The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) has identified around 1,800 registered employers for not actually engaging in their licensed activities, and undergoing fake employment activities. 

The Ministry underlined that these employers running 1,300 establishments had “one or more registered workers without an actual employment relationship,” It stated, “Strict measures were taken against these establishments, including suspending the issuance of new work permits, imposing more than AED 34 million in fines on their owners, and placing them in the third category in the classification scheme for private sector establishments. 

In addition, measures were implemented against owners of these establishments to prevent them from registering any new establishments in the Ministry’s systems.

We call on employers whose establishments cease operations for any reason to cancel their licenses and settle the status of their workers in accordance with the legal procedures in place in the UAE, in order to avoid legal accountability.”

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The Ministry is making stronger efforts to ensure all employees in the region comply with the UAE’s HR and labour law regulations. As part of this drive, it has barred the identified employers from setting up any new companies in the system.

“These measures align with the provisions of Federal Decree-Law No.33 of 2021 on Regulating Labour Relations, Cabinet Resolution No. 21 of 2020 Concerning Service Fees and Administrative Fines in the MoHRE, and Ministerial Resolution No.318 of 2024 on the Procedure for Addressing Establishments with Registered Employees Not Conducting Their Licensed Activities,” the official statement read. 

The Ministry has also directed establishments that have ceased operations for any reason to cancel their employer licenses and settle the statuses of their employees in accordance with UAE legal guidelines, or face consequences. “an inactive licensed establishment maintaining registered workers constitutes a serious violation. The legal consequences apply to both the establishment owners and the registered workers, particularly in cases where no genuine employment relationship exists, a clear violation of the legislation,” it stated.