UAE’s Emiratisation targets on midsize firms goes into effect

The UAE has started implementing Emiratisation targets on more than 12,000 private companies with between 20 and 49 employees.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) requires companies that fall within this category to hire one UAE national in 2024 and another one in 2025.

Earlier in December, MoHRE notified the companies, via its digital system, to comply with the decision or face Dhs96,000 for each Emirati not hired and another Dhs108,000 will be imposed in January 2026 for the year 2025.

MoHRE issued a statement, calling on companies subject to the decision to “quickly meet their Emiratisation targets and avoid delaying it until the end of the year.”

“It is crucial that targeted companies register to the Nafis platform in order to benefit from the support the programme provides in terms of supplying the private sector with qualified Emirati professionals capable of efficiently working in various targeted economic sectors, along with other advantages they can benefit from,” MoHRE emphasised.

MoHRE said the companies included in the new resolution operate in 14 specific economic sectors.

These include information and communications; finance and insurance; real estate; professional and technical activities; administrative and support services; education; healthcare and social work; arts and entertainment; mining and quarrying; transformative industries; construction; wholesale and retail; transportation and warehousing; and hospitality and residency services.

The new resolution comes in addition to targets for companies with 50 or more employees that are required to achieve a 2 per cent Emiratisation growth in skilled jobs.

MoHRE acts on false Emiratisation

Meanwhile, Emiratisation is aimed at enhancing the UAE’s human development system, establishing productive and sustainable Emirati human capital in the private sector, and empowering UAE citizens to make effective contributions to the job market.

Recently, MoHRE referred 113 private companies to Public Prosecution for violating Emiratisation decisions, including 98 private companies that appointed UAE nationals in fake posts. The latest case brings the total number of companies violating Emiratisation since the second half of 2022 to 894, while a total of 1,267 UAE nationals have been proven to be hired in fake jobs

“The violating companies have been referred to the Public Prosecution, and legal and administrative actions have been taken against them; these measures include imposing fines of Dhs20,000 for each fake Emiratisation case and reducing the companies’ classification to the lowest category within MoHRE’s system for classifying private sector companies,” MoHRE said in a statement.

The ministry also took legal and administrative measures against 15 companies proven to have evaded Emiratisation targets.

MoHRE fined these companies Dhs100,000 each, ordered them to achieve the required targets and applied financial contributions to each of the companies involved circumventing Emiratisation targets.

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