A company cannot increase six-month probation period - UAE Labour Law

More than 7 months ago I worked in a company on a contract for limited period. After completing six months of service my company terminated my contract saying that this termination is within the probation period as per the company and the company has the right to do so because I did not pass the probation period, and they said I am not entitled to end of service or termination compensation because I did not complete one year in service. I have learnt from the company that the probation as per the company system is for eight months, not six months. Also, I was informed that in accordance with the Labour Law the period of six months is the minimum and maybe agreed to increase it according to the company system and interest. Is this true? What is my legal position in this case as I have signed a letter in this regard and agreed on the probation period which is eight months? What about my termination as per the labour law. Is it within the probation period or after, and what is my right in this regard?

Article no37 of the Federal Labour Law No8 of 1980 states the following. “A worker may be engaged on probation for a period not exceeding six months, during which his service may be terminated by the employer without notice or severance pay: provided that a worker shall not be engaged on probation more than once in the service of any employer. Where a worker successfully completes his period of probation and remains in his job, the said period shall be reckoned towards his period of service”. Therefore, based on this article no agreement shall be made to increase the probation period and the company has violated the labour law because they have terminated the questioner’s limited contract after the probation period and the company must compensate the questioner by paying three months full salary plus other end of service rights.

Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Expatriates' ID card deadline extended in three emirates

Residents of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah whose residence visa expires this year can register and renew ID cards at the time of renewing their visas. They will be exmpt from fines, said Emirates Identity Authority (Eida).

According to an 'Emarat Al Youm' report, more than 683,000 residents in the three emirates will benefit from the new rule.

Eida had earlier set October 31, 2011, as the deadline for all expatriates in the UAE to renew ID cards. Thereafter, they were required to pay Dh20 fine per day, with a maximum Dh1,000.

The Authority said the decision to reshedule registration deadlines was taken because of the demands from a large section of the population in the three emirates to extend the deadline, especially from unskilled class.

Expatriates in Sharjah are required to register and renew their ID cards before February 1; Abu Dhabi residents before April 1; and those in Dubai before June 1.

UAE nationals advised not to marry foreign women

The UAE nationals have been advised not to marry foreign women due to social, legal and financial complications which arise following such marriages, said a renowned lawyer.

Speaking at the Noor Dubai Radio, Isa bin Haider, CEO of Bin Haider Advocates & Legal Consultants in the UAE, said a large number of cases are pending before the courts due to such marriages.

He pointed out that the young men marry foreign women not to make family but to get rich. But if the husband's income gets depleted, the foreign wives create problems which lead to court cases.

Bin Haider urged the UAE youths to marry the Emarati women who follow the same traditions and customs as men.

He also advised the young nationals not to make big commitments with regard to alimony at the time of marriage and follow the rules.

He said a decree by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, fixed it at  Dh50,000 which applies only in case of marriages with the Emirati women.

While the marriages of UAE nationals with foreign women will be subject to what was agreed upon in the marriage contract with regard to alimony.

Bin Haider also informed that the second marriages have additional financial burdens such as leading the young men to deeper debt.

He called for dialogues between couples and urged resorting to solving family problems through discussions and listening to other party’s concerns. He emphasised that if husband listens to wife’s grievances, it will help solve a number of family problems and will lead to a happy life.

According to the National Center for Statistics, most of the marriages by UAE nationals with foreign wives end in divorce. For instance, there were 1,798 marriages with foreigners in UAE last year, and 695, or 39 per cent, of these marriages had ended in divorce.

EIDA launches online registration

Persons applying for a renewal or a new national identity card need no longer to wait in big queues at registration centres as they can now benefit from an online registration service launched on Thursday.

With a click on a few buttons on their personal computer, applicants who have credit cards can now register while at home or office without the need to go through agonizing waiting at packed typing centres.

The Emirates National Identity Authority (EIDA), which is overseeing a nation-wide ID project, said the new services involves new registration, renewal of existing cards, and replacement of lost or damaged cards.

“Applicants can also check the status of their application online…payment can be done by credit card after the applicants register with EIDA website so they can be given a password,” EIDA said in a statement.

EIDA director general Ali Al Khoury said the new service, which is now confined to expatriates, would save time and effort for both the public and registration offices through the UAE.

“It also reduces the Dh70 fee paid by applications to registration offices by 40 per cent…once the applicants finish registration online, they will be given an appointment to go for stamping.”

He said the scores of ID typing and registration centres would continue to operate and serve those who do not wish to register online.

Deportees cannot return to UAE without Interior Ministry’s permission

Expatriates deported from the UAE cannot return to the country, unless they have a judicial or administrative ruling or special permission from the Ministry of Interior.

This is in accordance with a new legal principle, issued by the Dubai Court of Cassation. A visit visa or a residence permit issued by the General Department for Residency and Foreigners Affairs (DGDRFA) stands void if there is no permission of the Interior Minister, the court ruled.

The principles were issued when the court considered the appeal of a foreign woman, who was fined Dh10,000 and was deported.

The Dubai Public Prosecution referred the woman for trial as she entered the UAE without the permission of the Interior Minister.

The Court of First Instance heard the case and fined her Dh10,000 to be followed by deportation. But the woman took the case to the Appeals Court, which upheld the ruling.

Unsatisfied by the two verdicts, she then moved the Court of Cassation, which issued the above principles.

The woman’s argument was that she had a residence visa and is sponsored by her Emirati husband.

But the Court of Cassation rejected her clarifications stating that Interior Ministry’s data as well as her fingerprints confirm the fact that she had been previously deported from the UAE under charges of prostitution. And that she later returned on a visit visa and then changed status to residence visa under the sponsorship of her husband. This, the court ruled, is in violation of the legal rule as well as the Interior Minister's decision.

The Court of Cassation based its ruling on Federal Law No. 6 of 1973, as amended by Law No. 13 of 1996 on entry and residence of foreigners.