Resignation under UAE labour law: notice period and your rights

Notice period rules when you resign

Article 43 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 lets either party end the contract for a legitimate reason by giving written notice. The notice is the period in your contract: at least 30 days and no more than 90.

The contract stays in force during notice. You're paid your full last wage and must work if your employer asks. Notice must be equal for both sides unless a difference favours the worker. Both sides can agree to waive or shorten it, with the worker's rights for the agreed period preserved.

The law covers the private sector. It doesn't cover federal or local government employees, military, police and security staff, or domestic workers; domestic workers fall under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022. DIFC and ADGM have their own employment laws. See our guide to UAE labour law.

Resigning during probation

Probation can last up to six months, once per employer. Article 9 sets your notice by where you're going:

• Joining another UAE employer. At least one month's written notice. The new employer pays your current employer the cost of recruiting or contracting you, unless they agree otherwise.
• Leaving the UAE. At least 14 days' written notice. If you return with a new work permit within three months, the new employer pays that compensation, unless you and your original employer agree otherwise.

Skip these rules and you pay your employer your wage for the notice period, or what's left of it. A foreign worker who leaves the UAE without following Article 9 can't get a work permit for one year from leaving. The government portal's ban page lists resigning in probation, where the employer hasn't breached the contract, as a ground.

MOHRE may waive that bar for some groups, including needed skill levels, workers sponsored by their parents and Golden residence holders (Executive Regulation, Article 11). A non-compete clause doesn't apply if the contract ends in probation (Article 12).

Leaving without notice: costs and legal exceptions

Leave without serving notice and Article 43 makes you pay your employer a notice allowance: your wage for the whole period or the unserved part, even if it suffered no harm. Unexcused absence of more than seven consecutive days, or 20 non-consecutive days, allows dismissal without notice (Article 44), and a proven work abandonment report can bring a one-year work permit ban.

Article 45 lets you leave without notice, keeping your end-of-service rights, if:

• Your employer breaches the contract or law. You notify MOHRE 14 business days before leaving, and the employer doesn't fix it after MOHRE's notice.
• You're assaulted or harassed at work by the employer or their legal representative, and report it to the authorities and MOHRE within five business days of being able to.
• There's a grave danger to your safety or health that the employer knew of and didn't remove.
• You're given fundamentally different work without your written consent, except in cases of necessity.

How to resign properly, step by step

• 1. Read your contract. Note the notice period, probation end date and any non-compete clause.
• 2. Resign in writing. Date the letter, state your last day and keep proof it was received.
• 3. Settle the notice. Serve it in full, or get any waiver or shorter notice agreed in writing.
• 4. Work your notice if asked. You're paid your full wage until the contract ends.
• 5. Check your final settlement. Wages, gratuity and other entitlements are due within 14 days.
• 6. Sign the MOHRE cancellation. You sign a letter confirming you've received your wages and end-of-service benefits, so check the figures first.
• 7. Plan your visa. Note when your residence is cancelled and when your grace period ends.

Gratuity and final settlement after you resign

Article 51 pays foreign full-time workers gratuity on their last basic wage after one year of continuous service, and has no reduction for resigning.

Part years count pro rata after year one, unpaid absence doesn't count, and amounts you owe under the law or a court judgment can be deducted. Article 53 gives your employer 14 days from the contract's end to pay all wages and entitlements. See how gratuity is worked out, or use our gratuity calculator for an estimate.

Visa, work permit and non-compete after you resign

The government portal says your employer first applies to MOHRE to cancel your labour contract and work permit, which you sign, then cancels your residence. Grace periods run up to six months by category, and overstaying costs AED 50 a day. See visa cancellation. Under Article 27 of the Executive Regulation, you can join a new employer when the contract ends under Article 42, which covers resigning with notice.

Non-compete: Article 10 allows one only if your job gave access to clients or trade secrets, limited in time, place and type of work, for up to two years. The employer must sue within a year of discovering a breach and prove the damage. You're released if you or your new employer pays up to three months' wage with your former employer's written approval.

Global Sky PRO prepares resignation and HR letters, MOHRE applications and cancellations; the authorities decide each one. We're not a law firm. MOHRE handles labour complaints and decides claims up to AED 50,000, which either side can challenge in court; others go to court. We can help you file a labour complaint, and employers can use our HR and payroll services.