UAE Leave Salary Calculator
Find how many days of annual leave you have earned under the UAE Labour Law, what your leave salary is, and what unused leave is worth when you leave.
Annual leave is counted in calendar days. A week is 7 days.
The UAE Labour Law uses monthly pay ÷ 30. Some contracts use one of the others.
30 calendar days is the legal minimum after one year.
All annual leave you have taken since joining.
Days of unpaid leave are taken off your service before leave is counted.
Leave blank to use your balance after this leave.
Type the rate you get: how many of that currency you get for 1 AED.
How your leave salary is worked out
Leave earned from your service, a daily rate of monthly pay ÷ 30, then days × rate.
- 1
Leave you earned
2.5 years × 30
= 75 days - 2
Daily rate
8,000 + 3,000 ÷ 30
= AED 366.67 - 3
Pay for your leave
30 × 366.67
= AED 11,000.00 - 4
Unused leave on exit
45 × 266.67 basic
= AED 12,000.00
Read more: the law, the formula, a worked example, carry-forward and free zones
Article 29 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, the UAE Labour Law for the private sector, and its Executive Regulations (Cabinet Resolution No. 1 of 2022) set these rules for annual leave:
- 30 calendar days of paid leave for each year of service
- 2 days for each month once you have worked more than 6 months but less than a year
- no annual leave before 6 months of service
- part-time workers get leave in proportion to their working hours
- during leave you are paid your full wage, which includes allowances such as housing (Articles 1 and 29)
- unused leave paid when the job ends is worked out on your basic wage (Article 29(9))
- unpaid leave does not count towards your service (Article 33)
The formula
leave earned = 30 × years of service (part years in proportion)
first year: 2 days × completed months, from month 6
daily rate = full wage (basic + allowances) ÷ 30
leave salary = daily rate × leave days
unused leave pay = basic ÷ 30 × unused days
Worked example
You joined on 1 January 2023 and count up to 30 June 2025, which is 2 years and 6 months, or 2.5 years. You have earned 2.5 × 30 = 75 days of leave. Your basic salary is AED 8,000 and your housing allowance AED 3,000, with no other allowances, so your full wage is AED 11,000 and the daily rate is 11,000 ÷ 30 = AED 366.67. Taking 30 days pays 30 × 11,000 ÷ 30 = AED 11,000.
That leaves 75 − 30 = 45 days. If you left the job now, those days would be paid on basic only: 8,000 ÷ 30 = AED 266.67 a day, so 45 × 8,000 ÷ 30 = AED 12,000. With the leave salary, that is AED 23,000 in total.
Which pay counts
| Payment | Paid on | Daily rate in the example |
|---|---|---|
| Leave salary while on leave | Full wage (basic + allowances) | AED 366.67 |
| Unused leave when you leave | Basic only | AED 266.67 |
| Employer still using the old rule | Basic + housing | Same here (no other allowances) |
A contract can give you more than the law, for example more than 30 days a year, but not less. The daily rate of monthly pay ÷ 30 is the usual practice: the law counts a month as 30 days (Article 67) but does not set a daily-rate formula.
Carrying leave forward
- You can carry unused leave into the next year only if your employer agrees, so check your company’s leave policy for how many days.
- Your employer may not stop you taking your leave for more than two years in a row.
- Your employer can set the dates of your leave to suit the work, after agreeing them with you.
Free zones and government jobs
The DIFC and ADGM financial free zones have their own employment laws, which count annual leave in working days rather than calendar days. Government jobs follow the federal or local government HR rules. This calculator uses the mainland private-sector rules overseen by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE).
For your end-of-service pay, use the UAE gratuity calculator, which also adds unused leave to your final settlement.
Sources: Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 and its amendments (MOHRE), and the u.ae annual leave page (checked 11 October 2026: 30 days a year, 2 days a month from 6 months, unused leave on basic pay, carry-forward with employer consent). Leave pay at full wage, unused leave on basic and unpaid leave rules checked in the Decree-Law text the same day. This is an estimate for general information, not legal advice. Check your contract, or ask your employer or MOHRE, before relying on it.
Common questions
How is leave salary calculated in the UAE?
Take the monthly amount your leave is paid on, which under the UAE Labour Law is your full wage (basic plus fixed allowances such as housing), and divide it by 30 to get a daily rate. Multiply the daily rate by the number of leave days. For example, AED 8,000 basic plus AED 3,000 housing gives AED 366.67 a day, so 30 days pays AED 11,000.
How many days of annual leave do I get in the UAE?
Full-time private-sector workers get 30 calendar days of paid annual leave for each year of service. If you have worked more than 6 months but less than a year, you get 2 days for each month. Before 6 months there is no annual leave. Part-time workers get leave in proportion to their working hours.
Is UAE leave salary paid on basic or gross salary?
During annual leave you are paid your full wage. Article 29 of Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 says leave is paid at full wage, and Article 1 defines wage as including allowances, so housing and other fixed allowances count. (The old 1980 law paid leave on basic plus housing only; some employers still do.) Unused leave paid out when you leave the job is worked out on your basic wage only.
Can I get paid for unused annual leave in the UAE?
Yes, when your job ends you are paid for the leave days you earned but did not take, at your basic wage ÷ 30 for each day. For example, 45 unused days on a basic of AED 8,000 is 45 × 8,000 ÷ 30 = AED 12,000. This is paid with the rest of your final settlement.
Can I carry forward annual leave in the UAE?
Only with your employer’s agreement: the u.ae guidance says unused leave can be carried into the next year with the employer’s consent, so your company’s leave policy decides how many days. Your employer may not stop you taking your leave for more than two years in a row.
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