The United Arab Emirates comprises seven Emirates. Most U.S. technology companies hiring sales employees in the UAE focus on the emirates of Abu Dhabi or Dubai. There are also approximately 45 free trade zones in the UAE, more than 30 of which are located in Dubai, each managed by its own free zone authority. Traditionally, companies in the UAE would establish a branch office or subsidiary in Abu Dhabi, Dubai or in one of the free zones, which would enable the company to sponsor or access work permits and thus hire employees. Working with Serviap Group, you can have access to talent in the UAE without setting up branch offices or subsidiaries.
A business license is required for any business operating in the UAE. Employees must be sponsored under the correct visa in the UAE, either by their employer if in the mainland, or by the respective free trade zone authority if working for a company in the free zone. A company must have the appropriate business license(s) in order to obtain a visa for its employees. If an employee is found to be living and working in the UAE without a visa, or if a company sponsoring an employee’s visa is not properly licensed, the employee may be asked to leave the country and both the employee and the company may be blacklisted from doing business in the UAE.
We handle the processing of all visa applications for the expat employees working for Serviap Group.
The UAE Labour Law regulates employment on the mainland of the UAE. If employees are employed in a free zone, their employment is regulated by the employment law adopted by the free zone authority where the employee is employed, which may contain differences from the UAE Labour Law. Each free zone authority has its own employment law and employees are subject to the rules and regulations of their respective free zone authority.
If you are considering setting up and hiring in the UAE, when negotiating terms of an employment contract, it may be useful to keep the following in mind: