UAE private sector · end of service
UAE gratuity calculator
A full-time foreign worker with at least one year of continuous service gets 21 days of basic wage for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that, with part years paid in proportion, up to two years' wage in total (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 51).
Estimate, not legal advice. Law text read from mohre.gov.ae on ; Article 51 is not marked as amended in MOHRE's consolidated text.
Worked examples
One day of wage = monthly basic ÷ 30; a year = 365 days (Article 67). Service counted = days from the first to the last day of work, both included, minus unpaid days.
| Case | Basic wage | Service counted | Days of wage | Gratuity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left after 10 months | AED 10,000 | 300 days | 0 | AED 0 (under one year) |
| 3 years | AED 10,000 | 1,095 days | 3 × 21 = 63 | AED 21,000.00 |
| 3 years with 30 days of unpaid leave | AED 10,000 | 1,065 days | 61.27 | AED 20,424.66 |
| 8 years | AED 15,000 | 2,920 days | 5 × 21 + 3 × 30 = 195 | AED 97,500.00 |
| 30 years, no allowances | AED 12,000 | 10,950 days | 5 × 21 + 25 × 30 = 855 | AED 288,000.00 to AED 292,000.00 (two-year cap) |
The last row reaches the cap: 855 days of wage would be AED 342,000, but the total cannot exceed two years' wage. The law does not say whether that means 24 monthly wages (AED 288,000) or 730 days of wage (AED 292,000).
What this calculator does not cover
- Federal and local government, armed forces, police and security employees, and domestic workers: the law does not apply to them (Article 3).
- UAE nationals: their end-of-service benefits follow the pensions and social security legislation (Article 51(1)).
- Employees in the DIFC (which uses its DEWS savings scheme), ADGM, or a free zone with its own employment law.
- Part-time and job-sharing contracts: Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022, Article 30, scales the full-time gratuity by contract hours, but does not say which wage the full-time figure is based on.
- Wages paid weekly, daily or by piece (Article 51(5) and Article 23).
- Periods in the alternative end-of-service benefits system of Cabinet Resolution No. 96 of 2023, if your employer enrolled you.
- Service under an unlimited contract made under Federal Law No. 8 of 1980: Article 68(3) lets the employer calculate the gratuity under that contract.
- Deductions the employer may make for amounts due by law or court ruling (Article 51(7); Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022, Article 29).
Questions or a dispute about your gratuity: contact the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation through its labour complaints service for private-sector employees.
Questions
- How is gratuity calculated in the UAE private sector?
- A full-time foreign worker with at least one year of continuous service gets 21 days of basic wage for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that, with part years paid in proportion. The total cannot exceed two years' wage (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 51).
- Is gratuity based on basic salary or total salary?
- On the last basic wage, without allowances (Article 51(2) and 51(5)). Allowances only matter for the two-year cap, because the law defines wage as basic wage plus allowances (Article 1).
- How is one day of basic wage worked out?
- The law counts a month as 30 days and a year as 365 days (Article 67). So one day of wage is the monthly basic wage divided by 30, and part years are counted in days out of 365.
- Do I get gratuity if I worked less than a year?
- No. Article 51 pays gratuity, including for part years, only after one year of continuous service.
- Do unpaid leave days count towards gratuity?
- No. Days of unpaid absence are not counted in the length of service (Article 51(4)).
- Is there a maximum gratuity?
- Yes: the total cannot exceed two years' wage (Article 51(6)). With basic wage only, the cap starts to matter after about 25 and a half years of service. The text does not say whether two years means 24 monthly wages or 730 days of wage, so when the cap applies we show both.
- Does resigning reduce my gratuity?
- Article 51 calculates the amount from length of service and last basic wage and does not mention who ended the contract. For service under an unlimited contract made under the old Federal Law No. 8 of 1980, Article 68(3) lets the employer calculate the gratuity under that contract; this calculator does not cover that case.
- When must the employer pay it?
- Within 14 days of the end of the contract, together with wages and other entitlements (Article 53). The employer may deduct amounts due by law or court ruling (Article 51(7)).
- Who is not covered by this calculator?
- Government, armed forces, police and security employees and domestic workers (Article 3); UAE nationals (Article 51(1)); DIFC, ADGM and free zones with their own employment law; part-time contracts; wages paid weekly, daily or by piece; and periods in the alternative end-of-service benefits system.
Sources
- Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 Regarding the Regulation of Employment Relationships, and its amendments (English text published by MOHRE), Articles 1, 3, 23, 51, 53, 67, 68 and 74. In force since 2 February 2022. We also checked Article 51 in the Arabic text MOHRE publishes.
- Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022, the Implementing Regulation, Articles 29 and 30 (MOHRE notes its English version is not an official translation).
- Cabinet Resolution No. 96 of 2023 on an alternative end-of-service benefits system.
- All read on from mohre.gov.ae. The explanations on this page are ours, not the text of the law.
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