Jury service and public duties leave in the United Arab Emirates
Reviewed by Mellow Editorial Team, HR & payroll content team
Jury service does not exist in the UAE — the country has no jury system. That means employers and employees never need to manage jury-duty leave. Public duties leave, however, does arise, and understanding exactly what the law requires protects both sides.
Why there is no jury service in the UAE
The UAE operates a civil law system based on codified statutes and Islamic jurisprudence. Courts are presided over by professional judges; there are no lay juries. This applies across all seven emirates and in the two financial free zones — the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) — which have their own common-law courts but still use professional judges rather than juries.
The practical result: if an employee asks for "jury duty leave," no such entitlement exists under UAE law, and no leave need be granted on that basis.
What public duties leave does apply in the UAE
While jury service is off the table, several categories of public duty can give rise to a leave entitlement or, at minimum, a legitimate absence.
Witness summons. An employee compelled to attend court as a witness holds a legal obligation that cannot simply be refused. Federal Decree-Law No. 33/2021 (the Labour Law) does not specify a standalone paid category for court attendance, but terminating or penalising an employee for complying with a lawful court order would expose an employer to unfair dismissal risk. The practical approach is to treat the absence as paid leave or to agree on an arrangement in writing.
Military service and national duty. UAE nationals called up for national service under Federal Law No. 6/2014 are entitled to unpaid leave for the duration of service, with job reinstatement rights protected. Employers cannot treat a national-service absence as a resignation or a disciplinary matter.
Election and voting duties. Municipal and Federal National Council elections are held periodically. Where authorities formally request an employee's participation as a polling official or candidate, employers are expected to accommodate the absence. In practice, polls are scheduled so that most employees can vote outside working hours, so extended leave is rarely needed.
Hajj leave. This is a distinct statutory entitlement. A Muslim employee is entitled to unpaid leave of up to 30 days once during their employment to perform Hajj. This is not part of the annual leave entitlement.
Bereavement. Federal law provides five days of paid bereavement leave on the death of a spouse and three days on the death of a parent, child, sibling, grandparent or grandchild.
How to handle an absence for a public duty
When an employee notifies you of an upcoming public obligation, a straightforward process reduces disputes.
1. Request documentation early. Ask the employee to provide the official summons, letter of appointment or other written evidence as soon as they receive it.
2. Confirm the expected duration. One day in court is different from a week-long role as an election official. Agree the scope before the absence begins.
3. Decide on pay. Where the law is silent on payment — as it is for most court attendances — a written agreement is cleaner than an informal understanding. Many UAE employers choose to treat short public-duty absences as paid leave to maintain goodwill and avoid disputes later.
4. Record it separately. Do not deduct public-duty absences from the employee's 30-day annual leave entitlement, and document the category clearly in your payroll records and HR system.
5. Apply the policy consistently. If you pay one employee for a day in court, the same approach should apply to others in comparable circumstances. Inconsistency creates grievance risk.
Free-zone considerations
Employers in the DIFC and ADGM are governed by their own employment laws rather than the Federal Labour Law. Neither free zone has jury service. The DIFC Employment Law and ADGM Employment Regulations both address leave in ways broadly similar to the federal framework, but you should check the specific text of whichever regime applies to your workforce, particularly around unpaid versus paid treatment of unusual absences.
Documenting your policy
A short, written policy covering public and civic duties is worth having even if these absences are rare. It should state which categories the company treats as paid leave, which are unpaid, the notification and evidence requirements, and confirmation that employees will not be disadvantaged for complying with lawful obligations. This sits naturally alongside your annual leave, sick leave and Hajj leave provisions in a staff handbook or employment contract schedule.
Because salaries in the UAE flow through the Wage Protection System, any paid public-duty absence needs to be reflected accurately in the WPS payroll file — it is not a category you can simply leave blank or misclassify without creating a compliance gap.
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