Resignation or termination: does the gratuity change under the 2021 labour law?
Many workers ask whether the gratuity is lower if they resign than if the employer ends the contract. This guide answers from the text of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, the labour law in force for the private sector, and says plainly what could not be checked. It deals with the gratuity of a full-time foreign worker; the gratuity calculator shows the working.
What Article 51 says about the reason
Article 51(2) gives the gratuity to a full-time foreign worker who "completed a year or more in continuous service", at 21 days of basic wage for each of the first 5 years and 30 days for each year after that. The Article names one condition on the worker, a year of continuous service, and one limit, two years' wage in total. It does not mention how or why the contract ended, and it has no clause that cuts the amount for a resignation. The same scale applies at the end of service whoever ended the contract.
On a basic wage of AED 10,000 that scale gives AED 21,000 at 3 years, AED 35,000 at 5 years and AED 85,000 at 10 years, for a resignation and for a dismissal alike.
What does depend on how the contract ends
The way the contract ends changes other things, mainly notice and its cost.
| How the contract ends | What the Decree-Law says | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Either side ends it with written notice | Notice of 30 to 90 days as agreed in the contract. The worker keeps the full wage during it | 43(1), (2) |
| Notice is not given or not completed | The party at fault pays the other a notice period allowance equal to the wage for the full notice period or the part left, even if no damage resulted | 43(3) |
| Worker leaves without notice for a listed employer breach | The worker leaves "while retaining his rights upon end of service": breach of obligations after a 14 working day notice to the Ministry, assault or harassment, grave danger, or a fundamentally different job | 45 |
| Employer dismisses without notice | Allowed only in the ten listed cases, after a written investigation, with a written and reasoned decision | 44 |
| Dismissal for a complaint or lawsuit proven valid | Compensation set by the court, never more than 3 months of the last wage, and the worker keeps the right to the notice allowance and the end of service benefits | 47 |
| Termination as a disciplinary sanction | The sanction is listed as "termination of service while preserving the worker's right of end of service benefits" | 39(1)(g) |
| Worker leaves for an illegitimate reason before the contract ends | No new work permit for one year | 50(1) |
Two points follow. A resignation with proper notice does not touch the gratuity. A resignation without notice can cost a notice allowance, which is a separate payment from the gratuity under Article 43(3). Article 51(7) allows the employer to deduct amounts payable under the law or a court judgment from the gratuity, so an unpaid allowance can reduce what is paid out.
What this check could not confirm
The Executive Regulation (Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022) could not be opened here, so any condition it adds to the gratuity is not covered. The Decree-Law text read is the English version on the UAE Government portal, which is marked as not an official translation. This guide also makes no comparison with the earlier labour law, because that law was not part of the check. If your case turns on a dismissal for misconduct or an abscond report, read Articles 44 and 50 and ask the Ministry (MOHRE) or your employer's payroll team.
Payment and time limit
Whatever the reason, Article 53 requires the employer to pay wages and all other entitlements within 14 days of the end of the contract. A dispute is first put to the Ministry under Article 54, which tries to settle it and then refers it to the court.
Calculate the gratuitySources
- UAE Government portal: Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 (English text, Articles 39, 43 to 47, 50, 51, 53, 54)
- UAE Government portal: Terminating employment contracts and arbitrary dismissal
- UAE Government portal: End of service benefits for workers in the private sector
- Every rule used, with its source and check date: Sources and rates
This calculator is general information only. It follows Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 as listed on the Sources page, and your contract, payroll and personal situation may differ. Rules as at 2 November 2026.