Resignation Letter UAE: Sample, Format and Notice Period

A resignation letter is the written notice an employee gives to end the employment contract. In the UAE private sector the notice has to be in writing, and its length comes from your contract, within the limits set by the Labour Law. Below is a resignation letter sample you can adapt, what it should say, and the rules that decide your last working day and your final dues.

What to write in a resignation letter

• the date, and the manager or HR contact it is addressed to;
• your full name, employee ID and job title;
• one clear sentence that you are resigning from your position;
• your notice period as stated in your contract, and the last working day it gives;
• an offer to hand over your work and return company property;
• a request for your final settlement (wages, end-of-service gratuity, unused leave) and for an experience certificate;
• your signature.

Keep it short and neutral. The letter starts the notice period, so its date and the proof that your employer received it matter more than the wording.

Resignation letter format (sample)

Fill in the bracketed parts, sign, and keep a copy:

[Your Full Name]
[Employee ID] | [Job Title] | [Department]

Date: [DD/MM/YYYY]

To: [Manager Name], [Title]
[Company Name]

Subject: Resignation from the position of [Job Title]

Dear [Manager Name],

Please accept this letter as formal notice of my resignation from my position as [Job Title] at [Company Name].

In line with my employment contract, I will serve a notice period of [number] days, and my last working day will be [DD/MM/YYYY].

I will make sure my work is handed over properly before I leave. Please let me know the arrangements for the handover, the return of company property, and the settlement of my final dues, including my end-of-service gratuity and any unused annual leave.

I would also be grateful for an experience certificate confirming my period of service and my position.

Yours sincerely,
[Signature]
[Your Full Name]

Notice period after you resign

The Labour Law calls the notice period the “warning period”. How long it is depends on where you are in the contract:

During the notice period the contract stays in force: you are paid your full wage and you work if the employer asks you to. The notice can be shortened or waived by agreement with your employer, without losing the rights you would have had. If you leave without serving it, you owe the employer a notice allowance equal to your wage for the days you did not serve, even if the employer suffered no loss (Article 43). If you resign while on leave, the notice starts the day after you were due back, unless you both agree otherwise (Article 35).

What you are owed when you leave

• Wages up to your last working day.
• End-of-service gratuity, once you have completed one year of continuous service: 21 days of basic wage for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that, capped at two years’ wage (Article 51). The current law has no rule that cuts gratuity because you resigned. Estimate yours with the gratuity calculator.
• Pay for unused annual leave if you leave before using it (Article 29).
• All of it is due within 14 days of the end of the contract (Article 53). A claim for unpaid dues cannot be heard more than two years after the job ends (Article 54).
• An experience certificate, free of charge, if you ask for it. It must show your joining date, end date, total service, job title, last wage and the reason the contract ended, and nothing that could harm your chances of new work (Article 13). Our employment certificate format shows the layout.

Contracts that were still unlimited under the old 1980 law are an exception worth checking: the transition rules let the employer calculate their gratuity under that old contract type (Article 68).

How to hand in your resignation

1. Check the notice period and any non-compete clause in your labour contract first.
2. Send the letter by email to your manager and HR, and hand in a signed copy.
3. Ask HR to acknowledge receipt with the date, because the notice runs from the day the employer is notified.
4. Hand over your work and return company property before your last day, and leave any company accommodation within 30 days of the end of service (Article 16).
5. Your employer then cancels your work permit and residence visa. After cancellation there is a grace period to find a new job or leave the UAE; you can follow the visa cancellation status online.

Resigning during probation: the one-year ban

A foreign worker who leaves the UAE during probation without giving the written notice above cannot be issued a new work permit for one year (Article 9(6)). The UAE Government portal also lists ending the contract during probation, where the employer did not breach it, among the cases for a one-year work permit ban. If you are still in probation, check your position before you resign, and give the notice in writing either way.

Common mistakes to avoid

• resigning only by phone or in person, with nothing in writing;
• no last working day, or a date that ignores the notice period in the contract;
• leaving before the notice ends without an agreement, which makes you liable for the notice allowance;
• not asking for the experience certificate, which the employer issues on request;
• signing a settlement that waives rights the law gives you: such a waiver is void (Article 65).

Related documents

For the certificate you ask for when you leave, see the employment or experience certificate format. For proof of income before you leave, use the salary certificate format. Your wider rights at the end of employment are covered in the UAE labour law guide.