I am a French citizen who has been employed for the past two years by an Indian information technology company that has a branch in Dubai. My UAE contract states a one-month notice period. However, when I went for training to India, I was asked to sign another contract that stated a three-month notice period.
I did not pay much attention to the Indian contract as I am based in Dubai and my understanding is that the UAE contract is the correct one. Can you please confirm whether my notice period will be one month if I decide to resign? NM, Dubai
NM is correct in that it is the official contract in the UAE that is valid and if this states a one-month notice period, that will be legally binding.
Although the other form was signed while he was in India, I still suggest checking that he did not agree to a change of UAE contract as employment terms can be amended by mutual agreement, with a signature deemed as acceptance.
The employer is in a free zone but most adopt the provisions of the UAE Labour Law and that is the case here. This means that a change of contract terms will need to be added as an addendum to the original contract of employment.
Employees in a free zone are sponsored by the free zone, rather than by the employer. The free zone authority should have a record of all official employment contracts.
NM can also request the same from his employer and it should be provide on request. If the employer fails to do so, NM can go to the free zone mediation committee for assistance.
I was suspended from work for disciplinary reasons. I submitted my resignation on March 26 and the hearing was supposed to be on March 31. However, it was postponed to April 14.
My questions are: 1) Do I still have to go to the hearing if I have resigned? 2) Can the employer withhold my salary if there is a chance of me filing a case for unfair dismissal? LS, Sharjah
A change of contract terms will need to be added as an addendum to the original contract of employment
I understand that LS is employed by a mainland company, so the full provisions of the UAE Labour Law will apply.
Due to the nature of the case, I sought input from a lawyer, Danielle O’Brien of Horizons & Co law firm, who said: “Assuming that LS is still working during his notice period, he would have to attend the hearing and complete his duties as if he was still employed. Therefore, should he be on his notice period on April 14, he would legally have to attend the hearing. Nonetheless, it is advisable that he attend the hearing for several reasons – predominantly to know the allegations and to clarify his position with the company.”
With regard to your question about salary, Ms O’Brien said: “As to the salary, the company is entitled to withhold the salary pending the determination of the suspension. However, they are not entitled to withhold the salary under a presumption that LS is building a case of unfair dismissal.”
I am from Pakistan and have been living and working in the UAE for three years. How will I know if my former employer has cancelled my visa properly?
My Emirates identity card expires on May 30. Can I live in the UAE after that? Can I stay here and see if I can find another job? NK, Abu Dhabi
The usual practice for employment visa cancellation is that a passport is taken to a government office and the residence visa is officially stamped “cancelled”. This process should be undertaken by the company or its public relations officer, although personal sponsors may have to cancel the visas of family members themselves.
The cancellation paperwork is signed by the employee and the sponsor. The Emirates ID card should be handed over as it will not be valid after a visa is cancelled.
These days, it is not uncommon for a visa to be cancelled remotely. This means there will be no stamp in one's passport even though the visa has been officially cancelled. A passport scan at immigration or a government office will show this.
A person can check their visa status online using their passport number on the website of the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship.
Once the residency visa has been cancelled, a person must exit the UAE within 30 days or purchase a visit visa to avoid fines for overstaying illegally.
Keren Bobker is an independent financial adviser and senior partner with Holborn Assets in Dubai, with more than 25 years’ experience. Contact her at keren@holbornassets.com. Follow her on Twitter at @FinancialUAE
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Seoul from Dh3,775 return, including taxes
The package
Ski Safari offers a seven-night ski package to Korea, including five nights at the Dragon Valley Hotel in Yongpyong and two nights at Seoul CenterMark hotel, from £720 (Dh3,488) per person, including transfers, based on two travelling in January
The info
Visit www.gokorea.co.uk
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Saturday
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur (3.30pm)
Burnley v Huddersfield Town (7pm)
Everton v Bournemouth (7pm)
Manchester City v Crystal Palace (7pm)
Southampton v Manchester United (7pm)
Stoke City v Chelsea (7pm)
Swansea City v Watford (7pm)
Leicester City v Liverpool (8.30pm)
Sunday
Brighton and Hove Albion v Newcastle United (7pm)
Monday
Arsenal v West Bromwich Albion (11pm)
The%20specs
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THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Dir: Ron Howard
Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson
3/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Four motivational quotes from Alicia's Dubai talk
“The only thing we need is to know that we have faith. Faith and hope in our own dreams. The belief that, when we keep going we’re going to find our way. That’s all we got.”
“Sometimes we try so hard to keep things inside. We try so hard to pretend it’s not really bothering us. In some ways, that hurts us more. You don’t realise how dishonest you are with yourself sometimes, but I realised that if I spoke it, I could let it go.”
“One good thing is to know you’re not the only one going through it. You’re not the only one trying to find your way, trying to find yourself, trying to find amazing energy, trying to find a light. Show all of yourself. Show every nuance. All of your magic. All of your colours. Be true to that. You can be unafraid.”
“It’s time to stop holding back. It’s time to do it on your terms. It’s time to shine in the most unbelievable way. It’s time to let go of negativity and find your tribe, find those people that lift you up, because everybody else is just in your way.”
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster with a decades-long career in TV. He has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others. Karam is also the founder of Takreem.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
Facebook | Our website | Instagram
Company%20Profile
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Vaccine Progress in the Middle East
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
F1 drivers' standings
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 281
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 247
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 222
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull 177
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 138
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull 93
7. Sergio Perez, Force India 86
8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 56
UAE%20athletes%20heading%20to%20Paris%202024
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'Saand Ki Aankh'
Produced by: Reliance Entertainment with Chalk and Cheese Films
Director: Tushar Hiranandani
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Bhumi Pednekar, Prakash Jha, Vineet Singh
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Price, base / as tested From Dh173,775 (base model)
Engine 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo, AWD
Power 249hp at 5,500rpm
Torque 365Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Gearbox Nine-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined 7.9L/100km
Pathaan
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Siddharth%20Anand%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Shah%20Rukh%20Khan%2C%20Deepika%20Padukone%2C%20John%20Abraham%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Monday's results
- UAE beat Bahrain by 51 runs
- Qatar beat Maldives by 44 runs
- Saudi Arabia beat Kuwait by seven wickets
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh1,100,000 (est)
Engine 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch
Power 630bhp @ 8,000rpm
Torque 600Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 15.7L / 100km (est)
