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MOHRE Work Permit in Dubai

MOHRE Work Permit in Dubai

The labour half of hiring — quota, category, and what a permit really costs.

Mir Ali Licensed PRO consultant · Amer & Tasheel partner

Updated 27 Aug 2026 Get a fixed quote

The short version

The work permit is the MOHRE half of hiring. The residence visa is the immigration half. They are separate approvals and they fail for different reasons.
Cost swings from AED 300 to AED 5,000 for the identical permit — your company's MOHRE category decides which.
No permit is issued without available quota and a clean company file.
Working before the permit is issued exposes the company to penalties, not the employee.

Most hiring delays in Dubai are blamed on immigration. In reality they usually sit at MOHRE, and usually for one of three reasons: the quota was never approved, the company classification quietly slipped, or the offer letter and contract do not match.

What a work permit actually costs

Component	Typical range	Notes
Work permit fee	AED 300 – 5,000	Set by MOHRE company category
Offer letter / contract typing	AED 100 – 200	Via Tasheel
Quota application	Varies	By activity and premises
Bank guarantee or scheme	Varies	Where the category requires it
ILOE subscription	AED 60 – 120/yr	Unpaid ILOE blocks issuance

The number that moves everything

Two companies hiring the same accountant on the same salary can pay AED 300 and AED 5,000 for the same permit. The difference is the MOHRE category.

Category 3 usually follows WPS violations, unresolved labour complaints or Emiratisation shortfalls. If your per-hire cost has climbed and nobody can explain it, check the classification before you change provider — restoring it pays for itself on every subsequent hire.

The sequence

1. Quota approval

MOHRE must have granted the company slots for the role. No quota, no permit — and quota is assessed on activity, premises and existing headcount. Covered in detail in our guide on increasing your visa quota.

2. Offer letter

Issued through MOHRE and signed by the candidate before anything else moves. Terms here must match the contract that follows exactly.

3. Work permit application

Submitted with passport, photograph, qualification where the role requires it, and the signed offer. Two to five working days in normal conditions.

4. Entry permit or status change

Immigration side. From abroad it is an entry permit; already in the country it is a status change.

5. Medical, Emirates ID, stamping

The residence chain. Then the labour contract is signed and the permit issues in final form.

What you need to have ready

Passport copy with at least six months validity
Passport photograph to UAE specification, white background
Attested degree certificate where the profession requires it — plus MOHRE equivalency for regulated roles
Trade licence and establishment card, both current
Signed MOHRE offer letter
Emirates ID of the authorised signatory

Why permits get refused or stall

Quota exhausted. Discovered at submission, adds one to three weeks.
Company category downgraded. Higher fees, and in some cases blocked issuance entirely.
Profession and qualification mismatch. A regulated job title without an equivalated degree is refused.
Offer and contract disagree. Salary, job title or hours differing between the two documents triggers a query.
Outstanding fines or an open complaint against the establishment file.
Age or category restrictions on specific professions.

Do not let anyone start work early

Employing someone before the permit issues is the company's exposure, not the worker's. It also complicates the file if anything is later disputed at MOHRE. Wait for the permit.

What we do

We handle the MOHRE side end to end: confirming quota before you make an offer, checking the company classification, typing the offer and contract at Tasheel, submitting the permit, and carrying it through to the residence chain so the two halves do not fall out of sequence. Government fees are passed on at cost with our fee quoted separately, before we start.

Hiring, and want the real cost first?

Send us your trade licence. We will tell you your MOHRE category, whether quota is available, and what each permit will actually cost — before you make the offer.

Check quota and category

Work permit questions

Is a work permit the same as a residence visa?

No. The work permit is issued by MOHRE and authorises employment. The residence visa is issued by immigration and authorises residence. Both are required, they are applied for separately, and each can fail independently of the other.

How long does a work permit take?

Two to five working days once submitted with quota in place. The full chain to a stamped residence visa runs ten to twenty working days — see our processing times guide.

Why is our permit fee so much higher than another company's?

Almost always the MOHRE company category. Category 1 pays a few hundred dirhams; category 3 can pay several thousand for the identical permit. Classification usually slips because of WPS breaches, labour complaints or Emiratisation shortfalls.

Can we hire someone already in the UAE on another visa?

Yes. Either the existing visa is cancelled and a fresh permit issued, or a status change is done in country without an exit. Which applies depends on the current visa type and whether a ban is in place.

Does the employee pay for the work permit?

No. Recruitment and permit costs are the employer's responsibility under UAE labour law. Charging them to the worker is not permitted.

What happens when the employee leaves?

The permit and visa are cancelled together — see visa cancellation. Cancelling cleanly matters: an incomplete cancellation can leave the file open and the quota slot occupied.

Official sources

Please note. Fees and categories were verified in August 2026 and are revised periodically by MOHRE. Confirm the current position for your establishment before budgeting. General information, not legal advice.

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