An offer letter signed between a prospective employer and employee may be considered an agreement but not a contract, as all contracts are agreements, but not all agreements are contracts
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Question: I live in the UK and have received a job offer for an accounting position at an SME in mainland Dubai. How can I verify that the job offer is legitimate and legally compliant?
Answer: In the UAE, an offer letter signed between a prospective employer and its prospective employee may be considered an agreement but not a contract.
In general, an agreement (offer letter) may be an informal agreement, whereas a contract is an agreement which is enforceable by law. Therefore, all contracts are agreements, but all agreements need not be contracts.
Generally, when recruiting a prospective employee in the UAE, an employer needs to issue an offer letter that outlines the terms and conditions of employment.
Thereafter, the same terms and conditions must be included in the employment contract of a prospective employee. Both parties may consider including additional terms and conditions, provided that these are advantageous to the employee.
This is by Article 2(1) of the Ministerial Decree No. 46 of 2022 regarding Work Permits, Job Offers and Employment Contract Forms, which states, “Utilise the approved standard employment contract that conforms with the job offer when requesting the issuance of the work permit. It is permissible to add more benefits to the employee in the contract than those mentioned in the job offer; it is also permissible to add annexure to the contract provided that it does not conflict with the provisions of the decree-law and its executive regulations.”
Furthermore, an offer letter issued by an employer should be in the format prescribed by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (Mohre). This is under Article 1 of Administrative Resolution No. 38 of 2022 Concerning the Guidelines for Implementing Ministerial Resolution No. 46 of 2022 Regarding Work Permits, Offer Letters and Employment Contract Forms, which states, “By the guidelines attached herein, electronic forms (e-forms) provided in Mohre system for work permits, offer letters, and employment contracts shall be adopted and implemented.”
When an employer applies for a new work permit for an employee, they are required to submit a signed offer letter between the employer and the prospective employee. This is in accordance with the Guidelines to Work Permits, Offer Letters and Employment Contracts Procedures of the Administrative Resolution No. 38 of 2022. Once an employer submits all other required documents, along with the signed offer letter and payment of the relevant Mohre fees, an employment contract is signed between the employer and the prospective employee.
Based on the aforementioned provisions of law, you should initially contact the Mohre to verify the authenticity of the offer letter issued by your prospective employer.
In the event your prospective employer rescinds the offer letter issued to you, the Mohre may not accept your complaint related to such rescind of the offer as you have not signed an employment contract with your prospective employer, and Mohre has not issued you with a work permit.
An employer or employee may be considered contractual parties to the employment only if a valid employment contract is registered with MoHRE. Therefore, without a work permit, an employer and an employee may not fall under the ambit of Mohre. You may also request that your prospective employer issue the offer letter to you in the Mohre-prescribed format if the offer letter already issued to you is not in the Mohre-prescribed format.
Alternatively, you may contact the Embassy of the UAE in the UK and seek its assistance (if they offer such a service) to verify the authenticity of the offer letter issued to you by your prospective employer.
Therefore, in the event your prospective employer rescinds the offer letter issued to you, you may consider filing a civil case against the prospective employer in the court which has jurisdiction in the UAE to hear the matter for the monetary loss and other damages caused to you due to the rescinding of the employment offer letter issued to you.
You may obtain further legal advice from Mohre or a legal practitioner in the UAE on this matter.
Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. Readers may e-mail their questions to: [email protected] or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.
