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Employer Penalty EstimatorUAE Labour Fine Calculator
Estimate the MOHRE penalty for a labour violation — WPS wage breaches, work-permit lapses, illegal employment, and Emiratisation shortfalls. Authority is split across three separate laws, so each violation is priced from its own instrument.
How UAE labour penalties are calculated
UAE labour penalties do not come from a single rulebook. Routine administrative fines — late wage transfers, missing contracts, lapsed work permits, accommodation defects — sit in Cabinet Resolution No. 21 of 2020, Article 3, where each breach carries a fixed amount, often per worker or per case, and several are capped at a statutory maximum. This calculator reproduces those itemised figures and multiplies them by the count you enter, applying the cap where the law sets one.
Illegal employment is a different matter entirely. Hiring a worker with no permit is penalised under the Labour Law itself — Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024 — at AED 100,000 to AED 1,000,000 per worker, far above the old immigration-law figure of AED 50,000 that it has largely superseded. Because the law states a range, an inspector decides the exact amount; we therefore display the full band rather than a single invented number.
Emiratisation obligations are policed through their own instruments. A fake or fictitious Emirati hire draws AED 20,000 to AED 100,000 per case under Cabinet Decision 43. A genuine quota shortfall in a firm of 50 or more employees triggers an escalating monthly contribution per unfilled skilled-Emirati slot under Cabinet Resolution No. 18 of 2022 — AED 9,000 a month from 1 January 2026, which is AED 108,000 over a full year for one slot. Firms of 20 to 49 employees in the 14 designated sectors face a fixed annual figure instead.
Treat every number here as indicative. The binding text is the official Arabic version of each resolution, the itemised amounts are reproduced from secondary legal summaries, and the escalation timelines have themselves been amended — Ministerial Resolution 598 of 2022 changed several deadlines, and a unified WPS deadline takes effect on 1 June 2026. For any live dispute or inspection, confirm the current figure with MOHRE and consult a licensed UAE labour lawyer.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the penalty split across three different laws?
- Administrative fines for day-to-day breaches live in Cabinet Resolution 21/2020. Illegal employment is penalised under the main Labour Law (FDL 9/2024). Emiratisation is governed by separate Cabinet decisions and resolutions. They are distinct instruments with distinct amounts, so this tool keeps them in separate groups rather than blending them.
Why do some results show a range instead of one number?
- Illegal employment and fake Emiratisation are defined in law as ranges — for example AED 100,000 to 1,000,000 per worker. The exact amount within that band is decided by the authority on the facts of the case. Showing a single figure would be misleading, so we display the full range and point you to MOHRE.
How do the caps work?
- Several administrative fines have a statutory maximum. WPS false-data fines stop at AED 50,000 in total; missing-contract and permit-renewal fines stop at AED 2,000 each. When your count would push the figure above the cap, the calculator shows the capped amount and flags that the cap applied.
How is the Emiratisation quota shortfall priced?
- For firms of 50 or more employees, an unfilled skilled-Emirati slot accrues a monthly contribution that has risen each year — AED 6,000 in 2023, 7,000 in 2024, 8,000 in 2025, and 9,000 a month from 1 January 2026, which is AED 108,000 a year per slot. Firms of 20 to 49 employees in the 14 designated sectors pay a fixed annual amount instead.
Can I rely on this figure for a MOHRE dispute?
- No. These are indicative estimates reproduced from secondary summaries; the binding text is the official Arabic resolution, and figures and deadlines change. Use the estimate to understand the scale of exposure, then verify the current amount with MOHRE and get advice from a licensed labour lawyer before acting.
Important: figures are indicative
The official Arabic text of Cabinet Resolution No. 21 of 2020 (and of every other instrument referenced here) prevails over any English summary. These itemised amounts are reproduced from secondary legal summaries; escalation timelines have also changed (Ministerial Resolution 598/2022), and a new unified WPS deadline takes effect on 1 June 2026. This calculator is not legal advice and does not replace a MOHRE determination. Confirm current figures directly with MOHRE and consult a licensed UAE labour lawyer for any specific case.
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Open toolOfficial source:MOHRE (Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation)
Last updated: 9 June 2026