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In the UAE, your employer is required to settle your end-of-service dues, including gratuity, promptly after your employment ends rather than holding them indefinitely. The UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE, requires final entitlements to be paid within a short, defined period after the contract ends; you should confirm the exact current timeframe with MOHRE or in the executive regulations, as the precise day-count is set there and should be verified rather than assumed. Your final settlement should cover unpaid wages, accrued annual leave, and gratuity (if you completed at least one year), calculated at 21 days' basic wage per year for the first five years and 30 days thereafter. If your employer fails to pay within the required period or withholds part of what you are owed, you can file a labour complaint with MOHRE, which handles wage and end-of-service disputes and can refer unresolved matters onward. For a delayed or disputed settlement, you can also compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI to help recover what you are owed.

Employees in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) are governed by ADGM's own Employment Regulations, not the mainland UAE Labour Law, so the end-of-service rules differ. ADGM provides for an end-of-service gratuity for eligible employees based on length of service and basic wage, broadly similar in concept to the mainland approach, and the regime also allows for qualifying savings-scheme arrangements as an alternative to a lump-sum payout. Eligibility generally requires completing a minimum qualifying period of continuous service, and the benefit is calculated on basic salary rather than the full package. Because the precise accrual rates, qualifying period, and any savings-scheme contribution levels are set in the ADGM Employment Regulations and have been updated over time, you should confirm the current figures directly from ADGM rather than assuming the mainland 21/30-day formula applies. Check your ADGM employment contract for which arrangement covers you. For a dispute over your ADGM end-of-service entitlement or contributions, you can review the ADGM regulations or compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI for advice specific to the free zone.

Yes. In the UAE, end-of-service gratuity is calculated on your last drawn basic wage — the basic salary you were earning at the time your employment ends — not an average of your past salaries. The UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE, ties the benefit to your final basic salary, and then applies the standard accrual: 21 days of that basic wage for each of the first five years of service and 30 days for each year beyond five, capped at two years' wages. This means pay rises you received during your tenure work in your favour, because the whole accrued entitlement is calculated using your higher final basic wage rather than the lower salaries you earned in earlier years. Only basic salary counts — allowances are excluded — so a large package with a small basic component will produce a smaller gratuity. If your employer calculates gratuity on an outdated or reduced basic figure, that can be challenged. You can raise it with MOHRE or compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI to review the calculation.

No. Housing, transport, and other allowances do not count toward your end-of-service gratuity in the UAE. The UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE, calculates gratuity strictly on your basic wage, and allowances of any kind — housing, transport, utilities, telephone, or general cost-of-living supplements — are excluded from the figure. This is why two employees with the same total package can receive very different gratuities: the one with a higher basic-salary component gets more. To estimate your gratuity, find the basic-wage line in your contract and apply the formula of 21 days' basic wage per year for the first five years and 30 days per year thereafter, capped at two years' wages. Some packages are structured with a deliberately low basic salary, which reduces end-of-service liability; if you believe your basic wage was set artificially low to shrink your benefits, that can be questioned. You can raise concerns with MOHRE or compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI to review how your salary is structured.

An employer in the UAE can make only lawful, justified deductions from your gratuity or final settlement — not arbitrary ones. Under the UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE, deductions are restricted to specific, legitimate categories, such as amounts you genuinely owe the employer (for example, a documented advance or loan you agreed to repay), recovery of overpaid wages, or other liabilities permitted by law. Deductions must be properly justified and generally cannot exceed limits set by the regulations. Your employer cannot simply withhold or shrink your gratuity as a penalty for resigning, for joining a competitor, or out of dissatisfaction. Your end-of-service gratuity itself is calculated on basic wage at 21 days per year for the first five years and 30 days thereafter, capped at two years' wages, before any lawful deduction. If your employer applies deductions you do not recognise or refuses to explain them, ask for an itemised breakdown, then file a complaint with MOHRE if it is not resolved. For a contested deduction, you can compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI.

It depends on which free zone you work in. Most UAE free zones apply the federal UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE or the free zone authority, so end-of-service gratuity is calculated the same way as on the mainland: 21 days' basic wage per year for the first five years, 30 days thereafter, on basic salary, with a one-year minimum and a two-year-wage cap. However, two financial free zones — the DIFC in Dubai and the ADGM in Abu Dhabi — have their own separate employment laws. DIFC uses the DEWS savings scheme of monthly employer contributions instead of a lump-sum gratuity, while ADGM applies its own end-of-service rules under its Employment Regulations. So the key question is whether your free zone follows the federal law or operates an independent regime. Check your employment contract and the relevant free-zone authority to confirm which rules apply to you. For a free-zone-specific entitlement or dispute, you can compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI who handle that jurisdiction.

For ten years of continuous service in the UAE private sector, your gratuity combines both accrual bands. Under the UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), administered by MOHRE, the first five years accrue at 21 days' basic wage each, and the remaining five years accrue at 30 days' basic wage each. To calculate: find your daily basic wage (monthly basic salary divided by 30), multiply by 21 and then by 5 for the first five years, multiply by 30 and then by 5 for the next five years, and add the two results together. The whole calculation uses basic salary only — allowances are excluded — and your last drawn basic wage is the figure used, so pay rises during your tenure benefit the full accrual. The total remains capped at two years' wages, which a ten-year employee may approach depending on the salary structure. Unpaid leave days are not counted in the service period. MOHRE's official calculator handles the two-band split for you. If your employer applies the lower rate to your post-five-year service, you can challenge it with MOHRE or compare verified UAE employment lawyers on LEXAI.

In many cases, yes, but within limits. Under the UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), annual leave is meant to be taken in the year it is earned, but leave can be carried over or paid in lieu where the employer and employee agree or where work requirements prevented it from being taken. Employers commonly apply a carry-over cap in company policy, so the practical amount you can roll forward may depend on your contract as well as the law. What an employer cannot do is simply erase accrued leave without compensation — any leave you earned but did not take is ultimately preserved as a balance that is paid out when you leave the job. To avoid losing value, request your current leave balance in writing and clarify your employer's carry-over rule. If leave is being wiped without payment, you can raise it with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), or consult verified UAE legal professionals on LEXAI.

During annual leave in the UAE, your wage continues — you do not lose pay for taking leave you are entitled to under the Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021). For days you actually take as annual leave, you are paid your wage as you normally would be. The position differs slightly for the cash value of leave that you accrued but never took: that encashment is generally calculated on the basic wage rather than the full package, so the figure for unused-leave payout can be lower than your monthly take-home. Because pay structures vary (basic salary plus allowances), the exact amount depends on how your contract defines your wage, and you should confirm the basis applied to your settlement. If a leave-salary or encashment figure looks wrong, ask your employer for a written breakdown showing the wage basis and day count used. Unresolved disputes can go to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE). For help reviewing the math, you can compare verified UAE legal professionals on LEXAI.

Under the UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), the up-to-90-days of annual sick leave available after probation is paid in three stages rather than at one flat rate. For the first 15 days of sick leave you receive your full wage. For the next 30 days you receive half your wage. Any sick days taken beyond that, up to the 90-day limit, are without pay. The bands apply across the year, so if you take sick leave in separate spells they count cumulatively toward the same 90 days. To be paid, your sick leave normally must be backed by a medical certificate from an approved health authority and notified to your employer promptly. If your illness arose from your own serious misconduct, you may not be entitled to sick pay. Should an employer pay less than the correct band or refuse documented sick leave, request a written explanation and, if needed, file a complaint with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE). Verified UAE legal professionals on LEXAI can also assist.