The domestic worker contract, clause by clause

Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 says your helper's contract is signed on MOHRE's standard form, in Arabic with a translation she understands, and must state the parties, dates, work, place, duration, pay, leave, probation, rest and how it can end. The law's rights are minimums, and any term giving her less is void.

MOHRE is the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation: it issues domestic workers' work permits and runs the service that renews their contracts. The law is Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022, the Domestic Workers Decree-Law. Below, we go through each item it says the contract must state, with the rules it sets for each, as of September 2026. Where a rule comes instead from a May 2024 summary of UAE rules by the ILO, the International Labour Organization, we say so.

What must a maid's contract include?

Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker's contract must state both parties' names, the contract date and start date, the nature and place of the work, the contract's duration, the total pay and how it is paid, the leave, probation and rest periods, and the cases in which it can be ended; the employer must give the worker a copy.

Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker's contract must be in Arabic with a translation into a language the worker understands, and if the two versions conflict, the Arabic prevails. If you don't read Arabic, have the Arabic text explained to you before either of you signs, and check that the translation says the same.

Which contracts do you sign if you use a recruitment office?

One with the office and, if she'll be on your own file, her employment contract as well. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a family that recruits through an agency signs a MOHRE standard contract with the agency covering the worker requirements, the worker's rights, the costs the family pays and the recruitment timeline.

Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, if a recruitment agency breaches its contract with a family, the family may refuse the worker and get a replacement or a refund of recruitment fees, and can claim compensation for any damage.

MOHRE recognises three packages from licensed recruitment offices: Traditional, where the worker is on the family's own file and lives with the family; Temporary, where a worker registered with the office works for the family; and Flexible, where a worker registered with the office works for the family by the hour, day, week, month, six months or year. Which contracts you sign depends on the route:

If the office places a helper who is already in the UAE, her file moves to you later. Under MOHRE's operations manual for recruitment agencies, when a family takes on a worker who is already in the UAE through an agency, the worker's file must be free of fines, it moves to the family after probation, and from then on the family is liable for fines on it.

Under MOHRE's operations manual for recruitment agencies, the agency sponsors the worker in the Temporary package and holds the worker's visa in the Flexible package, and in both it pays the worker's salary, legal entitlements and medical costs. For part-time help through a Flexible package, see our guide to own-visa, visit-visa and part-time help. Our guide to agencies and direct hiring compares the routes.

How long does a maid contract last?

Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a fixed-term domestic worker contract lasts two years and can be renewed for the same period. But the work permit can be shorter, depending on who sponsors her.

As of September 2026, MOHRE issues a domestic worker's permit for one year when the sponsor is an expatriate resident without a Golden Visa, so those sponsors' permits come up for renewal after one year. MOHRE issues a new domestic worker permit for up to two years when the sponsor is a UAE citizen.

MOHRE's renewal service asks for the domestic worker's employment contract, signed by both parties, so a renewal needs her agreement as well as yours. We found no official page that explains how the Decree-Law's term fits with a shorter permit, so ask MOHRE on 600 590000 what term to write in your contract. Our visa renewal guide covers the renewal itself.

What does the contract say about her job?

It names the kind of work she does and where she does it, and once it's signed, the Decree-Law limits changes to the kind of work. An employer may not give a domestic worker a different kind of work from the contracted job unless the worker explicitly agrees and the new job is one of the listed domestic occupations.

We found no official page that defines each occupation's duties, so agree her main tasks with her before she starts, and write them down.

The Decree-Law's Executive Regulations are Cabinet Resolution No. 106 of 2022, and we couldn't read their official text. That matters for one more limit. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker may not work for anyone other than their employer, except as its Executive Regulations or MOHRE decisions allow. We found no official list of those exceptions.

What should the contract say about her salary?

Her total pay and how it is paid, at a figure you agree with her. The UAE sets no statutory minimum wage for domestic workers, according to the ILO's May 2024 summary of UAE rules. Any salary floor comes from her home country and applies only to contracts verified through that country's system.

For example, MWO Dubai, the Philippines' Migrant Workers Office in Dubai, verifies Filipino domestic workers' contracts. For contract verification, MWO Dubai requires a Filipino domestic worker's contract to set a basic wage of at least AED 1,500 a month. MWO Dubai serves Dubai and the northern emirates; in Abu Dhabi, check with the Philippine Embassy. Our guide to minimum salaries by nationality covers other countries.

Each helper lists her own salary range on her profile, so you can see what she's asking before you talk. Browse available helpers, and see our salary guide for what helpers ask for.

Whatever figure you agree, the Decree-Law sets these rules:

• A domestic worker's wages must be paid monthly in UAE dirhams, within 10 days of the due date.
• Payment of a domestic worker's wages must be proven by a written receipt or another method MOHRE approves. Keep a record of every payment.
• A court-ordered debt can be deducted from a domestic worker's wage up to a quarter of the wage, and the repair cost of loss or damage the worker caused can be deducted only with the worker's consent, or with MOHRE's approval if the worker refuses, and never more than a quarter of the salary.
• An employer may not charge a domestic worker any cost, directly or indirectly, unless the law, the regulations, MOHRE decisions or the approved contract allow it. We haven't been able to read the approved contract form, so we can't say what, if anything, it allows.

Whether you must pay through WPS, the Wage Protection System, depends on her job. Paying a domestic worker through the Wage Protection System is mandatory for private trainers, private tutors, personal healthcare providers, personal PROs and private agricultural engineers, and optional for housemaids, nannies, cooks, drivers, housekeepers, gardeners, security guards and similar roles, according to MOHRE's employer guide as of September 2026. Our WPS guide explains what that means for you.

What rest and leave must the contract give her?

At least the Decree-Law's minimums, and you can agree more. As of September 2026, they are:

• A domestic worker is entitled to one paid day off a week. If a domestic worker works on the weekly day off, the employer must give another day off or pay cash instead.
• A domestic worker is entitled to at least 12 hours of rest a day, of which at least 8 must be consecutive.
• A domestic worker is entitled to at least 30 days' paid annual leave for each year of service.
• If a domestic worker spends annual leave in their home country, the employer pays for a return ticket once every two years.
• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker is entitled to 30 days' sick leave for each year of service, taken at once or in parts, with a medical report from an approved health authority, and the first 15 days are on full pay. MOHRE's own texts disagree about pay for the remaining days, so we don't quote it.

Write her day off into the contract, and agree with her which day it is. Our guides to her day off and working hours and to annual leave and flight tickets go into each rule.

How does probation work in a maid's contract?

Probation is the trial period at the start of her job, and the contract states how long it lasts. The Decree-Law caps it. A domestic worker's probation may not last more than six months from the start of employment.

If you hire her yourself, with no recruitment office involved, we found no official page that sets out how the contract can be ended during probation, or a notice period for it. Check what your contract says, and ask MOHRE on 600 590000 before you act.

In a recruitment office's Traditional package, MOHRE sets out what the office owes you. During probation, a recruitment agency must replace the worker or refund the family if the worker is professionally or behaviourally unsuitable, is medically unfit, or ends the contract or refuses to work without a legitimate reason, or if the agency did not meet the recruitment conditions agreed with the family. Our guide to probation, replacement and refunds covers the refund rules.

How can a maid's contract end?

Your contract must set out when it can be ended, and the Decree-Law lists the cases in which it ends. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, the cases in which a domestic worker's contract ends include its expiry without extension, both sides' agreement, the worker's death or total disability, the employer's death (unless the family and the worker agree to continue until the contract expires), the worker's conviction or imprisonment for a felony or misdemeanour, and the worker using up all sick leave or being medically unfit.

Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker's contract ends if the worker is absent without a valid reason for more than 10 consecutive days, or 15 separate days, in a year. Ask MOHRE on 600 590000 before you treat the contract as over, and see our guide to when your helper stops coming to work.

Either side can also end it early for a breach. Repatriation here means her journey home. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, either side may end a domestic worker's contract alone if the other breaches its obligations under the law, and if the termination is not the worker's fault, the employer pays the worker's dues and the cost of repatriation. We found no official page that says how its repatriation rule applies when you end the contract for her breach; ask MOHRE on 600 590000.

We found no general notice period for either side in the Decree-Law, and we haven't been able to read the text of MOHRE's standard form. So read what your contract says about ending it, and ask MOHRE on 600 590000 before you end it.

The Decree-Law also lets her leave in cases set out in its Executive Regulations, which we couldn't read, so we don't list them. The ILO's May 2024 brief on UAE rules says that if the employer or the employer's representative commits assault, including sexual assault or humiliation, a domestic worker may leave immediately without notice, but must report to the competent authorities at once and tell MOHRE within three days of leaving.

She may also want to move to another family. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker may move to a new employer if the contract's conditions are met and the original employer's rights are respected, following MOHRE's procedures.

The ILO's May 2024 brief on UAE rules, citing Ministerial Resolution No. 674 of 2022, says a domestic worker's move to a new employer during the contract term needs the current employer's written consent. Our guide to hiring a helper already in the UAE covers a move from the new family's side.

What do you owe her when it ends?

Her dues and, in general, her flight home. As of September 2026:

• When a domestic worker's contract expires, the employer must pay the worker's dues within 10 days.
• When a domestic worker's contract ends, unused annual leave is paid in cash, based on the last wage.
• The employer pays for a domestic worker's flight home, except that the agency pays when an agency-recruited worker is returned, a directly recruited worker who quits after probation without a valid reason pays their own unless they cannot, and the original employer does not pay when the worker moves to a new employer. We found no official page that says how these rules apply when the contract ends for her breach or after she stops coming to work; ask MOHRE on 600 590000.
• The Domestic Workers Decree-Law (No. 9 of 2022) does not itself set an end-of-service gratuity; Article 22 leaves the rules to the Cabinet. We found no Cabinet decision setting those rules, so we give no gratuity formula.

Our final settlement guide covers her dues and the flight home, and our guide to cancelling a maid visa covers the paperwork.

Can you add your own terms to the contract?

Only terms that give her at least what the law does. The rights in the Domestic Workers Decree-Law are minimums: better terms in a contract or another law prevail, and any term that is worse for the worker is void.

We haven't been able to read the text of MOHRE's standard form, so we can't say whether it leaves room for extra terms. Our suggestion: agree everyday house rules, such as mealtimes or the children's routines, with her, and write them down separately, as long as none of them takes away a right the law gives her.

The Decree-Law also gives her these, among others:

• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker has the right to keep all their official documents, including their passport and ID, and an employer may not hold them.
• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, the employer must provide a domestic worker with suitable accommodation.
• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, the employer must provide a full-time domestic worker with meals and work clothing, unless they agree otherwise.

Health insurance rules differ by emirate, and our health insurance guide sets out each one. Our employer's checklist to the domestic worker law covers the rest of your duties.

What should you check before you sign?

That it says what you agreed, and that it gives her at least what the law does. Our suggestions, in order:

1. Make sure you both understand it. Read the translation with her, and have anything unclear explained before either of you signs.
2. Check the names and dates. Both names should match your passports, and the start date should be the one you agreed.
3. Check her job and pay. The work should be what you agreed, and the salary the full figure, with how you will pay it.
4. Check rest, leave and probation against the minimums and the limit above.
5. Check how it can end, including anything it says about notice.
6. Sign, and each keep a copy.
7. Note the permit's expiry date, so the renewal doesn't catch you out.

How can MaidMatch help?

By helping you find a helper and agree the main terms with her before any paperwork. Families contact helpers directly on WhatsApp, through the Hire button on each profile. MaidMatch is a free platform for families: they can browse every profile at no cost, with no registration or subscription required.

Most helpers listed on MaidMatch are already in the UAE and ready to work. Ask each one what visa she holds now, and whether her current employer knows she wants to move.

Sponsorship is the employer's responsibility; families can manage the visa themselves or ask MaidMatch to connect them with its visa partners. MaidMatch's visa partner offers a two-year employment visa, with the visa, medical test, Emirates ID and insurance handled end to end. Ask the partner who sponsors her on that visa, what the two years cover and whose name goes on her employment contract. Our partners page has the details and the current price.