How does paid sick leave work in the UAE and what proof can my employer ask for?

After probation, you are entitled to up to ninety days of sick leave per year: the first fifteen days at full pay, the next thirty at half pay, and the remainder unpaid. During probation there is no entitlement to paid sick leave. To claim it, you must notify your employer of the illness within three working days and provide a medical report issued by a licensed medical body. A sick note from a licensed clinic is normally sufficient; your employer can reasonably ask for the formal medical certificate, but cannot keep inventing extra documents as a condition of paying what the law requires. If your week off fell after probation and you supplied a valid certificate, deducting the full week from your salary is not permitted; those days should simply draw down your paid sick-leave balance. Put your position in writing, attach the medical report, and ask HR to confirm the basis of any deduction so there is a record. If they refuse to correct it, you can raise a wage complaint with MOHRE at no cost. A licensed lawyer familiar with UAE labour practice can help if the employer continues to withhold the pay.