How do I change jobs in the UAE?
Changing employer in the UAE is common, and it goes smoothly once you know the order: notice, final pay, then a new work permit and residence visa.
In 30 seconds
- Your contract sets your notice period: between 30 and 90 days once probation is over
- Your old employer must pay your final salary, unused leave and gratuity within 14 days of your last day
- Your new employer applies for your new work permit and residence visa, and your family’s visas follow yours
Notice30–90 daysAs your contract says, after probation
Final payWithin 14 daysOf your last day, gratuity included
Unused leavePaidAt your basic salary
Grace period60 daysIn Dubai, after a visa is cancelled
Before you resign
- Check your notice period and any non-compete clause in your contract. A non-compete can last up to 2 years, and must be limited by place and type of work
- Get the new offer in writing, with the start date, the basic salary and who pays for the new visa
- Ask the new employer how they’ll handle the switch, and when your new health insurance starts
- Still in probation? Moving to another UAE employer needs at least one month’s written notice, and the new employer pays your old employer’s recruitment costs unless you all agree otherwise
What you’re owed when you leave
| What the law says | |
|---|---|
| Final salary | Up to your last working day |
| Unused annual leave | Paid at your basic salary, including leave built up in part of a year |
| Gratuity | After a year: 21 days of basic pay for each of the first 5 years, 30 days for each year after, up to 2 years’ pay |
| When | Within 14 days of the end of your contract |
Work out your gratuity in the gratuity calculator. Some employers pay into an approved savings scheme instead, and employers in DIFC and ADGM pay into a savings plan.
Your visa and your family’s
- Your old employer cancels your work permit with the Ministry of Human Resources (MOHRE), then your residence visa
- Your new employer applies for a new work permit and residence visa. Over-18s usually need a fresh medical test
- If you sponsor your family, their visas depend on yours: a sponsor must cancel dependants’ visas before their own, then sponsor them again under the new visa
- After a visa is cancelled there’s a grace period to stay in the country: 60 days in Dubai, and up to 6 months for some kinds of residence
Plan the gap. Agree the order and dates with your new employer before you resign, so your family isn’t left between visas. If you stay past the grace period, the fine is AED 50 a day.
Money and paperwork
- Health insurance usually ends with the job. You need valid health insurance to renew a residence visa, so check your new cover starts straight away
- If a loan or credit card is linked to your salary being paid into one bank, talk to the bank before your salary moves
- Update your address and employer details with your landlord and school if they ask for them
What to do next
- Check your notice period and any non-compete clause
- Work out your gratuity in the calculator
- Agree the visa switch and start date with your new employer, in writing
Sources
- Federal Decree-Law 33 of 2021 (u.ae copy)
- u.ae: annual leave
- u.ae: gratuity calculations
- u.ae: general provisions for the residence visa
- GDRFA: residence cancellation
- GDRFA Dubai: renewing a private-sector residence permit
- ICP: renewal of residency permits
- MOHRE: alternative end-of-service scheme
- Mercer: DIFC savings plan (DEWS)