The UAE has recently introduced significant updates to its employment laws to better define the rights and responsibilities of both employers and employees.
One key change is that companies are prohibited from hiring individuals who are in the UAE on a visit visa.
If you’re visiting and receive a job offer, you should not start working while on a visit visa, even if your employer assures you of a future residency permit. Instead, the employer must follow the correct procedures from the beginning.
The UAE government clearly states on its official website that it is illegal to work on a visit or tourist visa. Expats offered employment in the UAE are only allowed to begin working once the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) issues an official offer letter.
The decree establishes fines ranging from Dhs100,000 to a substantial Dhs1 million for employers who hire workers without the appropriate permit.
Under the new provisions, a fine ranging from Dh100,000 to Dh1 million will be imposed on employers for the following violations:
- Employing a worker without a work permit or bringing them without providing any job
- Closing a business without settling right of workers
- Taking part in fraudulent labour acts including fraudulent employment or fictitious Emiratisation
- Employing a minor in violation of the law
- Engaging in any act of circumvention of the laws or regulations governing the labour market, including fictitious employment.
Additionally, The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation is now authorised to make a settlement provided that the employer pays 50 per cent of the minimum value of the fine and pays back to the government the financial incentives obtained by the fake employees.
The new decree stipulates that any criminal proceedings for fictitious employment, including fake Emiratisation, can only be initiated at the request of the Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation or his/her authorised representative.
The decree also states that any disputes between employers and employees should be referred to the Court of First Instance — rather than the Court of Appeal — if there is a disagreement with the decision made by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation in resolving the dispute. This applies to all cases except for those disputes that have been adjusted or reserved for the issuance of a judgement.
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