MoHRE announces amendments to achieving Emiratisation targets

Companies will now be required to increase Emiratisation in skilled jobs by 1% every six months, while remaining on track to achieve the overall 2% target by the end of the year.

This step supports the continuity of the Emiratisation pace in the private sector year-round, in line with the directives of the Government of the UAE, which prioritises Emiratisation in its national strategy and agenda.

The amendments do not include any additional commitments on the companies, nor any amendments to the amounts of financial contributions imposed for non-compliance. However, these contributions will now be collected semi-annually, encouraging the private sector to continuously employ Emiratis to meet their targets, instead of waiting until the end of the year.

At a media briefing organised today by MoHRE, Dr. Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, said, “This step aims to maintain employment and retention rates of Emiratis in the private sector at a time where we witnessed a 70% increase of Emiratis working in the private sector in 2022, compared to 2021.”

Al Awar noted that the new mechanism does not amend the annual targets – companies with 50 employees or more are required to achieve a 2% increase in Emiratisation of skilled jobs. The new mechanism stipulates that companies need to achieve 1% increase in Emiratisation before the end of June 2023, and reach the targeted 2% by end of the year.

He pointed out that “supporting Emirati talent is a priority, in line with the vision of the nation’s wise leadership to provide a decent living to its people, boost their quality of life, and enhance the job opportunities available to them. This is evident in the exemplary results achieved by Nafis in 2022, which through the amended mechanism, the Ministry aims to support in balancing the pace of job seekers registering and the job opportunities being offered via Nafis’ platform.”

“The private sector has proven itself as a credible partner, and we are confident that the new amendments will reflect positively on the existing cooperation,” he added.

The financial contributions on companies that do not meet the target for the first half of 2023 will begin in July 2023, and the contributions for non-compliance from 2022 will continue to be collected.