Two deadlines sit inside the first month and both are missed routinely. The **MOHRE contract must be registered within 14 days** of work permit approval, and the employee **cannot lawfully start work before the permit issues**. Everything else is sequencing around those two.
Onboarding
From offer to first payroll
Two deadlines sit inside the first month and both are missed routinely. The MOHRE contract must be registered within 14 days of work permit approval, and the employee cannot lawfully start work before the permit issues. Everything else is sequencing around those two.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Employee | [NAME], passport [NUMBER] |
| Job title (as on the permit) | [TITLE] |
| Jurisdiction | [Mainland / Free zone / DIFC / ADGM] |
| Recruited from | [Overseas / Inside the UAE — transfer] |
| Offer accepted | [DATE] |
| Work permit approved | [DATE] |
| Contract registration deadline | [DATE] — 14 days from permit approval |
| Start date | [DATE] |
| First payroll | [DATE] |
| Owner | [NAME], [DESIGNATION] |
The Two That Must Not Slip
| Deadline | Consequence of missing it |
|---|---|
| Employee must not work before the permit issues | Unlawful for the employer; exposes the individual to penalties and status problems. Time pressure is not a defence |
| MOHRE contract registered within 14 days of permit approval | Compliance breach; the registered contract is the operative document and until it exists the position is irregular |
5 more pages in the Word file
This is page 1 of the Word document, exactly as it appears when you open it. Fields shown like THIS are placeholders for you to complete.
These notes accompany the template and explain the drafting choices, the compliance points and the mistakes most often made with this document. They appear as a final page in the Word file, intended to be deleted before the document is executed.
An employee cannot lawfully work before the work permit issues. Business pressure to have someone start informally during processing is common and it is unlawful for the employer as well as exposing the individual. Make the permit date drive the calendar.
The MOHRE contract must be registered within 14 days of work permit approval — not within 14 days of the start date, and not when convenient. Employers treat registration as catch-up paperwork and miss the window.
A new arrival cannot be paid through WPS without an account, and an account needs an Emirates ID. Beginning the process after arrival guarantees a first-month WPS failure, which now carries permit consequences from the first offence.
Titles chosen because they process faster create a mismatch with the licence and with what the person does. It surfaces at renewal, at a regulator query, or in due diligence — and correcting it is slower than getting it right.
Where a role requires attested qualifications, the chain through the issuing country, the UAE embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs takes weeks. Begin it before the offer, not after the permit application is rejected for a missing document.
An induction given in English to someone who does not read it is not an induction, and the file will be examined on this point after an incident. Record which language was used.
Funded end-of-service schemes require actual monthly contributions from the start. Employers migrating staff from a mainland entity often keep accruing a gratuity provision and never enrol, and the arrears cannot be settled at exit.
Unemployment insurance subscription is the employee’s obligation, but failure to subscribe attracts a fine and can block a future work permit when they change employer. Mentioning it costs the employer nothing and prevents a problem it will hear about later.
Each additional skilled non-Emirati employee raises the quota requirement. A company hiring steadily can drift out of compliance without losing an Emirati employee. Make the recalculation part of onboarding rather than an annual exercise.
Renewals involve third parties and documents. A one-month reminder produces a scramble; six months produces a process. Set it during onboarding while the dates are in front of you.
Intellectual property assignment is not in the MOHRE contract and is far easier to obtain on day one than after the employee has built something valuable. Week one, with the handbook and the supplementary agreement.
Access granted broadly on day one and never reviewed is how a leaver retains reach into systems months later. Provision to the role, record what was granted, and use the same record at exit.
Someone already in the UAE on another employer’s permit follows a transfer route with its own requirements and possible restrictions. Establish their current status before assuming the standard sequence applies.
Free zone employers file with the zone rather than MOHRE, and DIFC and ADGM apply their own employment codes and end-of-service arrangements. Prune this checklist to the jurisdiction rather than working through steps that do not apply.
Reflects UAE requirements current as of {{DATE OF USE}}. Permit categories, registration deadlines, medical and Emirates ID requirements, WPS rules, scheme contribution rates and free zone procedures all change — confirm with MOHRE, ICP, GDRFA or the relevant zone before each hire.
This is a ready-to-use template provided for convenience. Laws and requirements change, and every situation is different — please have it reviewed by a qualified professional (a lawyer, corporate secretary, or accountant as relevant) before you rely on it.