UAE gratuity for part-time and fixed-term contracts
Short answer: part-time workers get gratuity in proportion to their contracted hours compared with a full-time job. On a fixed-term contract, which is now every private-sector contract, gratuity works the same way as before: 21 days a year for five years, then 30.
Part-time workers
Since 2022, UAE law recognises part-time contracts. Article 30 of Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022 sets their gratuity as a share of what a full-time worker would get:
- Share = your contracted hours per year ÷ full-time hours per year
- Gratuity = full-time gratuity for your basic salary and service × that share
Example
A part-time worker on 20 hours a week, where full-time is 40, has a 50% share. With a basic of 8,000 AED and four years of service, the full-time gratuity would be 21 × 4 = 84 days × 266.67 = 22,400 AED. The part-time gratuity is half of that: 11,200 AED.
| Hours a week (full-time 40) | Share | Gratuity on a full-time 22,400 |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | 25% | 5,600 AED |
| 20 | 50% | 11,200 AED |
| 30 | 75% | 16,800 AED |
To use the calculator below for part-time work, enter your dates and basic salary to get the full-time figure, then multiply by your share.
Part-time annual leave
Leave is also based on hours actually worked. Every 8 hours counts as one working day, and the minimum is 5 working days of leave a year.
Fixed-term contracts
Under Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, private-sector employment contracts must be fixed-term. Older unlimited contracts had to be converted. In 2022 the original three-year maximum was removed, so a contract can now be any length the two sides agree.
What this means for gratuity:
- The rates are the same as for any contract: 21 days of basic per year for the first five years, then 30 days per year.
- Resigning does not reduce gratuity. The old rule that cut gratuity for resigning from an unlimited contract no longer exists.
- Renewing your contract with the same employer normally continues your service, so years before and after the renewal count together.
- You still need at least one year of continuous service.