How is gratuity worked out if you work part time or on a temporary contract?
A part-time or job-sharing worker gets the full-time gratuity multiplied by their contract hours as a share of full-time hours. A temporary contract, or any contract under one year, earns no gratuity.
You get a share of the full-time gratuity, in proportion to your hours. The Labour Law leaves gratuity for work that is not full time to its Executive Regulations, and Article 30 of those regulations sets the rule.12
How is part-time gratuity calculated?
In three steps, for a part-time or job-sharing contract:
- Divide the yearly working hours in your contract by the yearly hours of a full-time contract.
- Multiply by 100 to get a percentage.
- Apply that percentage to the gratuity a full-time worker would get.23
The full-time gratuity is 21 days’ basic pay for each of the first five years and 30 days’ for each year after, capped at two years’ pay.1
| Step | Working |
|---|---|
| Share of full-time hours | 1,040 ÷ 2,080 × 100 = 50% |
| Full-time gratuity | 4 × 21 days × (AED 8,000 ÷ 30) = AED 22,400 |
| Your gratuity | 50% of AED 22,400 = AED 11,200 |
Ask your employer for the yearly hours in your contract and the yearly hours it treats as full time. Those two numbers decide your share. The gratuity calculator takes the share as an input.
The regulations do not say whether the full-time gratuity is worked out on your own basic pay or on the full-time basic pay for your job.2 The example uses full-time pay. Ask your employer which figure it uses, and enter that figure in the calculator.
Do you get gratuity on a temporary contract?
No. The regulations say end of service pay does not apply to work under a temporary model or where the duration is less than a year.2 The UAE Government describes the rule as no gratuity for temporary employment lasting less than one year.3
A full-time worker also needs one year of continuous service before any gratuity is due.1
Check whether your work permit and contract say temporary, part time or full time. The label decides which rule applies.
Does the one-year rule apply to part-time work?
The regulations apply the percentage to “the value of the end of service pay under a full-time employment contract”.2 A full-time contract earns gratuity only after one year of continuous service.1 The regulations do not say whether part-time service is counted in calendar time or in hours worked. Ask MOHRE if your hours changed during your service.
The small print
- Articles. Article 52 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 hands gratuity for other work types to the Executive Regulations. Article 30 of Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022 sets the percentage method and the exclusion for temporary work and work under one year.12
- Job sharing. Article 5 of the regulations says workers on a shared-work model are treated under the rules for part-time jobs.2
- Language. The English texts are translations. The Arabic texts are the official ones.
Sources
3
1UAE Legislation, Federal Decree-Law No. (33) of 2021 Regulating Labour Relations, English text as amended to 29 July 2024. The Arabic text prevails.. Last checked 12 Nov 2026. Source document: Federal Decree-Law No. (33) of 2021 Regulating Labour Relations
2UAE Legislation, Cabinet Resolution No. (1) of 2022 Concerning the Executive Regulations of Federal Decree-Law No. (33) of 2021. Last checked 12 Nov 2026. Source document: Cabinet Resolution No. (1) of 2022 Concerning the Executive Regulations of Federal Decree-Law No. (33) of 2021
3UAE Government (u.ae), End of service benefits for workers in the private sector. Last checked 12 Nov 2026. Source document: End of service benefits for workers in the private sector
- Owner
- Pensions.ae research team
- Last review
- Next review due
- 11 May 2027
- Status
- Published