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How long is notice in the UAE?
Under Article 43 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, either party can end an unlimited contract with written notice of between 30 and 90 days. The exact figure is whatever your contract says inside that range, and it applies equally whether you resign or your employer terminates. Anything longer than 90 days is not enforceable, and a contract that says nothing defaults to 30 days. During notice you keep working and keep being paid in full, and the law gives you one unpaid day a week to look for another job if it was your employer who ended things.
Probation is different
Probation can last up to six months and cannot be extended or repeated for the same job, under Article 9. The notice rules flip while it runs. An employer who wants to let you go during probation must give 14 days' written notice. If you resign to join another employer inside the UAE you must give 30 days, and your new employer is expected to compensate the old one for recruitment costs unless they agree otherwise. If you resign to leave the country the notice drops to 14 days, but coming back to work for a different UAE employer within three months can trigger the same compensation. Leaving without serving probation notice can bring a one-year work permit ban.
Pay in lieu: when notice is not worked
If your employer ends the contract and does not want you to work the notice, they must pay you for the unserved days instead, calculated on your full wage including allowances. The same applies in reverse: if you leave without serving your notice, you owe your employer the equivalent amount, which is usually deducted from your final settlement. The calculator takes the notice period in your contract, the number of days you actually worked, and your full monthly salary, and shows both your last working day and the pay in lieu on the unserved balance.
What must be settled on your last day
Notice pay is only part of the final settlement. Your employer has 14 days from the end of the contract to pay everything owed: salary to the last day, gratuity if you passed one year, unused annual leave at basic wage, and any pay in lieu. Employers may not withhold your passport, and cancelling your visa cannot be used as leverage to make you sign a settlement you disagree with. If the numbers are wrong or late, a MoHRE complaint is free and is the normal first step. Use our gratuity and leave calculators alongside this one to check the full figure.