Q: Good day, I am currently under a 2-year limited contract in Dubai, which began on March 17, 2022. I submitted my resignation on January 15, 2023, due to personal reasons, as I need to return to my home country. My employer replied on the same day that my resignation has been rejected. I will be serving my 2-month notice period, which will end on March 14, 2023, as stated in my resignation letter. I have also requested to have at least 10 days removed from my notice period, which can be deducted from my remaining leave credits. As of today, I have not received any update regarding my resignation, except for my direct manager replying to the rejection email from our HR department. - When will my notice period start? - Will I be liable to pay early termination compensation to my employer even if I serve my notice period? - Will I be entitled to a 1-year gratuity, since my resignation has not been acknowledged until now, and my notice period will end around my 1st year in the company? Kindly advise. Thank you!

Q: Hi, I was working in a private clinic and I submitted my resignation through email and even informed the owner on WhatsApp and worked till the end of my notice period. I have asked my company to cancel my visa since the beginning of my last working week and have sent them repeated calls and even emailed them to cancel my visa. I told them that I will be leaving Dubai on 22/10/2020 so they should cancel my visa before that but they did not cancel my visa and they kept on delaying it. Now, I've left UAE and I still want to cancel my visa so the owner asked me to pay for visa cancellation on WhatsApp, my friend did and they have cancelled my labour contract however my visa is still not cancelled at GDRFA. I have repeatedly sent them messages on WhatsApp, phone calls and email asking them to cancel my visa before I leave UAE on 22/10/2020 but they ignored and did not cancel my visa. My question is what should I do as the next step and how can I cancel my visa as I'm outside the UAE? Please guide me!

Q: I was working in a company for 1 year and 10 months. My visa is about to expire; in July. My contract is limited. I got a job offer in another Emirate. I requested my employer for resignation. In the beginning, he accepted and hired another employee, but lastly, he did not accept my resignation. I told him that I will serve 1 month notice period and I am willing to pay 45 days salary. Now, he is threatening me that he will block my visa. I want to know if there is a possibility of blocking my visa. Please clarify this situation and I want to know the rights.

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I am from South Africa, employed under a UAE fixed-term contract to work in Madagascar. My rotation is 12 weeks on and 3 weeks off, unpaid. I've been with them for over a year. I've just been terminated, and my employer says I'm not entitled to annual leave due to the rotational contract. Is this correct?

The UAE has adopted a major reform in its legislative system that brought about 40 new laws and amendments to the company law, criminal law, personal status, among others. The amendments aim to develop the legislative structure in various sectors, the labor law being one of these, was the most recent. We try in this article to shed light on the changes introduced with the new labor law and their significance on both, the employer and employee.

The provisions of this Law, known as "UAE Labour Law", govern the relationship between employers and employees and other labour matters in the United Arab Emirates. There are special labour related regulations applicable in some of the free zones in the UAE.

The provisions of this Decree-Law, known as "New UAE Labor Law", govern labour relations in the private sector of the United Arab Emirates. The New Labor Law repeals the previous UAE Labor Law (Federal Law No. (8) of 1980).

This Decree sets the rules and conditions for the termination of fixed-term (limited) or unlimited (not term-bound) employment contract between employer and worker in the United Arab Emirates.