UAE Job Offer Evaluator
Check an offer before you accept it. See your basic salary share, gratuity, red flags and a message you can send to negotiate.
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Your result
How this evaluator works
You enter the pay, benefits and contract terms from your offer letter. The evaluator turns them into one monthly figure, checks the split between basic and allowances, estimates your end-of-service amount and flags terms that are unusual. Everything runs in your browser.
Monthly pay and basic share
Total monthly pay is basic salary plus cash allowances plus any commission you marked as guaranteed. Discretionary bonuses and non-guaranteed commission are not counted as pay: they are shown separately as possible upside. The basic share is basic divided by total pay. 60% or more is rated Strong, 50% to 59.9% Good, 40% to 49.9% Acceptable and under 40% a Warning.
Gratuity
For the standard scheme, gratuity is 21 days of basic pay for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that. A day is basic divided by 30. Nothing is due under one year of service, part years count pro rata, and the total is capped at 24 months of total pay. If your employer offers an alternative savings scheme, the evaluator instead adds up the contributions, 5.83% of basic a month for years one to five and 8.33% from year six, with no investment returns assumed. DIFC and ADGM have their own rules, so their figures are shown for comparison only.
Overtime, leave and job-loss insurance
Overtime is paid at the hourly basic rate (basic ÷ 30 ÷ 8) plus 25%, or plus 50% at night. Unused leave is paid at basic ÷ 30 a day. The ILOE job-loss insurance pays 60% of basic salary for up to three months, capped at AED 10,000 a month if basic is AED 16,000 or less and AED 20,000 if it is higher.
Red flags and the score
Each red flag is High, Medium or Info. The score starts at 100 and loses points for a low basic share and for each flag: 15 for High and 5 for Medium. A score of 80 or more is a strong offer, 60 to 79 reasonable, 40 to 59 needs negotiation and under 40 is high risk.
Comparing two offers
The value of each offer over the years you expect to stay is 12 months of pay for each year, plus the end-of-service amount, guaranteed bonuses, benefits such as flights and education, and one-off payments. See also the India vs UAE Savings Calculator, the UAE salary guide and the Golden Visa guide for salaried professionals.
What it leaves out
The evaluator does not include tax in your home country, inflation, salary growth or the value of health insurance. It follows UAE mainland labour law, which changes from time to time, and it is not legal or financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of a UAE salary should be basic?
There is no fixed legal share, but a basic salary of at least 50% of your total monthly pay is a sensible target and 60% or more is strong. Below 40% is a warning sign, because gratuity, overtime and the value of unused leave are all worked out on basic only. If the basic share is low, ask the employer to move part of the allowances into basic while keeping your total pay the same. See our guide to evaluating a UAE job offer.
How is gratuity calculated in the UAE?
For most private-sector employees who complete at least one year, gratuity is 21 days of basic pay for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after that, with part years counted pro rata. One day of pay is basic salary divided by 30, and the total is capped at two years of pay. For example, a basic salary of AED 8,000 over seven years gives 8,000 ÷ 30 × 165 days = AED 44,000. Free zones such as DIFC and ADGM, and employers with an approved savings scheme, can work differently.
Is gratuity calculated on basic or total salary?
On basic salary only. Housing, transport and other allowances are not included. That is why the split matters: two offers with the same AED 20,000 total can give very different gratuity. With a basic of AED 8,000 the gratuity after seven years is AED 44,000, and with a basic of AED 12,000 it is AED 66,000. Read our UAE salary guide for typical packages.
What are red flags in a UAE job offer?
The most serious are being asked to pay a recruitment fee, an offer that is not on a MoHRE offer form, a probation period over 6 months, more than 48 working hours a week, a non-compete over 24 months, and a very low basic salary. Others include annual leave under 30 days, a notice period outside 30 to 90 days, pay that depends mostly on a discretionary bonus, and no health insurance. This evaluator checks each one. Our Gulf job offer checklist covers more.
Can I negotiate basic salary in the UAE?
Yes. Many employers have a fixed total budget but are flexible about how it is split. Asking to move part of an allowance into basic keeps your monthly pay the same and raises your gratuity, so it is an easy request to make. Be polite and give a reason, because a higher basic costs the employer slightly more at the end of your service. The evaluator writes a short message you can copy and send.
Want to see typical pay for the role? Look it up in the free UAE Salary Checker.