Work out the estimated pay treatment of UAE private-sector sick leave across the full-pay, half-pay and unpaid bands of the 90-day entitlement.
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Explore NamyaSick leave for employees covered by UAE federal private-sector employment law is set out in Article 31 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021. Once the probation period has been completed, an employee is entitled to sick leave of not more than 90 days a year, which may be taken continuously or intermittently. The employee must notify the employer of the illness within three days and provide a medical report from the relevant medical authority justifying the absence.
The 90 days are not all paid at the same rate. The first 15 days are paid at full wage, the next 30 days at half wage, and the following 45 days are unpaid. Because the law treats a calendar month as 30 days, this calculator uses a daily wage of the monthly total wage divided by 30. Sick leave pay is based on the total wage rather than the basic wage alone, which is different from end-of-service gratuity — you can estimate that with the UAE gratuity calculator.
There is no statutory entitlement to paid sick leave during probation. An employer is not legally required to pay for sick days taken in that period, although many employers grant unpaid sick leave — or paid leave as a matter of company policy — where a valid medical report is provided. The 90-day banded entitlement begins once probation has been completed.
The statutory entitlement is capped at 90 days a year, so absence beyond that point is not covered by the sick leave bands. An employee who cannot return to work after exhausting the entitlement may end the employment relationship, and the employer may also terminate employment once the 90 days are exhausted; in either case the employee remains entitled to their full end-of-service entitlements under the law. An employee is not entitled to sick leave pay where the illness was the direct result of their own misconduct.
An employee past probation earns a monthly total wage of AED 12,000 and is signed off for 40 days of sick leave, having taken none earlier in the year.
If the same employee had already taken 15 sick days earlier in the year, the new absence would start in the half-pay band: 30 days at half pay (AED 6,000.00) and the remaining 10 days unpaid, giving estimated pay of AED 6,000.00.
An employee covered by UAE federal private-sector employment law is entitled to sick leave of up to 90 days a year once the probation period has been completed. The 90 days may be taken continuously or intermittently across the year.
The 90 days are paid in bands: the first 15 days are paid at full wage, the next 30 days at half wage, and the following 45 days are unpaid.
No. There is no statutory entitlement to paid sick leave during the probation period. An employer may grant unpaid sick leave at its discretion, usually on production of a medical report from a recognised health authority.
An employee must notify the employer of the illness within three days and provide a medical report from the relevant medical authority justifying the sick leave. Many employers also ask for a certificate for short absences under their own policy.
The entitlement is expressed as up to 90 days a year, so the bands apply across the relevant entitlement year rather than restarting with every separate absence. That is why days already taken move a later absence further into the half-pay or unpaid band.
No. DIFC and ADGM operate their own employment regimes and the government sector has separate rules, so sick leave entitlement and pay are calculated differently there.
This calculator provides an estimate and is not legal advice. Eligibility and individual circumstances — including probation status, the reason for the illness, medical certification, part-time or flexible work patterns and company policy — can affect entitlement and pay. Many employers provide more than the statutory minimum. DIFC, ADGM, government-sector employment, domestic workers and other special regimes may operate differently. Please check the official sources below, or consult the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) or a professional adviser, where appropriate.
Looking for HR software rather than a one-off calculation? See the Namya platform, pricing or the UAE annual leave calculator.
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