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Employ in United Arab Emirates with ease.
Remote makes employment in United Arab Emirates easy. With our localized contracts, easy invoice management, and best-in-class compliance, you can grow your global team with confidence. Note that we can currently employ contractors in United Arab Emirates but our employer of record services are not yet live.
Capital city
Abu Dhabi
Currency
United Arab Emirates dirham
(د.إ, AED)Languages spoken
Arabic
Services available:
Facts & Stats
The United Arab Emirates is an elective monarchy of seven emirates crested on the Arabian peninsula.
Since oil was first discovered in 1958, the nation has rocketed to rapid growth in infrastructure, healthcare, and technology, and a tourism industry that sees over 20 million tourists visiting Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The UAE, particularly Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah, are home to a huge population of expats. Some of the world’s most talented professionals call the Emirates home and a significant portion of these workers have experience working with multi-nationals. Global employers will find a haven of talent on this small slice of Arabian land.
Capital city
Abu Dhabi
Currency
United Arab Emirates dirham
(د.إ, AED)Languages spoken
Arabic
Population size
9,890,400 (2020)
Ease of doing business
Very easy
Cost of living index
61.67 (2021)
Payroll frequency
Monthly
VAT - standard rate
5%
GDP - real growth rate
1.7% (2019)
Grow your team in United Arab Emirates with Remote
We can help you pay and manage contractors in United Arab Emirates, but note that our employer of record service is not yet available in this country. We are busy building our own local entity to provide you with the best possible employment solutions for your employees.
To employ in United Arab Emirates, companies must own a local legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solution. Developing the processes required to manage payroll, benefits, taxes, and onboarding in countries like United Arab Emirates can get complicated fast, especially without localized expertise.
If you’re looking to start hiring in a country like this, partnering with a global employment solution like Remote makes it easy for your company to employ workers quickly, cost-effectively, and in full compliance with all local legislation.
In the countries where we do offer our EOR services, Remote takes on the responsibility and legal risks of international employment so you can focus on hiring great talent and growing your business.
Employing in United Arab Emirates
Provisions for employee protections and workers’ rights are spelled out in the Labour Law of 1980 and the Federal Law No. 24 of 1981. Employees in the United Arab Emirates enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, and race.
Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include the minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your employees in the United Arab Emirates.
Competitive benefits package in United Arab Emirates
At Remote, we’re obsessed with helping you craft the best possible employee experience for your team. We are leading the way in practicing “fair equity”, which means making sure employees everywhere have access to both the required and supplemental benefits they need to thrive (and that will allow you to attract the best local talent).
We are still busy building our own entity in United Arab Emirates, but our benefits packages for all countries are tailored to fulfill the local needs of your employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:
- Health Insurance
- Dental Insurance
- Vision Insurance
- Mental Health Support
- Pension or 401(K)
- Life and Disability Insurance
Calculate the cost to hire an employee
in United Arab Emirates
Taxes in the United Arab Emirates
Learn how employment taxes affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in the United Arab Emirates.
Employer
12.5%: Social Security (basic social security plus housing allowance, charged on a minimum monthly salary of 1,000 AED and capped at 50,000 AED, i.e., $13,612.89)
Employee
5%: Social security (charged to Emiratis alone; foreigners exempt)
Types of leave
Paid time off
After the first year of employment, employees are entitled to a minimum of 30 days paid annual leave (equal to approximately 22 working days), with allowances to be paid before the vacation commences.
Public holidays
There are 7 public holidays lasting for 14 days annually.
Sick leave
After completing three months of employment, workers are entitled to 90 days of paid sick leave annually, provided a medical report is provided within the first 72 hours of illness.
The first 15 days of sick leave are fully paid at a rate of 100% of the employee’s normal wages, dropping to 50% from the 16 until the 45th day. Any sick leave exceeding 45 days is unpaid.
Maternity leave
Female employees are entitled to 45 days of fully paid maternity leave. Employees who have been employed for less than a year are entitled to just half the maternity benefits.
Paternity/parental leave
A male employee is entitled to up to 5 working days of paternity leave with full pay, which must be taken within six months from the birth date of the child.
Other leave
Hajj leave: Employees can take up to 30 days of unpaid leave to complete a pilgrimage to Mecca.
Employment termination
Termination process
Employee contracts can only be terminated according to terms spelled out in the Emirati Labour Law, and the relevant authorities must be informed accordingly.
Notice period
For unlimited term employment contracts, the minimum notice period is 1 month. The statutory maximum notice period is 3 months.
- 30 day written notice if the period of services is less than five years;
- 60 day written notice if the period of service exceeds five years; and
- 90 day written notice if the period of service exceeds 10 years.
During the probationary period, either party may terminate the employment without notice unless a probationary notice period is expressly provided in the employee's contract.
For fixed term contracts there is no obligation to provide a notice period. However, upon renewal, a notice period of between 1 -3 months must be provided for.
Severance pay
Employees who have been employed for at least a year are entitled to 21 working days’ pay for every year of employment and 30 days’ wages for each additional year, capped at two years’ pay.
Probation periods
Probation in the United Arab Emirates lasts anywhere from three to six months.
