UAE Employment Contracts After the 2022 Labour Law Reform

Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 (effective February 2022) rewrote significant parts of UAE employment law — and a surprising number of employment contracts still in circulation haven't caught up. If yours was drafted before the reform, or copied from a template that was, here's what's likely out of date.

Limited Contracts Are Now the Only Contract Type

Unlimited-term contracts, once common, no longer exist for new hires — every employment contract must now be for a fixed term, capped at three years and renewable. Employers still running unlimited contracts from before 2022 should have converted them; if yours hasn't been, that's worth raising, since it affects notice periods and end-of-service calculations.

Notice Periods Have a Defined Range

The law sets notice periods between 30 and 90 days, agreed between employer and employee within that range. A contract that specifies something outside it, or is silent on notice entirely, doesn't reflect current law — and defaults set by the statute will generally apply regardless of what an outdated contract says.

Probation Periods Are Capped and Portable

Probation is now capped at six months, and an employee resigning during probation to join another UAE employer only needs to give one month's notice, provided the new employer confirms the offer in writing. This is a meaningful change for anyone whose contract still reflects older probation terms.

Part-Time, Temporary, and Flexible Work Are Formally Recognised

The reform introduced defined categories for part-time, temporary, and flexible work arrangements — not just the traditional full-time model. If your business engages contractors or part-time staff under informal arrangements, it's worth checking whether those relationships should now be documented under one of these categories.

Non-Compete Clauses Have Real Limits

Post-employment non-compete clauses are enforceable, but only if reasonable in duration, geographic scope, and the type of work restricted — and the law caps them at two years. A clause that goes further than necessary to protect a legitimate business interest risks being narrowed or struck out entirely if challenged.

What This Means in Practice

None of this requires panic, but it does mean older contracts are worth a proper review — both to protect the business from unenforceable clauses, and to make sure employees are being offered what the law actually requires. A contract that predates 2022 is not automatically invalid, but relying on its exact terms without checking them against current law is a real risk on both sides.