Governs the employment of domestic workers in the UAE: Ministry-approved fixed-term contracts (normally two years), wage payment timelines, weekly rest, annual and sick leave, employer duties for housing, meals and medical costs, and licensing of recruitment agencies, which may not charge workers fees. Replaced Federal Law No. 10 of 2017; the portal records two amendments.
Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 governs the employment of domestic workers in the UAE. It was issued on 5 September 2022, took effect three months after publication in the Official Gazette (Article 32), repealed Federal Law No. 10 of 2017 (Article 31) and has 32 articles. The legislation portal records it as amended, by Federal Decree-Law No. 21 of 2023; its executive regulations are in Cabinet Resolution No. 106 of 2022.
Article 3 applies the law to workers in the occupations listed in the executive regulations, which the Minister may amend. Articles 4 to 6 reserve recruitment and temporary employment to Ministry-licensed agencies, require workers to be at least 18, ban discrimination, harassment, forced labour and trafficking, and prohibit agencies from charging workers any commission or fee before or after work starts. Agencies must arrange medical checks, housing and repatriation or replacement.
Article 7 requires a Ministry-approved employment agreement, a copy of which goes to the worker, for a limited term of two years renewable for the same period. Probation may not exceed six months (Article 8). The monthly wage must be paid in dirhams within 10 days of its due date and documented (Article 15); deductions for worker-caused loss or court debts are capped at a quarter of the wage (Article 16). Article 9 gives a paid weekly rest day and at least 12 hours' daily rest, eight of them consecutive. Article 10 provides 30 days' paid annual leave, return tickets in set cases, and sick leave of up to 30 days a year, 15 at full pay and 15 at half pay.
Article 11 obliges the employer to provide tools, suitable accommodation, meals and clothing, pay wages on time, bear medical and repatriation costs and treat the worker with dignity; Article 12 sets the worker's duties. Article 19 lists termination grounds and requires final dues within 10 days of the contract ending; Article 20 lets either party terminate for the other's breach, and Article 21 allows transfer to a new employer on Ministry conditions. Disputes go to the Ministry for settlement and then to the court of first instance; the Ministry may decide claims up to AED 50,000, appealable within 15 working days (Article 23). Workers' claims are fee-exempt but must be filed within three months of the employment ending (Article 26). Article 28 makes the law a floor of rights and Arabic the controlling language.
Domestic workers in the occupations listed in the executive regulations, their employers (households and the beneficiaries of temporary employment) and the Ministry-licensed recruitment and temporary employment agencies that place them. Holders of Golden and other long-term residence permits sponsor household staff under this law.
| Article 3 | Applies the law to workers in the domestic occupations listed in the executive regulations, a list the Minister may amend. |
| Articles 4–6 | Recruitment and temporary employment need a Ministry licence; workers must be at least 18; discrimination, harassment, forced labour and trafficking are banned; agencies may not charge workers fees and must arrange medical checks, housing and repatriation or replacement. |
| Article 7 | The employer must sign a Ministry-approved employment agreement, give the worker a copy, and the term is a limited period of two years renewable for the same period. |
| Article 8 | Probation may last up to six months from the start date. |
| Articles 9–10 | A paid weekly rest day and at least 12 hours' daily rest with eight consecutive; 30 days' paid annual leave; sick leave of up to 30 days a year, 15 at full pay and 15 at half pay. |
| Article 11 | Employers must provide work tools, suitable accommodation, meals and clothing, pay wages on time, cover medical and repatriation costs, pay work-injury compensation and treat the worker with dignity. |
| Articles 15–16 | The monthly wage is paid in dirhams within 10 days of its due date and documented; deductions for worker-caused losses and court-ordered debts are capped at a quarter of the wage. |
| Articles 19–21 | Lists termination grounds, requires final entitlements within 10 days of the contract ending, allows termination for the other party's breach, and permits transfer to a new employer on Ministry conditions. |
| Article 23 | Disputes go first to the Ministry for amicable settlement, then to the court of first instance; the Ministry may decide claims up to AED 50,000 by decision, appealable to court within 15 working days. |
| Article 27 | Sets the fine bands: AED 20,000 to 100,000 for false recruitment information, AED 50,000 to 200,000 for unauthorised workers, AED 200,000 to 1,000,000 for unlicensed agencies, multiplied per worker up to AED 10,000,000 and doubled for repeats within a year. |
| Article 31 | Repeals Federal Law No. 10 of 2017 on domestic workers and any conflicting provision. |
Article 27: up to six months' imprisonment and/or AED 20,000 to 100,000 for providing false information to recruit a worker; AED 50,000 to 200,000 for hiring unauthorised workers, leaving workers without work or recruiting under-18s; up to one year's imprisonment and/or AED 200,000 to 1,000,000 for running a recruitment or temporary employment business without a licence; AED 50,000 to 200,000 for agency non-compliance; AED 5,000 to 1,000,000 for any other violation. Fines are multiplied by the number of workers affected up to AED 10,000,000 and doubled for a repeat within one year.
Our relocating clients and senior executives sponsor household staff under this law, and we handle the domestic-worker contracts and permits alongside their own residence visas. We route every hire through a licensed agency on the Ministry's two-year form, and we remind clients that the worker's wage must land within 10 days of the due date and that the AED 320 basic health policy applies in the Northern Emirates. The points that catch private employers are practical ones: a weekly rest day, eight consecutive hours of rest, 30 days' leave, and final settlement within 10 days of termination. Claims by workers are fee-free but time-barred after three months, so a client who receives a Ministry summons needs to engage immediately rather than wait for the court stage.
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