Do you lose your gratuity if you resign or are dismissed?

No. Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 gives gratuity to a full-time expatriate worker who has completed one year or more of continuous service, “upon the end of his service”. It does not reduce the amount because the worker resigned.¹

What do you get if you resign?

The same gratuity you would get if your employer ended the contract: 21 days’ basic pay for each of the first five years and 30 days’ for each year after, up to two years’ pay.¹ The UAE Government’s guidance on gratuity lists no reduction for resignation.²

You still have to work your notice period. It is the period in your contract, between 30 and 90 days. If you leave without working it, you owe your employer pay for the notice you did not work.¹

Hand in your resignation in writing and keep a copy with the date. The date your notice ends is the date your contract ends.

Did resigning used to cost you gratuity?

Yes, under the old law, Federal Law No. 8 of 1980, which the 2021 law replaced.¹

These rules come from the 1980 law.³ They are often still quoted online. They are not in the 2021 law.

If your employer quotes a one-third or two-thirds rule, ask whether it is using Article 68(3) for years you worked on an unlimited contract made under the 1980 law, and which years it applied it to.

What if you are dismissed for misconduct?

Article 44 of the law lets an employer dismiss you without notice for listed reasons, such as false documents, gross loss caused to the employer, being absent without reason for more than seven days in a row, or assault at work. The employer must first hold a written investigation and give you a written, reasoned decision.¹ Article 44 does not say you lose your gratuity.¹

Among the disciplinary penalties an employer may impose, the law lists “dismissal from service while preserving the Worker’s right to end-of-service gratuity”.¹

The 1980 law was different. Its Article 139 took away all gratuity on dismissal for misconduct.³

If your employer refuses gratuity after a dismissal, ask for the reason in writing and take it to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. The steps are in how to complain to MOHRE.

Does resigning affect anything else?

Yes, unemployment insurance. The Involuntary Loss of Employment (ILOE) scheme pays only if you lost your job for a reason other than resignation, and not after a disciplinary dismissal.⁴ See ILOE unemployment insurance.

If your employer breaks the contract or the law and does not fix it after MOHRE has notified it, you can leave without notice and keep your end of service rights. You must notify MOHRE 14 working days before you leave.¹

Before you resign, check your notice period, your start date and whether your employer pays you through the savings scheme, then use the gratuity calculator.

The small print

• Current law. Gratuity is Article 51 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021. Notice is Article 43. Dismissal without notice is Article 44. Leaving without notice while keeping your rights is Article 45. Disciplinary penalties are Article 39(1).¹
• Old law. Resignation on an unlimited contract is Article 137, resignation on a limited contract is Article 138, and loss of gratuity is Article 139 of Federal Law No. 8 of 1980.³
• Old contracts. Article 68(3) of the 2021 law lets an employer calculate gratuity under the 1980 rules for an unlimited contract made under the old law. See limited and unlimited contracts.¹
• ILOE. The conditions are in Article 9 of Cabinet Resolution No. 97 of 2022.⁴