Employment Cost Calculator for the UAE

Thinking of employing someone in the UAE? As with every other country, there are certain costs associated with employing a worker that come on top of the gross salary that you are offering. Employers are responsible for statutory contributions, benefits, and end-of-service obligations, all of which affect the total employment cost.

Use our interactive employment cost calculator to see the total salary costs in the UAE and get a detailed employee cost breakdown in PDF (like this one, but with actual data), which will show the take-home pay that employees will get.

In the UAE, net pay is the gross salary minus any applicable deductions, which employers must handle according to UAE labour law. The country does not impose income tax on individuals, which makes employee net pay relatively straightforward compared to many other countries.

However, employers must budget for other statutory and contractual obligations, including:

• End-of-service gratuity: Employees are entitled to a lump-sum gratuity payment at the end of employment, calculated based on years of service and final basic wage.
• Social security contributions: Applicable only to UAE and other GCC nationals, typically around 12.5% to 20.5% of gross salary (varies by Emirate). Expatriate employees are not subject to these contributions.
• Other benefits: Employers must provide statutory leave, medical insurance, and, in some cases, travel allowances, which contribute to the overall employment cost.

Because there is no personal income tax for expatriates, employees usually receive their gross salary as take-home pay, minus any voluntary deductions or benefit contributions agreed in their contracts.