Employer of Record · EMEA
Employer of Record (EOR) in United Arab Emirates
A UAE Employer of Record is a licensed local company that sponsors your worker's residence visa and employs them on a MOHRE-registered contract, paying salaries through the Wage Protection System. TalentStores matches and orchestrates vetted UAE EOR partners.
- Time to hire
- 2–6 weeks
- Gratuity
- 21–30 days/yr
- Payroll cycle
- Monthly (WPS)
- Currency
- AED
Why hire in United Arab Emirates
The UAE is the commercial gateway to the Gulf and increasingly a regional headquarters market in its own right, with a largely expatriate professional workforce, no personal income tax and strong demand for enterprise sales, fintech and infrastructure talent.
The catch is sponsorship: almost every employee needs a work permit and residence visa tied to a licensed employer, plus mainland or free-zone establishment cards, Wage Protection System payroll and end-of-service gratuity provisioning. An EOR partner holds the licence and sponsors the visa.
Gulf market access
A UAE base supports sales and delivery across Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the wider GCC.
Visa sponsorship without a licence
The partner sponsors the residence visa and work permit under its own establishment.
No trade licence to obtain
Skip mainland or free-zone company setup, office lease requirements and establishment cards.
WPS-compliant payroll
Salaries paid through the Wage Protection System exactly as the Ministry requires.
Gratuity provisioned
End-of-service benefit accrued monthly rather than surfacing as a lump sum at exit.
Expatriate-ready onboarding
Medical, Emirates ID and labour-card steps sequenced so start dates hold.
Compliance and statutory requirements in United Arab Emirates
Leave and holiday entitlements, social security, termination rules and payroll cadence — the obligations your employment partner carries on your behalf.
Paid leave
Thirty calendar days of annual leave after one year of service; pro-rated between six and twelve months.
Public holidays
Around thirteen to fifteen days a year, with Islamic holidays set by moon sighting.
Social security
Pension contributions apply to UAE and GCC nationals only; expatriate employees have no social insurance, replaced by end-of-service gratuity.
End-of-service gratuity
21 days' basic pay per year for the first five years, 30 days per year thereafter, capped at two years' total pay.
Termination rules
Fixed-term contracts under the current labour law with 30–90 days' notice, defined grounds for termination and compensation for arbitrary dismissal.
Payroll cycle
Monthly, paid through the Wage Protection System within the statutory window, with MOHRE-registered contracts underpinning every payment.
Cost of employment in United Arab Emirates
Salary is only part of the number. These are the components that make up fully loaded cost, all modelled in AED before you extend an offer.
Basic salary and allowances
UAE packages split basic salary from housing and transport allowances — gratuity is calculated on basic only.
End-of-service gratuity
Accrue roughly 5.8–8.3% of basic salary annually depending on service length.
Visa and permit costs
Work permit, residence visa, medical testing and Emirates ID, renewed every two years.
Medical insurance
Mandatory health cover for the employee, and for dependants in some emirates.
Air ticket allowance
Annual repatriation or home-leave ticket, customary in most expatriate packages.
EOR and platform fee
Per-employee partner fee plus the TalentStores orchestration fee, quoted separately.
How TalentStores and the partner network deliver it
TalentStores is not the employer of record. We are the orchestration layer that selects, contracts and manages the licensed employment partner in United Arab Emirates — and gives you one system of record across every country you hire in.
Partner matched, not assumed
We match your role and headcount to vetted employment partners licensed in United Arab Emirates, and show you the fee, coverage and service levels side by side before you commit.
One contract, one platform
You contract with TalentStores. Partner agreements, employment contracts and amendments are generated, signed and stored against the employee record.
Cost modelled before offer
Statutory contributions, mandatory benefits, accruals and partner fees are calculated up front, so the offer you approve is the cost you actually carry.
Onboarding orchestrated
Document collection, background checks, registrations and start-date readiness run as a tracked workflow instead of an email thread.
Payroll and settlement in one bill
Every partner invoice flows through the commercial engine, reconciled per employee and settled on a single consolidated bill.
Compliance monitored continuously
Statutory changes in United Arab Emirates are pushed by the partner network and reflected in your cost model and contracts, not discovered at audit.
EOR in United Arab Emirates: frequently asked questions
Can an EOR sponsor a UAE residence visa?
Yes. That is the main reason to use one. The licensed partner sponsors the work permit and residence visa under its own establishment card, so you do not need a trade licence or office lease.
How long does UAE onboarding take?
Two to six weeks for a new visa, covering entry permit, medical testing, Emirates ID and labour card. Candidates already on a transferable UAE visa can start much faster.
What is end-of-service gratuity?
A statutory lump sum paid on separation — 21 days of basic pay per year of service for the first five years and 30 days per year after that, capped at two years' total pay. It should be accrued monthly, not funded at exit.
Is there income tax or social insurance for expatriates?
There is no personal income tax, and social insurance applies only to UAE and GCC nationals. Gratuity is the expatriate equivalent of a statutory end-of-service benefit.
Does the UAE require salaries to be paid a specific way?
Yes. Salaries must be paid through the Wage Protection System within the statutory window, against a MOHRE-registered contract. The partner runs payroll on that infrastructure.
Related solutions
Get the United Arab Emirates Hiring Cost Guide
A country brief covering fully loaded employment cost in AED, statutory contributions, leave and termination rules, and a sample offer breakdown for United Arab Emirates.
Ready to hire in United Arab Emirates?
Book a working session with our team, or take a self-guided tour of the platform first. Either way you will see the real workflow, partners and commercials before you commit.
Prefer numbers first? See pricing