Annual leave, sick leave and end-of-service basics for UAE private-sector employees

The short version

UAE Labour Law sets out annual leave, sick leave and end-of-service gratuity for private-sector employees in some detail on the government's own U.AE portal. The rules below follow that page directly. They are general entitlements, not a substitute for checking an individual contract or getting legal advice on a specific situation.

Annual leave

An employee becomes eligible for annual leave after completing six months of service. Between six months and one year, leave accrues at roughly two days a month. Once an employee passes one full year, they are entitled to 30 fully paid days a year. Part-time employees accrue leave based on the hours they actually work, under their contract and the law's Executive Regulations.

A few specific rules from the official page:

• Carry-over: unused leave can roll into the next year only with the employer's consent, under the company's own rules.
• Time limit: an employer cannot stop an employee from using accrued leave for more than two years.
• Scheduling: leave is generally meant to be used in the year it is earned, with the employer setting dates in agreement with the employee and giving at least one month's notice.
• Overlap: official public holidays count toward annual leave where the law or an agreement specifies, and sick leave that overlaps with annual leave also counts, unless the contract or company rules say otherwise.
• On termination: an employee is paid for the leave earned for the fraction of their final year worked, calculated on basic salary only.

Sick leave

Sick leave is only available once probation ends; the official page does not describe a standard paid sick-leave entitlement during probation, though unpaid sick leave may be granted with employer approval and a medical report showing it is necessary.

After probation, an employee is entitled to up to 90 days of sick leave a year, paid in three tiers:

To use it, the employee must notify the employer of the illness within three days and submit a medical report from a recognised medical entity, which the official page attributes to Article 31 of the UAE Labour Law. Paid sick leave does not apply if the illness results from the employee's own misconduct, such as alcohol or drug use, or from violating safety rules they had been told about. Separate rules apply to occupational illness, which this general sick-leave entitlement does not cover.

End-of-service gratuity

An employee must complete at least one continuous year of service before any gratuity is due; under one year, nothing is owed. Days of unpaid absence do not count toward that qualifying period. This gratuity regime applies to expatriate workers; UAE nationals fall under separate pension and social-security legislation instead.

Where gratuity is due, it is calculated as:

• 21 days' basic salary for each of the first five years of service.
• 30 days' basic salary for each year beyond the first five.
• A partial final year is paid for the fraction actually served.

Gratuity is capped at two years' total wages, and is calculated on the employee's last basic salary only, excluding allowances such as housing, transport, utilities or furniture. An employer may deduct any money the employee owes them from the final gratuity payment. The official page points to Articles 51 to 53 of the UAE Labour Law for further detail, and states that all end-of-service entitlements, gratuity included, must be paid within 14 days of the contract ending.

What this does not cover

• Free-zone-specific leave or gratuity rules, which can differ from the mainland regime described here.
• The separate pension and social-security system for UAE nationals.
• Maternity, paternity, parental, study, or bereavement leave, which U.AE documents separately from the three entitlements covered in this guide.

General consumer information only, not legal advice. Employment law and individual contract terms can vary, so check the current UAE Labour Law and your specific contract, or get professional advice, before relying on these figures for a real situation.