UAE Gratuity Calculator

End of service gratuity — commonly referred to as EOS or EOSB — is a lump-sum payment that every employer in the UAE is legally required to pay to an employee upon the termination of their employment, regardless of whether the separation is voluntary or involuntary. It is mandated under Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations, which governs all private sector employees working on the UAE mainland. The gratuity is calculated based on your basic salary and the total length of your continuous service with the employer.

The core gratuity calculation formula in the UAE works as follows: employees who have completed between one and five years of service are entitled to 21 calendar days of basic salary for each year worked. For every year of service beyond five years, the entitlement increases to 30 calendar days of basic salary per year. The total gratuity payout is capped at two years' worth of basic salary, regardless of how long the employee has worked. Our UAE end of service calculator applies this exact formula automatically, factoring in your start date, end date, basic salary, contract type, and reason for leaving.

It is important to understand that gratuity is calculated on basic salary only — not on total package. Housing allowances, transport allowances, commission, overtime, and annual bonuses are all excluded from the gratuity calculation base. This is one of the most common sources of confusion for employees reviewing their final settlement, and one of the key reasons an accurate end of service calculator is so useful when verifying what your employer owes you.

Employees working in UAE free zones are generally subject to the same mainland gratuity rules under the Federal Labour Law, with one significant exception: the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) operate under their own independent legal frameworks and have replaced the traditional lump-sum gratuity model with a defined contribution savings scheme.

In the DIFC, the Employee Workplace Savings (DEWS) plan replaced the end of service gratuity in January 2020. Under DEWS, employers contribute a fixed percentage of each employee's basic salary into a managed fund on a monthly basis — 5.83% for employees with less than five years of service, and 8.33% for those with five or more years. This is a fundamentally different model from traditional gratuity, and it means DIFC employees have a portable, funded savings account rather than a lump-sum entitlement paid only at the end of employment.

The ADGM follows a similar approach under its own Employment Regulations. For all other free zones — including JAFZA, DMCC, KIZAD, and RAK free zones — the Federal Labour Law gratuity provisions apply, meaning employees in these zones are entitled to the standard 21-days and 30-days per year formula. Our gratuity calculator covers mainland UAE, standard free zones, and includes dedicated notes for DIFC and ADGM so you can identify exactly which framework governs your employment.

Gratuity is the most significant component of a UAE final settlement, but it is rarely the only one. When your employment ends, your employer is typically obligated to pay several additional items alongside the end of service gratuity. These include any accrued but unused annual leave — calculated at your daily wage rate for each remaining leave day — as well as any outstanding salary or salary in lieu of notice if the employer has waived the notice period.

Notice period obligations are defined in your employment contract and must comply with the statutory minimums under the UAE Labour Law. For employees with less than one year of service, the minimum notice period is 30 days. This increases to 60 days for employees who have served between one and five years, and 90 days for those with five or more years. If the employer terminates the employee without serving or compensating the notice period, the salary equivalent for those days must be added to the final settlement.

Employees are also entitled to a repatriation ticket to their home country when their employment ends, unless they find new employment within the UAE without leaving the country. Some employment contracts specify additional end-of-service benefits above the statutory minimum — these contractual provisions are enforceable and must be honoured by the employer. Our UAE final settlement calculator helps you understand the full picture of what you are owed, not just the gratuity component, so you can verify your employer's settlement offer with confidence before signing any clearance documents.