UAE labour contract: MOHRE rules, offer letter and how to check yours

What a UAE labour contract is and who it covers

Article 8 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 requires your employer to conclude a contract with you in the agreed work pattern, in two copies: one kept by the employer and one handed to you. No one may work in the UAE without a MOHRE work permit (Article 6).

Article 7 and Executive Regulation Article 5 set six work patterns, each with a MOHRE template: full-time, part-time, temporary, flexible, remote and job sharing. Switching pattern needs both sides' agreement, settled dues and MOHRE's procedures (Executive Regulation, Article 10(3)).

The law covers the private sector. The government portal says free zone staff are generally governed by their free zone authority's employment regulations together with this law; DIFC and ADGM have their own frameworks. Domestic workers fall under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022, and government staff are excluded. See our uae labour law guide.

Fixed-term contracts, renewal and old unlimited contracts

Every contract is for a definite period, renewable by agreement: Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2022 (15 September 2022) rewrote Article 8(3) that way, and MOHRE says the law sets no limit on duration. The portal's job offer page still mentions a three-year maximum; the amended law text sets none.

A renewal is added to your original period when counting continuous service (Article 8(4)). If the term ends and you both keep working without a new agreement, the contract is extended on the same terms (Article 8(5)).

Unlimited contracts made under the old 1980 law had to become fixed-term. Article 68 gave employers one year from 2 February 2022 and let the Minister extend it; Ministerial Resolution No. 27 of 2023 moved the deadline to 31 December 2023, which has passed.

What the MOHRE contract and offer letter contain

Looking for a sample? Employers use MOHRE's own standard offer and contract, completed in the ministry's system (Executive Regulation, Article 10). The table summarises what they contain.

Extra clauses are allowed if they comply with the law. The government portal says job offers, contracts and annexes are usually in Arabic and English, and since 2016 a worker can ask for a third language from nine options, such as Hindi, Urdu and Malayalam. If the Arabic and another language differ, the Arabic prevails (Article 66).

From offer letter to signed contract

The government portal describes this route for a worker hired from abroad:

• 1. Employer issues the offer. MOHRE's standard job offer, signed electronically and sent to you.
• 2. You sign it. Skill levels 4 and 5 may use a fingerprint. Already in the UAE? You sign before the employer applies for initial approval.
• 3. Employer applies for the work permit. The signed offer is attached, and the contract must conform to it (Ministerial Resolution No. 46 of 2022).
• 4. You both sign on arrival. MOHRE registers it as your employment contract. Your employer submits it to MOHRE: MOHRE's service page allows 60 days from entry or status change; the portal's job offers page says 14 days from arrival or status change.
• 5. Keep your copy. Your employer must keep the offer and contract for at least two years after the job ends.
• 6. Finish the visa. See our employment visa service.

After signing, your employer can't change the offer's terms without your consent, and the portal says MOHRE must approve any clause change.

How to check or download your labour contract

Your signed copy is your first record. To see what MOHRE holds, use its inquiry services page, inquiry.mohre.gov.ae:

• 1. Choose the service. 'View Approved Contract' shows your registered contract; 'Enquiry for Job Offer' checks an offer.
• 2. Check the permit too. 'Electronic Work Permit Information' and 'Application Status' are on the same list.
• 3. Enter the details asked for. Fields include transaction number, person code, date of birth and company number, depending on the service.
• 4. Save it. Print or save the result and keep it with your signed copy.

MOHRE's call centre is 600590000, available 24/7. Our labour card guide explains the work permit itself.

Probation and non-compete clauses

Probation is optional: up to six months, once per employer (see probation period). For ending a contract, see termination and resignation.

A non-compete clause is lawful only if your job lets you know the employer's clients or business secrets. It must be limited in time, place and type of work, and can't exceed two years after the contract ends (Article 10). It's void if the employer ends the contract in breach of the law, and doesn't apply if the contract ended for a reason attributable to the employer (Executive Regulation, Article 12). In court, the employer must prove the damage.

You're exempt if you or a new employer pay the former employer compensation of up to three months of your agreed wage, with its written consent, if the contract ends during probation, or if your profession is in a category exempted by ministerial resolution.

Global Sky PRO prepares MOHRE offer letters and employment contracts, submits them with the work permit paperwork and files amendments; MOHRE decides each application. We're not a law firm. MOHRE handles complaints and decides claims up to AED 50,000, which either side can challenge in court. See our hr and payroll services.