Key takeaways
- A UAE private company with 20 to 49 employees in a covered sector that missed the second required Emirati hire for 2025 owes AED 108,000, payable in January 2026, according to the u.ae government portal (page updated 15 October 2026).
- A company with 20 to 49 employees that missed its first required Emirati hire for 2024 owed AED 96,000, payable in January 2025.
- A UAE private company with 50 or more employees pays a monthly contribution for each Emirati position it fails to fill; MOHRE set it at AED 6,000 per month in 2022 and AED 7,000 per month in 2023, and the rate rises by AED 1,000 each year until 2026.
- Using fake Emiratisation or reducing headcount to avoid a target is fined separately: AED 100,000 for a first violation, AED 300,000 for a second and AED 500,000 for a third or later, under Cabinet Resolution No. 44 of 2023.
- Emiratisation targets are checked at two points a year for companies with 50 or more employees: a 1% rise in skilled Emirati employment by 30 June and a total 2% rise by 31 December.
Who has to meet Emiratisation targets, and who is exempt?
Emiratisation targets apply to two groups of private-sector companies: those with 50 or more employees, and those with 20 to 49 employees in a list of specified economic sectors. The u.ae portal and MOHRE both describe only these two tiers.
The 20 to 49 employee rule covers 14 sectors: information and communications; financial and insurance; real estate; professional, scientific and technical; administrative and support services; education; healthcare and social work; arts and entertainment; mining and quarrying; manufacturing; construction; wholesale and retail trade; transportation and warehousing; and hospitality. A company with 20 to 49 staff outside those sectors is not named in the rule, so check your licensed activity against the list before assuming you're in or out.
Free zones are a grey area. The official pages we checked don't say how the targets apply to free zone companies, so confirm with your free zone authority and MOHRE rather than relying on a third-party summary.
How much is the fine for not meeting the Emiratisation quota?
The fine is a contribution per Emirati position left unfilled, and the amount depends on your headcount tier and the year. The figures below are the ones stated on official MOHRE and u.ae pages.
| Company size | Period | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 or more employees | 2022 target | AED 6,000 per month, AED 72,000 per Emirati not appointed | MOHRE, 6 January 2023 |
| 50 or more employees | 2023 | AED 7,000 per month, AED 42,000 per Emirati for a half-year | MOHRE, 26 April 2023 |
| 50 or more employees | 2024 to 2026 | Rises by AED 1,000 per year until 2026; yearly amounts not listed on the u.ae page | u.ae, updated 15 October 2026 |
| 20 to 49 employees (14 sectors) | 2024 (one Emirati) | AED 96,000, payable January 2025 | u.ae |
| 20 to 49 employees (14 sectors) | 2025 (two Emiratis in total) | AED 108,000, payable January 2026 | u.ae |
Accurate as of 22 October 2026. The 20 to 49 amounts work out to AED 8,000 and AED 9,000 a month (96,000 and 108,000 divided by 12), which matches the AED 1,000 annual step. The 2026 monthly figure for companies with 50 or more employees is not stated on the MOHRE and u.ae pages we could open, and third-party guides quote different numbers. Confirm the current figure with MOHRE before you budget for it.
When are the Emiratisation deadlines?
Companies with 50 or more employees must show a 1% increase in Emirati employees in skilled jobs by 30 June and a total 2% increase by 31 December each year. MOHRE introduced the half-year checkpoint in 2023 and said contributions for missed targets would be collected every six months instead of once at year-end.
For companies with 20 to 49 employees in the covered sectors, the stated deadlines were the end of 2024 for the first Emirati hire and the end of 2025 for the second. The u.ae page doesn't state what, if anything, applies to these companies for 2026, so ask MOHRE directly.
If you'd rather not track these dates by hand, the free UAE compliance calendar lists them for your company.
AED 108,000: contribution for a company with 20 to 49 employees in a covered sector that did not hire its second Emirati by the end of 2025. Source: u.ae, Employing Emiratis in the private sector (page updated 15 October 2026), checked 22 October 2026.
What is the penalty for faking Emiratisation or dodging the targets?
A company caught circumventing its Emiratisation targets faces a fine of AED 100,000 for a first violation, AED 300,000 for a second and AED 500,000 for a third or any later one. MOHRE states this under Cabinet Resolution No. 44 of 2023, which amends Cabinet Resolution No. 95 of 2022.
| Violation count | Fine |
|---|---|
| First | AED 100,000 |
| Second | AED 300,000 |
| Third and later | AED 500,000 |
Accurate as of 22 October 2026. MOHRE's description of circumvention includes reducing the number of employees or changing their classification. It also says a company found circumventing must still meet the targets it would have faced before the circumvention. The u.ae page adds that fake Emiratisation and fraudulent claims for Nafis benefits carry administrative penalties under Cabinet Resolution No. 95 of 2022, though it doesn't list those amounts.
Is hiring an Emirati cheaper than paying the fine?
For a 20 to 49 employee company, the maths usually favours hiring, because the fine exceeds a year of minimum pay. MOHRE raised the minimum monthly wage for Emiratis in the private sector to AED 6,000, effective 1 January 2026, which is AED 72,000 over twelve months.
Say a mainland trading company with 25 staff in the wholesale and retail sector missed the two-hire requirement for 2025. It owes AED 108,000, and the money buys nothing. Hiring one Emirati at the minimum wage would have cost AED 72,000 in salary plus employer pension contributions (the u.ae page lists 12.5% of salary as the employer share), and it would have brought in an employee. That is an illustration, not a quote: real cost depends on the role, the salary agreed and your own contract terms.
For companies with 50 or more employees the comparison depends on how many positions you're short, which is why the contribution is worth modelling early.
What most guides don't tell you
The fine builds in half-year steps. Because MOHRE collects contributions every six months, missing the 30 June checkpoint can trigger a charge before the year ends, so waiting for December to hire can leave a gap you've already been billed for.
Shrinking to escape the rule can cost more than complying. Cutting headcount below a threshold or reclassifying roles falls inside MOHRE's description of circumvention, which carries AED 100,000 to AED 500,000 per violation, and the company still owes the original target.
Official pages and blog summaries disagree on 2026. Several third-party guides quote a specific 2026 monthly amount, but the MOHRE and u.ae pages we could open stop at "rises by AED 1,000 each year until 2026". Treat any figure you can't trace to MOHRE as unverified.
The page that matters changes. The u.ae page was updated on 15 October 2026, so a figure copied from a year-old article may already be out of date.
Which deadlines apply to your company?
Emiratisation checkpoints sit alongside your licence renewal, VAT, corporate tax and visa dates, and missing any of them costs money. The free UAE compliance calendar is a calendar of your company's UAE tax and compliance deadlines, personalised from a few questions, as a PDF and calendar file.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Emiratisation requirement for private companies?
Private companies with 50 or more employees must raise the number of Emiratis in skilled positions by 2% a year, and companies with 20 to 49 employees in 14 specified sectors had to hire one Emirati by the end of 2024 and a second by the end of 2025. MOHRE checks compliance every year.
Do free zone companies have Emiratisation targets?
The official u.ae and MOHRE pages we checked don't say how the targets apply to free zone companies. Ask your free zone authority and MOHRE for a written answer based on your licence and headcount.
Is the UAE unemployment insurance scheme mandatory?
Yes for employees in federal government and private-sector jobs, under Federal Decree-Law No. 13 of 2022. Business owners running their own establishment, domestic workers, temporary-contract employees and anyone under 18 are exempt, and the fine for not subscribing or not paying premiums is AED 400 each.
Do I need health insurance for my employees in Dubai?
Yes: the u.ae portal states that health insurance is mandatory in Dubai and that employers must insure their employees. In Abu Dhabi the responsibility is shared between employers and sponsors, and the portal says other emirates will extend the requirement to private-sector workers.
About Qawi · Qawi is a corporate services firm licensed in the Sharjah Media City (SHAMS) free zone, handling company formation, visas and PRO, bookkeeping, VAT and corporate tax for UAE businesses. Guides are researched from FTA, Ministry of Finance and free zone sources. Qawi on LinkedIn
Sources
- u.ae: Employing Emiratis in the private sector
- MOHRE: Emiratisation targets
- MOHRE: Financial contributions for companies failing to raise Emiratisation rates in 2022 (6 January 2023)
- MOHRE: Amendments to the mechanism of achieving Emiratisation targets (7 February 2023)
- MOHRE: Half-yearly deadline for private sector companies (26 April 2023)
- MOHRE: Up to AED 500,000 fines on companies that circumvent Emiratisation targets (4 May 2023)
- MOHRE: Minimum wage for Emiratis in the private sector, effective 1 January 2026
- u.ae: Unemployment insurance scheme
- u.ae: Getting a health insurance
Last checked: 22 October 2026
General information, not tax or legal advice for your specific situation.