FLASH NEWSUAE Annual Leave Pay: Is Transport Allowance Included?

UAE Annual Leave Pay: Your Transport Allowance Stays In

If your UAE employment contract lists a transport allowance as part of your wage, your employer cannot drop it from your pay while you are on annual leave. Many job offers split pay into a small basic wage and large allowances, so it matters whether those allowances survive a holiday.

What the Law Says

Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Employment Relations governs mainland private-sector jobs. Article 29 gives an employee 30 days of paid annual leave for each completed year of service and entitles the employee to wages throughout it.

Article 1 defines a wage as the basic wage plus any cash or in-kind allowances prescribed in the employment contract or the establishment’s bylaws. Because a transport allowance written into your contract forms part of that wage, it is part of your leave pay. An employer cannot argue that you are not commuting during leave.

Check Your Offer Letter and Payslip

1. Open the compensation clause of your contract and confirm the transport allowance is named as a fixed part of your total wage.
2. Compare your leave-month payslip with your normal month. The totals should match.
3. If an allowance was removed, ask HR to explain the calculation in writing, citing Article 1 and Article 29.
4. If it is not corrected, raise it with MOHRE. See how to file a labour complaint.

For the leave entitlement itself, including how leave is earned, read UAE annual leave rules.

Article 29(6) entitles you to wage for the period of annual leave. Cash paid in place of unused leave when employment ends is generally calculated on basic salary only, unless your contract is more favourable.

These rules apply to mainland employment. Free zones may have their own employment regulations, so check yours.