Indian Embassy proposed Minimum Wages for Indian workers in UAE

Embassy of India proposes to revise the minimum wages for various categories of Indian workers employed in the United Arab Emirates. The reference wages are shown below. These provisional rates mentioned will be absolute rates with effect from 15th March 2011.

Reference (Minimum) wages prescribed for the unskilled & Skilled Indian workers

Sl. No Category Minimum Basic Minimum Allowances Revised Minimum Net pay per month in AED* 1 Housemaids/Baby sitters/cooks for house 1100 2 Cleaners 800 150 950 3 Fishermen 800 150 950 4 Gardeners/Farm Workers/Shepherds 800 150 950 5 Office boys /messengers 800 150 950 6 Waiters in Restaurants 950 250 1200 7 Washermen 800 150 950 8 Helpers (to skilled workers) 950 250 1200 9 Light Duty Vehicle Operators 1100 300 1400 10 Cooks for Hotels & Bakers 1100 300 1400 11 Goldsmiths 1100 300 1400 12 Hair Dressers 1100 300 1400 13 Garment Workers 1100 300 1400 14 Tailors 1100 300 1400 15 Shop Asst/Sales man 1100 300 1400 16 Workers for Interior decoration 1100 300 1400 17 Laminators 1100 300 1400 18 Upholstery workers 1100 300 1400 19 Leather craft workers 1100 300 1400 20 Lubricators 1100 300 1400 21 Fabricators 1100 300 1400 22 Painters 1100 300 1400 23 Carpenters 1200 300 1500 24 Fitters 1200 300 1500 25 Plumbers 1200 300 1500 26 Welders 1200 300 1500 27 Riggers/Metal & Steel workers 1200 300 1500 28 Electrician / Wiremen 1200 300 1500 29 Mechanic 1200 300 1500 30 Steel fixer 1200 300 1500 31 Mason 1200 300 1500 32 AC Technician 1200 300 1500 33 Store Keepers 1200 300 1500 34 Security Guards 1200 300 1500 35 Heavy Duty Operators 1400 300 1700

Conditions

1* Food and Accomodation should be provided in addition to the wages above
2. All the employees are to be covered by appropriate Medical, Accidental and Life insurance covers

Legally Sponsoring Nepali Domestic Workers in the UAE: 2026 Process Guide

The process for sponsoring domestic workers from Nepal has dramatically evolved. The heavily restricted paperwork, cash security deposits ($AED\ 5,000$), and embassy contract signings from 2011 are entirely obsolete.

Following a modernized bilateral labor agreement, the system integrates the UAE Domestic Workers Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022) with a digital, paperless attestation process managed directly by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) and the UAE Embassy in Kathmandu.

📋 Sponsor Eligibility Requirements

Before initiating the process, individual sponsors must meet updated federal financial and residential criteria:

• Income Threshold:

• Expatriate Sponsors: Must have a minimum legal monthly household income of AED 25,000.

• UAE National Sponsors: Must have a minimum legal monthly income of AED 10,000.

• Golden Visa Holders: Exempt from the standard salary caps and numerical limits on the number of workers they can sponsor.

• Housing Mandate: The sponsor must reside in accommodation with a minimum of two bedrooms to ensure the worker's privacy and decent living conditions.

🛠️ Step-by-Step Hiring & Sponsoring Process

The old methodology of bringing bundles of physical paper to the Nepalese Embassy in Abu Dhabi has been replaced by a streamlined, digital sequence.

1.Hire via an Authorized Channel:Step 1.

Hiring must happen through an official UAE Tadbeer Center or via the government's centralized Work Bundle platform. Traditional "freelance" or undocumented agency sourcing triggers massive legal fines.

2.Issue MoHRE Standardized Contract:Step 2.

The standard contract is generated digitally by MoHRE. It enforces specific rights (leave, salary, rest hours). The previous 2011 basic wage guideline of AED 900 has been updated to reflect current bilateral minimum agreements and required market baselines.

3.Process Digital Attestation:Step 3.

The contract and required personal certificates (marriage/birth/identity) must be authenticated. Log into the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) portal using UAE Pass. The document is processed digitally via a single application that covers both the UAE Embassy in Kathmandu and the UAE MoFA.

4.Secure Foreign Employment Permit in Nepal:Step 4.

Once the digital attestation is complete, the verified contract is sent electronically to the worker in Nepal. The worker uses this to obtain an official Foreign Employment Permit from the Department of Foreign Employment in Kathmandu before crossing international borders.

5.WPS Enrollment & Medicals:Step 5.

Upon arrival in the UAE, the worker undergoes mandatory medical fitness checks. The sponsor must officially register the worker on the Wages Protection System (WPS) for automated monthly digital salary tracking. Cash payments are no longer legally compliant.

⚖️ Mandated Rights and Strict Prohibitions

The 2022/2023 legal updates firmly hold the sponsor accountable for the worker's well-being. All contracts must adhere to these absolute minimums:

Core Benefits & Rest Periods

• Weekly Rest: One fully paid day off per week. Working on this day requires a day in lieu or overtime payment.

• Daily Rest: A minimum of 12 hours of rest per day, which must include 8 consecutive hours.

• Paid Leave: 30 calendar days of paid annual leave, plus a return flight ticket home every two years paid entirely by the sponsor.

• Sick Leave: Up to 30 days per year (15 days full pay, 15 days unpaid).

• End-of-Service Gratuity: A mandatory severance payout calculated as 14 days' basic wage for every year of continuous service.

Major Legal Prohibitions

• No Recruitment Fee Deductions: The sponsor must cover 100% of the recruitment fees. Deducting any costs or charging the worker for their placement is strictly illegal.

• No Document Withholding: Confiscating a domestic worker’s passport or identity documents is completely banned. Workers must retain control of their personal documents.

• Age Limits: The worker must be at least 18 years old.

🚨 Penalties for Non-Compliance

The UAE government enforces intense enforcement actions and joint spot-checks. Violating the regulations carries heavy criminal and financial penalties:

• Hiring without a Permit / Under-the-Table: Hiring a domestic worker without a legal MoHRE permit carries a minimum fine of AED 200,000 up to AED 1,000,000 and prison time.

• Filing False Absconding Reports: Filing a fake "runaway" report to evade paying a worker their end-of-service gratuity results in an automatic AED 5,000 fine.

• Out-of-Scope Work: Forcing a worker to perform duties completely outside their contract designation carries fines up to AED 10,000.

💡 Exempt Legal Recourse: To guarantee that domestic workers are protected, all lawsuits filed by workers against employers for labor violations are 100% exempt from court fees at all stages of litigation.

#UAE #UAELaborLaw #SponsorHousemaid #NepalToUAE #MoHRE #Tadbeer #WorkersRights #DubaiLiving

Kathmandu lifted ban on housemaids-Nepalese domestic workers allowed to work in Middle East

Nepalese female domestic workers have started coming to the UAE after Nepal lifted the ban on their employment in the Middle East including the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

The Nepalese Embassy in the capital receives on average six applications each working day ,most of sponsors are from Dubai; about 80 per cent are Indian expatriates and others are Western nationals of Indian origin, Europeans and Emiratis, said Deepak Adhikari, charge d'affaires.

So far more than 100 women domestic workers have arrived in the UAE, he said.

Although the ban was lifted as of June 6 last year the new regulations for recruitment were framed later and announced in November, the diplomat said.People came to learn about it recently and the number of applications started increasing from early this year, he said.

Although the ban has been lifted, the Nepalese government has put stringent regulations on the foreign employment of housemaids, he said.

The Department of Foreign Employment in Kathmandu has to give a Foreign Employment Permit to a prospective domestic worker to go abroad for employment, based on the attestation of relevant documents by the Nepalese Embassy in the host country, the diplomat said.

A prospective sponsor must submit about 14 documents including a police report proving a clean criminal record, salary certificate showing a minimum Dh10,000 monthly income, excluding cost of accommodation, and an undertaking to pay a minimum Dh900 monthly salary to the housemaid in addition to food and accommodation.

A Dh5,000 refundable security deposit must also be paid at the embassy, he said.

Nepal banned the employment of domestic workers in the Middle East after complaints of harassment, the diplomat said.But Kathmandu decided to lift the ban last year because many Nepalese women were illegally coming to the Middle East via neighbouring countries to work as domestic help, he said.

The female domestic workers who came to the UAE before June 6 must regularise their status in accordance with the new regulations, Adhikari explained.

The stringent regulations for new recruitment are meant to prevent mistreatment of women, he said.

Among the 14 documents required to sponsor a housemaid, a marriage certificate is demanded from a male sponsor only, he said.Unmarried female sponsors are allowed to recruit housemaids.The police clearance report will ensure that the sponsor does not have a criminal background, Adhikari said.

Children under 15 now need ID card -Eida

Abu Dubai authorities have cancelled a decision to exempt children under 15 from having a national ID card and told their families to register them before the end of a new deadline on October 1.

The announcement by the Emirates National Identity Authority (Eida) follows a decision by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) that all children must produce a national ID card when registering for the new school year.

“Emirati and expatriate families of all children under 15 must apply to register their children with the national identity,” Eida said in a statement carried by the Sharjah-based Arabic language daily 'Al Khaleej'.

“This is a compulsory measure…they should do so before the end of the deadline on October 1 or they will have to pay delay fees.”

The statement said children who do not have separate passports would not be given an ID card, adding that applicants under that age need not come to Eida registration centres as applications can be submitted by their parents.

'Al Khaleej' said Adec’s decision applies only to public schools and the report did not mention whether such measure would be extended to other emirates.

House maid Visa in UAE

HOW TO SPONSOR A HOUSE MAID IN UAE

Unlike normal residence permits, residence permits for maids or domestic help are for periods of one year if the sponsor is an expatriate, but if the sponsor is local citizen then the period is two years. It should be noted that only individual’s resident and not businesses may employ maids or domestic help. Such individuals will assume the role of the domestic helper’s sponsor for immigration purposes, provided they satisfy the conditions stipulated under Article 23 of the Decree, namely:

• Have a monthly salary of at least AED 6,000.

• The sponsor has not sponsored a domestic helper or a housemaid for one year ending on the date the application is submitted.

• The helper is not related to the sponsor.

• The sponsor resides in the country with his family.

There are additional requirements regarding women who practise certain professions such as in the fields of medicine and engineering.

It is illegal to employ a domestic help who is on someone else’s sponsorship. It is not permitted to transfer the sponsorship of a domestic helper to a new employer, unless a period of at least one year has lapsed from the date the helper last left the country. This is pursuant to Article 63 of the Decree which states that when an employment is terminated, the residence permit for employment is considered void and that, no entry permit or new visa can be issued unless after the lapse of six months from the last date of departure from the country, and for one year for house servants.Ó6

6.Article 63 Federal Law 1973

The deposit amount of a housemaid visa for Dubai was recently reduced from AED 5,000 to AED 2,000, immigration officers confirmed. (as per Gulf news report)

Contrary to past rules, however, this deposit of AED 2,000 will only be refunded upon the housemaid’s return to her home country. In the past, the deposit of Dh5,000 was refunded upon completion of the medical fitness test and stamping of the employment visa on the housemaid’s passport.

Documents required for Maid Visa

• ·         Your own salary certificate and labour contract.
• ·         Your tenancy agreement.
• ·         Your passport (and a copy).
• ·         Copy of the maid's passport (and original passport with entry permit after arrival in the UAE).
• ·         Passport photos of the maid (4 should be enough but bring a few extra).
• ·         If you (the sponsor) and the maid are the same nationality, then you will need an affidavit from your embassy or consulate to certify you are not related to the maid.
• ·         AED 5000 deposit for entry visa. Changed to AED 2000 for expat sponsors. Deposit of AED 2000 required from Emirati sponsors remains unchanged.
• ·         AED 5100 for residence visa (annual cost).
• ·         AED 300-400 for health card (annual cost).
• ·         AED 500 for other fees (approximately). Add AED 100 here and there for urgent processing.

Procedures:

1. Go to authorized typist & get form filled up. Pay AED 110 + separate typing fee (which varies from typist to typist). If urgent, pay additional AED 100. 

2. Go to the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs - Dubai  & submit all documents after attaching courier sticker for non-urgent visa. For urgent, wait for a few minutes and receive the employment entry permit.  You will have to pay a refundable deposit of AED 2,000 along with the application.  (The deposit was reduced from AED 5000 to AED 2,000. See news update)

3. Send either original visa or copy to your maid. If only copy was sent, then deposit original at DNATA Visa Desk at Dubai airport or at DNRD counter.

Applying residence visa for your maid

1. Apply for residence permit and medical fitness report within 30 days of the arrival of your maid's entry into the country. Visit an authorized typist & pay for either urgent or non-urgent form & submit to DNRD counter.

2. After stamping, take your maid for a medical fitness test  .All new maids will be screened for HIV, pregnancy, Hepatitis B, Syphilis, TB & Leprosy. The Hepatitis B vaccination which costs an additional AED 50 is given in 3 doses - immediately, booster after 1 month and booster after 6 months. If you keep the yellow certificate as proof of all three doses, then when renewing your maid's visa, you do not need to re-do this, as the vaccination and certificate is valid for 10 years.

Costs of Medical Fitness

• Normal fitness test costs AED  325 (AED 260 + AED 50 for Hepatitis B vaccination + AED 15 for courier and takes 5-7 working days to get the results.

• 48 hour service costs AED 420 (AED 370 + AED 50 for Hepatitis B vaccination). You can collect results in 2 working days.

• Urgent service costs AED 520 (AED 470 + AED 50 for Hepatitis B vaccination). You can collect results after 24 hours.

• There is also a 4 hour VIP service costing AED 740 (AED 690 + AED 50) but this is only for Al Safa & Knowledge Village employees and dependents.