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How annual leave works in the UAE
Every full-time private-sector employee earns 30 calendar days of paid annual leave for each year of service, under Article 29 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021. In your first year the entitlement builds up month by month: once you pass six months you have earned two days for every month worked, and after a full year the 30 days apply in full. Leave is paid at your full wage while you take it, and your employer sets the timing in consultation with you, but cannot refuse it indefinitely or let it lapse without paying for it.
What happens to unused leave when you leave
This is where most of the money sits. If your contract ends with leave days you never took, Article 29(9) says they must be paid out, calculated on your basic wage. The calculator uses the standard 30-day month, so twelve unused days on a basic of AED 9,000 comes to AED 3,600, on top of your gratuity. Employers occasionally leave this line off the final settlement or calculate it on a lower figure, so check the number before you sign anything. Days carried over from earlier years count too, unless your contract lawfully limited carry-over and you were told in writing.
Sick leave: the 15, 30, 45 ladder
After probation you are entitled to up to 90 days of sick leave in a year, but not all of it is paid the same way. Article 31 sets a ladder: the first 15 days on full pay, the next 30 days on half pay, and the remaining 45 days unpaid. A medical report from a licensed provider is required, and your employer must be told within three days. Sick leave is not paid during probation, and a doctor's note that your condition was caused by your own misconduct can cost you the paid days. The calculator applies the ladder to the number of days you enter and shows the split.
Maternity and parental leave
Maternity leave is 60 days under Article 30: the first 45 on full pay and the last 15 on half pay, and it does not matter how long you have worked for the employer. A further 45 days of unpaid leave is available for pregnancy-related illness, and a mother of a child born with a disability or illness can take an additional 30 days on full pay. Fathers, and mothers too, get five working days of paid parental leave within six months of the birth under Article 32. It is illegal to dismiss a woman because she is pregnant or on maternity leave.