United Arab Emirates
Make employment in United Arab Emirates easy. Let us handle payroll, benefits, taxes, compliance, and even stock options for your team in United Arab Emirates, all in one easy-to-use platform.
- Capital City
Abu Dhabi
- Currency
United Arab Emirates dirham (د.إ, AED)
- Languages
Arabic
- Population size
9,890,400
Facts & Stats
- Capital City
Abu Dhabi
- Currency
United Arab Emirates dirham (د.إ, AED)
- Languages
Arabic
- Population size
9,890,400
- 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)
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.
Grow your team in United Arab Emirates with Remote
Looking to hire employees in the United Arab Emirates? Companies hiring in the United Arab Emirates must either own a local legal entity or work with a global employment platform like Remote that can legally provide employment services in the country.
Remote can employ team members in the United Arab Emirates and keep you compliant at all times. Remote can hire, onboard, and pay your the United Arab Emirates team so you don't have to set up local HR services in the region. Remote also makes it easy to pay contractors in the United Arab Emirates. Sign up now to get started or talk to an expert for more details.
Risks of misclassification
United Arab Emirates, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in United Arab Emirates may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.
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.
13 Public holidays
Competitive benefits package in United Arab Emirates
At Remote, we’re passionate about helping you craft the best possible employee experience for your team. We are leading the way in developing globally competitive benefits programs. This means making sure employees everywhere have access to both the required and supplemental benefits they need to thrive, and your company has the localised expertise to needed attract and keep the best global talent.
Our benefits packages in the United Arab Emirates are tailored to fulfil the local needs of 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
Taxes in United Arab Emirates
Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in United Arab Emirates.
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)
Types of leave
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 holiday commences.
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
The minimum notice period is 1 month. The statutory maximum notice period is 3 months.
During the probationary period, either party may terminate the employment by giving the other 14 days' notice.
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 of an employee in the United Arab Emirates may not exceed six months.
Fair Pricing in United Arab Emirates
Employer of Record
Hire and pay your global team
Starting at US$599/month
for annual plans
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Satisfaction guaranteed
No deposits or hidden fees
Zero onboarding or offboarding fees
Compliant equity incentives support including withholding and reporting
Built-in security and compliance
Fast onboarding (average 2-3 days)
Flexible, localised benefits
Contractor Management
Compliantly onboard and pay contractors
US$29
per contractor/month
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Only pay for contractors you actively work with
Work with contractors in 200+ countries
Create, edit, and sign tailored, localised contracts
Approve contractor invoices with one click or auto-pay
Transparent payments with complete visibility
Global Payroll
Consolidate your multi-country payroll
US$50
per employee/month
Top features
Reduce costs by centralising payroll management
Ensure local compliance for every country
Direct support from in-house local payroll experts
Accurate, on-time, compliant payroll to level-up your employee experience
Tax and labour authority reporting handled for you
Top features
Guided onboarding and offboarding
Employee profile and document management
Time and attendance (time off and tracking)
Expense management and reimbursement
Employee self-serve on the platform and mobile app