UAE: Can your boss reject annual leave despite applying 2 months in advance?

Question: I work in a private company in Dubai. Under what circumstances can my leave application be rejected? I applied for the leave two months ago and bought flight tickets and made travel arrangements. However, my boss is now saying he will reject it. Is this legal? Can I do anything about it?

Answer: In the UAE, it is at the discretion of an employer to decide the dates of annual leave of its employees on rotation based on the work requirements. This is in accordance with Article 29 (4) of Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Employment Relations which states, “The employee shall use his leave in the year of entitlement. The employer may fix the dates of leave according to the work requirements and in agreement with the employee, or rotate leaves among employees for the smooth progress of work, and shall notify the employee of the date of his leave at least (1) one month before the same.”

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.

However, an employer is obligated to grant annual leave to an employer at least once in two years unless the employee agrees to carry forward the annual leave or get paid in lieu of leave by an employer. This is in accordance with Article 29(8) of the UAE Employment Law, which states, “The employer may not prevent the employee from using his accrued annual leave for more than (2) two years unless the employee wants to carry it over or be paid in lieu of leave according to the Establishment bylaws and as specified by the Executive Regulations of this Decree Law."

Based on the aforementioned provisions of law, your employer may decline your annual leave due to work requirements and annual leave rotation amongst its other employees, for a genuine reason. However, if your employer has agreed in writing and approved your annual leave, then the employer may be obligated to bear the cost of the air tickets you have already booked to travel during the proposed annual leave. However, the UAE Employment Law and subsequent ministerial decrees are silent related to the remedy available in such cases to employees.

• UAE: What is the retirement age for employees; can they continue working after 60?