An onboarding checklist for UAE new starters
Reviewed by Mellow Editorial Team, HR & payroll content team
New employees in the UAE must complete a specific set of administrative, legal and payroll steps before and shortly after their first day. Miss one and you risk a compliance breach, a delayed salary payment, or a strained relationship with someone who has just joined your team.
Before the start date
Get the paperwork moving as early as possible. Most of the legal steps have lead times you cannot compress.
Visa and Emirates ID sponsorship. If you are sponsoring the employee's residence visa, initiate the process immediately after the offer is accepted. The sequence is: entry permit, status change or medical fitness test, Emirates Residence Visa stamping, then Emirates ID registration through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). The Emirates ID is the foundational document for almost every other step.
Employment contract. Issue a written contract that matches the offer letter in every material detail — job title, basic wage, allowances, working hours, and probation period. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 33/2021, the contract must be on a Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) standard template for most private-sector employees. Keep a signed copy on file.
Labour card registration. Register the employee with MOHRE. Without this, they have no official employment relationship in the eyes of UAE labour law.
Collect identification documents. At minimum: passport copy, visa page copy, Emirates ID (front and back once issued), and a recent passport photograph. Many employers also collect a bank account number at this stage, ready for WPS registration.
Setting up payroll and WPS
The UAE's Wage Protection System requires every employer to pay salaries through an approved financial institution and report each payment to MOHRE electronically. Non-compliance results in fines and, eventually, a block on new work permit applications.
To get the employee onto WPS:
1. Confirm their UAE bank account details or arrange a WPS-compatible salary card if they do not yet have a local account.
2. Add them to your payroll file with your bank or WPS agent, using their Emirates ID number and MOHRE labour card reference.
3. Ensure their first salary is paid on or before the contractual pay date. WPS records must be submitted within a short window after the payment date.
There is no personal income tax on wages in the UAE, so no income tax registration or withholding applies. If your employee is a UAE or GCC national, they must also be registered with the General Pension and Social Security Authority (GPSSA); both the employee and employer make contributions. Expatriate employees are not enrolled in GPSSA.
End-of-service gratuity: set the expectation early
Gratuity is not paid at onboarding, but it is worth explaining to new starters on day one so there are no surprises later. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 33/2021, expatriate employees accrue 21 days' basic wage per year of service for the first five years, and 30 days' basic wage per year thereafter. The total is capped at two years' pay. Gratuity is calculated on basic wage only — allowances do not count.
Some employers provision for gratuity in their accounts from day one. Whether you do or not, make sure your payroll system records the employee's start date accurately — that date is the basis for every future gratuity calculation.
Day-one onboarding admin
On or before the first working day, run through the following:
- Policy acknowledgements. Distribute your employee handbook, code of conduct, IT and data policies, and any relevant health and safety procedures. Get a signed (or digitally confirmed) acknowledgement for each.
- Leave entitlements. Explain that annual leave of 30 calendar days accrues after one year of continuous service, and clarify your company's policy on how leave is requested and approved. If you grant leave before the one-year mark, document the arrangement clearly.
- Benefits enrolment. If you offer private medical insurance — which is mandatory for employees in Dubai and Abu Dhabi — register the new starter with your insurer immediately. Group life, salary continuance, or other voluntary benefits should be enrolled at the same time.
- IT and systems access. Provision accounts, devices and access permissions before the employee arrives where possible. Asking someone to sit idle on day one because their laptop is not ready is a poor first impression.
- Probation period terms. Confirm the length of probation in writing (the legal maximum is six months). Both parties have different notice obligations during probation, so clarity at the outset prevents disputes later.
In the first 30 days
Chase any outstanding documents — particularly the Emirates ID if it has not yet been issued. Update your WPS file as soon as the Emirates ID is in hand, since some banks require it before completing the employee record.
Schedule a formal check-in at the two-week and one-month marks. Beyond goodwill, these conversations give you early warning of any role or expectation mismatch while you are still within the probation period and have clear legal options if the hire is not working out.
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