Work and employment in the UAE
Jobs in mainland UAE follow Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 Regulating Labour Relations. The DIFC and ADGM financial free zones have their own employment laws, with their own gratuity rules. Check your contract to see which applies. This section covers contracts, pay, leave, gratuity and disputes, each rule checked against the law.
Verified against Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 Regulating Labour Relations (consolidated English text, last updated 29 Jul 2024), Art. 51(2)(a)-(b), UAE Federal Government (uaelegislation.gov.ae) ; DIFC Employment Law No. 2 of 2019 (consolidated), Art. 66(1), DIFC Authority ; ADGM Employment Regulations 2024 (consolidated, incl. Amendment No. 1 2025), s. 61(1), Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM rulebook) , on .
Tools
End-of-service gratuity
Open the gratuity calculatorIn mainland UAE, a foreign full-time worker with one year or more of continuous service gets 21 days of basic wage for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that[source]. The total cannot exceed two years' wage[source], and it is due with your other final pay within 14 days of the end of the contract[source].
In the DIFC, gratuity covers only service before the Qualifying Scheme Commencement Date[source]. In ADGM, an employee with one year or more of continuous service gets gratuity whatever the reason for termination[source]. The calculator does not cover the DIFC or ADGM yet.
Topics in this section (23)
Each topic becomes a page once it is checked against a primary source.
- Searching for a job; eServices
- Job offers and the employment process (expatriates)
- Work permits: 13 MoHRE types incl
- Contracts: duration and models (full-time, part-time, temporary, flexible)
- Professional skill levels
- Working hours, overtime, Ramadan hours
- Wages and WPS
- Leave types (annual, sick, maternity/paternity, etc.)
- Working for two employers / side work
- Health and safety; work injury compensation
- Workers' rights, anti-discrimination, gender equality at work
- Employing domestic workers
- Unemployment insurance (ILOE)
- Insurance against defaulting employers
- Labour disputes
- Disciplinary rules
- Termination, notice, arbitrary dismissal, changing jobs
- End-of-service gratuity; voluntary Savings Scheme alternative
- One-year work permit ban
- Pensions (GCC nationals, Emiratis) vs expats
- Government-sector jobs (federal hours, leave, laws)
- Labour accommodation
- Free zone employment: own rules and authority per zone (DIFC, ADGM have own employment law