UAE labour law · updated 2026
Work out your overtime pay under UAE Labour Law. Enter your basic salary and the extra hours you worked, and see the figure in AED.
Overtime is paid at a premium over your normal hourly rate, 125% on a regular day and 150% at night, on rest days, and on holidays.
This is an estimate based on UAE Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021). For educational purposes only. Consult a licensed UAE advisor for your specific situation.
Five plain English answers to the questions people ask most about extra hours.
01
Overtime is any time you work beyond your normal hours.
The standard is eight hours a day, or forty eight a week. Anything past that, at your employer’s request, is overtime and should be paid at a premium, not treated as a favour.
It applies to hours actually worked, not to time simply on call at home, unless your contract says otherwise.
02
Regular overtime is paid at 125% of your hourly rate.
That is your normal hourly pay plus a quarter. Hours worked between 10pm and 4am, or on your weekly rest day or a public holiday, are paid at 150%, half as much again.
For a rest day or holiday, your employer can offer a compensatory day off instead of the extra pay, by agreement.
03
Overtime is worked on your basic salary only.
Allowances such as housing and transport are left out of the overtime calculation. So the hourly rate can be lower than you expect if allowances are a large part of your package.
It is the same basis as gratuity and leave salary, and it is set out in Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021.
04
Take your basic monthly salary, divide by 30, then by 8.
That gives your basic hourly rate. Multiply it by 1.25 for regular overtime, or 1.5 for night, rest day or holiday hours, then by the number of overtime hours you worked.
So on a basic salary of AED 6,000, the hourly rate is 25 dirhams, and one regular overtime hour is worth 31.25.
05
Overtime should not exceed two hours a day in most cases.
The law caps normal overtime at two extra hours a day, with narrow exceptions for urgent work, and total hours are meant to stay within weekly limits.
If you are regularly working far beyond this, it is worth raising, in writing, with HR or MOHRE.