UAE Employee Cost Calculator (2026)
An expatriate employee in the UAE costs the salary plus end-of-service gratuity building up at 21 days of basic wage a year (30 days after five years), visa and residence fees of roughly AED 3,500 a year, mandatory health insurance and hiring costs. Emirati staff carry a GPSSA pension contribution instead of gratuity. An AED 8,000-a-month clerk with AED 5,000 basic costs about AED 114,000 a year.
· Calculated with AiStaffo
Employer costs in United Arab Emirates
| Social security (expatriates) | None |
|---|---|
| End-of-service gratuity | 21 days of basic wage a year for the first 5 years, 30 days after (Article 51, Decree-Law 33/2021) |
| GPSSA pension (Emiratis) | Employer share 12.5% of contribution salary (some sources give 15%; editable in the code settings) |
| Health insurance | Mandatory; from about AED 320 a year (Northern Emirates basic plan) to about AED 800 in Dubai and Abu Dhabi (editable) |
| Visa and residence | About AED 3,500 a year spread over a two-year visa (editable) |
| Paid leave | 30 days a year plus about 11 public holidays |
Worked example
A clerk on AED 8,000 a month with AED 5,000 basic: salary AED 96,000, gratuity build-up AED 3,500, health insurance AED 800, visa AED 3,500, laptop and software about AED 4,000, hiring spread over 3 years AED 6,400. Total about AED 114,200 a year, 1.19 times the salary.
What counts in the true cost of an employee
Salary is only the start. The calculator adds what the law makes the employer pay (social security, pension, unemployment insurance, end-of-service build-up), what the job needs (health insurance, visas, a laptop and software), and what staff turnover costs (advertising, interviews, training and lost output each time someone leaves, spread over the years an employee usually stays). Dividing by the days actually worked gives the cost of one productive hour.
The automation saving, explained
Most office roles are partly routine: typing data in, chasing replies, matching payments, compiling reports. The calculator takes the share of the role you set as routine and compares what that part costs with an AI worker doing it: a one-time build and a monthly fee (AiStaffo's starting price, editable under "Assumptions"). The person keeps the judgement work; the routine part stops costing a salary. Book a free automation audit and we will measure the routine share of your own roles.
Please note: rates are as checked on 21 October 2026 from official and reputable sources; amounts marked as defaults are typical estimates you can change. The automation figures are illustrations based on the assumptions shown, not a promise of savings; AiStaffo prices are set in a written quote. This is a planning guide, not tax or legal advice.
Sources
Questions people ask
How much does an employee really cost in United Arab Emirates?
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