Private companies in the UAE with 50 or more employees must raise the share of Emiratis in their skilled roles by 2 percentage points every year, split into 1% by June 30 and another 1% by December 31. Smaller firms with 20 to 49 employees in 14 targeted sectors must hire Emiratis too. Missing a target triggers a monthly financial contribution to the government of AED 9,000 for each unfilled Emirati position in 2026, a figure that rises by AED 1,000 each year. The Nafis program helps employers offset this by topping up Emirati salaries and sharing pension costs.
This guide sets out exactly what private-sector employers face in 2026: who the rules apply to, the half-yearly target schedule, the definition of a skilled job that actually counts, how Nafis reduces the real cost of hiring an Emirati, and what happens financially and operationally when a company falls short. Every figure below is anchored to the current MOHRE and Nafis position, with official sources listed at the end.
What Emiratisation Is and Who Must Comply
Emiratisation is the UAE’s federal workforce policy requiring private-sector employers to hire and retain a growing proportion of Emirati citizens in skilled jobs. It is administered by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), and its hiring engine is the Nafis program. The policy is a Your Money, Your Life matter for employers because non-compliance carries direct financial contributions, and for Emiratis because it shapes access to private-sector careers.
Two tiers of company are in scope. Establishments registered with MOHRE that employ 50 or more workers face annual percentage targets. A second group, companies with 20 to 49 employees operating in 14 specific economic activities, must hire a fixed number of Emiratis rather than meet a percentage. Federal-government entities, free-zone companies not registered under MOHRE, and very small firms below the thresholds are generally outside the percentage regime, though free-zone status should always be checked against the specific zone’s own rules.
Decision point: which obligation applies to your company? If you employ 50 or more people, you owe a percentage target: a 2% annual rise in Emiratis in skilled roles, measured twice a year. If you employ 20 to 49 people and operate in one of the 14 targeted sectors, you owe a headcount target: at least two Emiratis on the payroll under the current schedule, not a percentage. If you are below 20 employees, or in a sector outside the small-firm list, no numerical target currently applies, but registration and accurate MOHRE records still matter.
Getting hiring right in the first place reduces exposure. Employers new to the process should review how a UAE work visa is issued and sponsored and how MOHRE labour contracts are registered, because Emirati hires must be documented through the same official channels for the headcount to be recognized.
The 2026 Emiratisation Targets for Companies With 50 or More Employees
Private companies with 50 or more employees must increase the number of Emiratis in skilled positions by 2 percentage points per year, achieved in two equal halves: 1% by June 30 and a further 1% by December 31. This half-yearly split, introduced to smooth compliance across the calendar, means employers are assessed twice rather than once. The national goal behind the annual increases is to reach an overall 10% Emiratisation of skilled roles in this group of companies by the end of 2026.
For the first half of 2026, MOHRE confirmed that June 30, 2026 was the deadline to achieve the 1% H1 growth, with financial contributions applied from July 1, 2026 to companies that fell short. The second 1% increment is due by December 31, 2026. The target is calculated against a company’s own count of skilled roles, so a firm with 100 skilled positions must add roughly one Emirati skilled hire per 1% step, subject to MOHRE’s rounding rules.
| Period | Company size | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| By June 30, 2026 (H1) | 50+ employees | +1% Emiratis in skilled roles |
| By December 31, 2026 (H2) | 50+ employees | +1% Emiratis in skilled roles (2% for the full year) |
| By end of 2024 | 20 to 49 employees (14 sectors) | Hire at least 1 Emirati |
| By end of 2025 | 20 to 49 employees (14 sectors) | Employ a total of 2 Emiratis |
MOHRE tracks progress continuously through its systems, not only at the deadline. Companies that reduce their Emirati headcount mid-period, for example when an Emirati resigns, can fall back below target and must replace that person to avoid a contribution. This is why retention, not just recruitment, is central to compliance.
Emiratisation Rules for Smaller Companies (20 to 49 Employees)
Companies with 20 to 49 employees in 14 designated sectors were required to hire at least one Emirati by the end of 2024 and to employ a total of two Emiratis by the end of 2025. Unlike the larger tier, this is a fixed headcount obligation rather than a percentage, and it applies only within the listed economic activities.
The 14 sectors are: information and communications; financial and insurance activities; real estate; professional, scientific and technical activities; administrative and support services; education; health and social work; arts and entertainment; mining and quarrying; transformative (manufacturing) industries; construction; wholesale and retail trade; transportation and storage; and accommodation and food services. More than 12,000 companies fall inside this expanded scope, according to MOHRE. Small firms should confirm any further increase in the required Emirati headcount beyond the two-hire benchmark directly with MOHRE, as the schedule for this tier is reviewed periodically.
Small employers weighing their first Emirati hire often start by understanding the wider labor market. Our guides on finding and structuring roles in Dubai and the main UAE job portals, including Nafis for Emiratis, show where qualified Emirati candidates are actually reachable.
What Counts as a Skilled Job
A skilled job for Emiratisation purposes is a role in one of five recognized occupational categories that requires at least a diploma or higher qualification and pays a monthly salary of no less than AED 4,000. The five categories are managers and legislators, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support staff, and service and sales workers. Only positions meeting all three conditions count toward a company’s target.
This definition matters in practice because filling a low-wage or unqualified position with an Emirati will not move a company’s compliance figure. The salary floor and qualification requirement are designed to push genuine, career-grade employment rather than nominal hires. For an Emirati hire to be recognized and to unlock Nafis support, the employee must also be registered on the Nafis platform and, as of January 2026, earn at least AED 6,000 per month for the role to be counted under the program’s benefit rules.
The Nafis Program and What It Offers Employers
Nafis is the federal program that supports Emiratis into private-sector jobs and directly reduces an employer’s cost of hiring them. Launched in 2021 under the Projects of the 50, it pays salary top-ups to Emirati employees, contributes to pension costs, and funds training and family benefits. As of early 2026, more than 176,000 Emiratis had been placed through Nafis across over 32,000 private-sector establishments, and the program has been extended to 2040.
The headline employer benefit is the salary support scheme, which tops up an Emirati’s monthly pay for up to five years so the employer’s own wage cost is lower than the total the employee receives. The support is paid directly to the employee, tiered by qualification.
| Qualification | Nafis salary top-up (up to) | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or higher | AED 7,000 per month | Up to 5 years |
| Diploma | AED 5,000 per month | Up to 5 years |
| High school | AED 3,500 per month | Up to 5 years |
Nafis has also covered a pension contribution top-up, historically paying an extra 2.5% for eligible Emiratis registered with the pension authority so the employer is not disadvantaged versus hiring an expatriate. Employers should note a change taking effect from September 2026: Nafis is set to stop reimbursing the 2.5% employer pension share for eligible employees earning below AED 20,000, meaning the employer assumes the full pension cost for those staff. Because the program entered a new phase of updates in September 2026, confirm the current salary-support and pension figures on the Nafis portal before budgeting a hire.
Beyond salary support, Nafis functions as the recruitment platform where employers post skilled vacancies and reach registered Emirati jobseekers, and it is the system through which many of the compliance-linked incentives are administered. Employers should also factor in standard UAE employment costs that apply to Emirati and expatriate staff alike, such as end-of-service entitlements, when modeling the true cost of a role.
Penalties for Missing Emiratisation Targets
A company with 50 or more employees that misses its target pays a monthly financial contribution of AED 9,000 for each Emirati position it is short during 2026. The figure rises by AED 1,000 every year, having stepped up from AED 6,000 in 2023, AED 7,000 in 2024, and AED 8,000 in 2025. A firm short by five positions therefore owes AED 45,000 per month, or AED 540,000 across a full year.
| Year | Monthly contribution per unmet position (50+ firms) | Annualized per position |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | AED 6,000 | AED 72,000 |
| 2024 | AED 7,000 | AED 84,000 |
| 2025 | AED 8,000 | AED 96,000 |
| 2026 | AED 9,000 | AED 108,000 |
For the smaller tier, companies with 20 to 49 employees that failed to hire the required Emirati faced a lump-sum contribution of AED 96,000 for missing the 2024 single-hire obligation and AED 108,000 for missing the 2025 two-hire obligation. These amounts also track the annual escalation, so small firms should assume the figure continues to rise.
What actually happens when a company misses target. MOHRE does not send an inspector to your door. Compliance is monitored automatically through its establishment systems, which already hold your headcount and Emirati-registration data. When a deadline passes with an unmet target, the financial contribution is calculated and billed through MOHRE’s channels, and the sum accrues monthly until the position is filled. The establishment can also be downgraded in MOHRE’s classification tier, which raises work-permit fees for all staff and slows access to government services. The practical result is that non-compliance quietly compounds until it is resolved.
Fake Emiratisation and Why It Is a Serious Offense
Fake, or fictitious, Emiratisation is the practice of registering an Emirati on a company’s payroll to satisfy quotas without giving them a genuine job, and it is treated far more severely than simply missing a target. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024, fictitious Emiratisation carries a fine of AED 100,000 to AED 1 million, multiplied by the number of employees fictitiously registered, alongside recovery of all Nafis incentives received and potential bans on issuing new work permits.
MOHRE actively audits for this, having identified more than a thousand Emiratis in fake posts and penalized over a thousand establishments in enforcement drives. Warning signs it looks for include an Emirati drawing a salary with no attendance, no real duties, or a role that does not match their registered occupation. The message for employers is direct: a genuine hire supported by Nafis is dramatically cheaper than the fine for faking one, and settlement of a fake-Emiratisation case still requires paying at least half the minimum fine and returning every incentive received.
How Private-Sector Employers Stay Compliant
Compliance is a continuous process rather than an annual scramble. In practice, employers should confirm which tier they fall into, count their qualifying skilled roles accurately, and register every Emirati hire on Nafis so the person is recognized against the target and the salary support flows. Because targets are assessed twice a year, tracking headcount monthly and replacing departing Emiratis quickly is what prevents contributions from accruing.
Employers building or restructuring a UAE workforce should also align Emiratisation planning with related obligations, including mandatory unemployment insurance (ILOE) enrollment for eligible staff and, for companies still forming, the wider Dubai business setup and licensing process that determines MOHRE registration in the first place.
FAQ
What is Emiratisation?
Emiratisation is the UAE’s federal policy requiring private-sector companies to employ a rising share of Emirati citizens in skilled roles. It is enforced by MOHRE through annual percentage targets for larger firms and fixed hiring quotas for certain smaller firms, with financial contributions for non-compliance.
What is Nafis?
Nafis is the federal program that channels Emiratis into private-sector jobs and lowers the cost for employers. It provides salary top-ups of up to AED 7,000 per month for degree holders for up to five years, pension support, training, and a recruitment platform, and it has been extended to 2040.
What is the Emiratisation target for 2026?
Companies with 50 or more employees must raise Emiratis in skilled roles by 2 percentage points in 2026, split as 1% by June 30 and 1% by December 31. The wider national goal is to reach 10% Emiratisation of skilled roles in this group by the end of 2026.
Does my company need to hire Emiratis?
If you employ 50 or more people, yes, you face a percentage target. If you employ 20 to 49 people in one of 14 designated sectors, you must employ at least two Emiratis under the current schedule. Companies below 20 employees, or in non-listed sectors, generally have no numerical target, but should verify free-zone rules separately.
What is the penalty for not meeting Emiratisation?
A company with 50 or more employees pays AED 9,000 per month for each unmet Emirati position in 2026, which is AED 108,000 per position per year. The monthly figure rises by AED 1,000 each year. Companies can also be downgraded in MOHRE’s classification, raising work-permit costs.
Do small companies have to comply with Emiratisation?
Companies with 20 to 49 employees comply only if they operate in one of 14 targeted sectors such as construction, real estate, healthcare, education, or retail. Those firms had to hire one Emirati by the end of 2024 and reach two Emiratis by the end of 2025, with contributions for missing each step.
What counts as a skilled job for Emiratisation?
A skilled job is a role in one of five occupational categories, from managers to service and sales workers, that requires at least a diploma and pays no less than AED 4,000 per month. Only positions meeting all three conditions count toward a company’s Emiratisation target.
What is fake Emiratisation?
Fake Emiratisation is registering an Emirati on the payroll to meet quotas without a real job or duties. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024 it carries a fine of AED 100,000 to AED 1 million per fictitiously registered employee, plus recovery of all incentives and possible work-permit bans.
How does Nafis help employers?
Nafis reduces the net cost of hiring an Emirati by paying salary top-ups directly to the employee for up to five years, contributing to pension costs, funding training, and providing a platform to recruit registered Emirati candidates. Employers must register the hire on Nafis for the support to apply.
Can an employer avoid the contribution once a deadline passes?
The monthly contribution starts accruing from the missed deadline and continues until the Emirati position is filled and recognized in MOHRE’s systems. Filling the role stops future charges but does not refund contributions already billed, so acting before the deadline is far cheaper than remediating afterward.
Official Sources
- MOHRE: Emiratisation Targets (annual and half-yearly requirements)
- UAE Government Portal (u.ae): Employing Emiratis in the private sector
- Nafis: Federal Emirati employment program (benefits and registration)
- MOHRE: Laws and Regulations (Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2024 on fake Emiratisation)
- MOHRE: Media Centre (deadlines and enforcement announcements)
Information current as of July 2026. Emiratisation targets, Nafis benefits, and financial contribution amounts are set by federal authorities and change frequently, including a new phase of Nafis updates from September 2026. Verify every figure with MOHRE and the Nafis portal before making hiring or budgeting decisions. This article is general information, not legal or financial advice.
