How long can my employer take to pay my final settlement after visa cancellation?

Your former colleague has it right: the Labour Law requires the employer to pay all end-of-service entitlements within fourteen days of the contract end date. At three weeks and counting, the company is already in breach — with finance is not a legal category. Move in two steps. First, send a short written demand to HR and whoever signs off payroll: state the cancellation date, the fourteen-day rule, the amounts due — final salary, gratuity, leave encashment, anything else unpaid — and give a deadline of a few days. Written demands concentrate minds and create the record you need next. Second, if the deadline passes, file a complaint with MOHRE; you can do this through the app or call centre, and the process works even after visa cancellation and even from outside the country. Mediation resolves most of these quickly; if not, the case is referred to the labour court. Do not let it drift, either — labour claims are subject to a one-year time limit from when the entitlement fell due. If the sums are significant or the company starts inventing deductions, have a licensed UAE lawyer review the settlement calculation before you accept anything.