow or widower, 40% for male and female children collectively, and 20% for the father or mother, or both. If there is more than 1 beneficiary within a category, the share is distributed equally among them. The Emirates of Sharjah and Abu Dhabi have different beneficiaries and benefit amounts.
There are 2 federal pension schemes that govern disability benefits, depending on when the insured employee first entered the workforce. For both schemes, where an insured employee suffers total disability as a result of a work-related injury or occupational disease, a pension is granted as if the employee had completed 35 years of service, or on the basis of the actual service period, whichever is longer. Where a work-related injury results in partial disability rather than total disability or death, the insured is entitled to a one-time compensation calculated as the percentage of disability sustained multiplied by AED 75,000. This is a lump sum payment to the insured, not a monthly pension. The minimum monthly pension disbursed by the GPSSA is AED 10,000 for both schemes. In the event of a work accident or occupational disease, the employer is liable to pay the employee's medical treatment expenses at government or private hospitals until the employee recovers or a disability is proven. If the injury prevents the employee from working, the employer must pay the employee's full salary for the entire treatment period or 6 months, whichever is shorter.
The United Arab Emirates does not impose personal income tax on individuals.
Work permits in the UAE are issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE). Employers must obtain a valid work permit before hiring any employee and submit an application supported by a signed employment contract. MoHRE offers multiple permit types depending on the employment arrangement. The most common include: Standard permit: Hiring employees from outside the UAE (typically valid for 2 years) Transfer permit: Moving an employee between employers Family-sponsored permit: Hiring individuals already residing in the UAE under family sponsorship Temporary / mission permits: For short-term or project-based work Part-time and freelance permits: Allow flexible or independent work arrangements Golden Visa permit: Required even for employees holding a UAE Golden Residency To obtain a work permit: The employee must be at least 18 years old The role must match the company’s licensed business activity The employer must have a valid license and no violations The worker must meet qualification or licensing requirements (if applicable) Private sector companies with 50 or more employees must reach an overall Emiratisation rate of 10% of skilled positions by December 31, 2026. "False Emiratisation" refers to employers misleading authorities about the number of Emiratis (UAE nationals) they've hired. This practice is illegal. If caught, employers face fines that increase based on the number of employees affected. Employers who hire employees who are not authorized to work for them or use work permits for a purpose other than that for which they were issued can also be penalized with a fine of no less than AED 100,000 and no more than AED 1 million.
