UAE Overtime Calculator

Calculate your overtime pay on the basic wage — instantly, per UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 19

Last reviewed: 4 July 2026

Overtime calculator

Based on UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 19

Enter your details and press Calculate to see your result.

Quick answer

In the UAE, overtime is paid on the basic wage only. Your basic hourly rate is basic monthly salary ÷ 30 ÷ your daily working hours. Daytime overtime is paid at 125% of that rate; overtime worked between 10 pm and 4 am is paid at 150%; and work on your weekly rest day or a public holiday is paid at 150% (or compensated with a day off). Normal hours are capped at 8 a day / 48 a week, and overtime should not exceed 2 hours a day.

Wage base: Basic salary only
Daytime overtime: 125% (×1.25)
Night (10pm–4am): 150% (×1.50)
Rest day (Art. 21): 150% or a day off
Public holiday (Art. 28): Day's wage + 50% of basic, or a day off
Law: Decree-Law 33/2021, Art. 19, 21 & 28

How the hourly rate is derived

Overtime pay starts from your basic hourly rate. The widely used method — aligned with MOHRE practice — is: basic monthly salary ÷ 30 days ÷ your normal daily working hours. For an AED 6,000 basic salary on an 8-hour day, that is 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = AED 25 per hour.

Only basic salary feeds this calculation. Housing, transport and other allowances are excluded from overtime, exactly as they are from gratuity.

The three overtime rates

•Daytime overtime (beyond normal hours on a working day): the hourly rate + 25%, i.e. ×1.25.
•Night overtime between 10:00 pm and 4:00 am: the hourly rate + 50%, i.e. ×1.50 (shift workers are an exception).
•Weekly rest day work (Article 21): the hourly rate + 50% (×1.50), or the employer may grant a compensating day off instead.
•Public holiday work: governed by its own article, Article 28, not the overtime article. See below.

Public holiday overtime in the UAE

Working a public holiday in the UAE is not priced by the overtime article at all. Article 19 covers extra hours on a working day and Article 21 covers the weekly rest day, but official holidays have their own provision: Article 28. It is the article to quote if you are querying a payslip, and the one most summaries skip.

Article 28 gives you paid leave on the official holidays set by Cabinet resolution. If the business needs you to work one, your employer owes you one of two things, and the choice is the employer's: a substitute day off for each holiday worked, or the wage for that day plus an increase of not less than 50% of the basic wage for that day.

Read the second option carefully, because the two halves use different bases. You keep the day's wage you would have received anyway, and the top-up is calculated on basic salary. In the common case where you are paid the day normally, that lands at 150% for the day, which is why the calculator prices holiday hours at ×1.50 on the basic hourly rate. Where a large part of your package is allowances, the 50% increment is still measured against basic alone, so the uplift is smaller than a naive reading of your gross salary suggests.

The 50% is a floor, not a ceiling. Contracts and staff handbooks in the free zones frequently improve on it, and nothing in Article 28 prevents that.

Day worked	What Article 28 or 21 requires	Multiplier used here
Official public holiday	A substitute day off, or the day's wage + at least 50% of basic wage	×1.50
Weekly rest day	The hourly rate + 50%, or a compensating day off (Art. 21)	×1.50
Ordinary working day	The hourly rate + 25% for hours beyond normal hours (Art. 19)	×1.25

UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021: Art. 19 (overtime), Art. 21 (weekly rest day), Art. 28 (official holidays). Hourly rate = basic salary ÷ 30 ÷ your normal daily working hours. The official holiday dates themselves are set each year by Cabinet resolution, not by the Decree-Law.

How overtime pay is calculated

1
Find your hourly rate
Basic monthly salary ÷ 30 ÷ normal daily hours (usually 8).
2
Pick the right multiplier
1.25 for daytime overtime, 1.50 for night (10pm–4am) or rest-day/holiday work.
3
Multiply by hours
Hourly rate × multiplier × overtime hours for each category.
4
Add the categories
Sum daytime, night and rest-day overtime for your total overtime pay.

Worked examples

AED 6,000 basic, 3 daytime overtime hours

Hourly: 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = AED 25
25 × 1.25 × 3 = AED 93.75

Overtime payAED 93.75

AED 6,000 basic, 4 night hours (10pm–4am)

Hourly: 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = AED 25
25 × 1.50 × 4 = AED 150

Overtime payAED 150

AED 9,000 basic, a full 8-hour shift on Eid Al Fitr

Hourly: 9,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = AED 37.50
Article 28 pay option: 37.50 × 1.50 × 8 = AED 450 for the day
Of that, AED 300 is the day's ordinary wage and AED 150 is the 50% increment on basic
The alternative your employer may choose instead: a substitute day off, and the day is paid at the ordinary AED 300

Public holiday payAED 450

Frequently asked questions

Is overtime calculated on basic or gross salary in the UAE?

On the basic wage only (Federal Decree-Law 33/2021, Art. 19). Housing, transport and other allowances are excluded from the overtime calculation.

What is the overtime rate in the UAE?

Daytime overtime is 125% of the basic hourly rate. Overtime between 10 pm and 4 am is 150%. Work on a weekly rest day or public holiday is 150%, or the employer grants a compensating day off.

How do I calculate my hourly rate for overtime?

Divide your basic monthly salary by 30, then by your normal daily working hours (usually 8). For example, AED 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = AED 25 per hour.

How much overtime can I be asked to work?

Normal hours are capped at 8 a day or 48 a week, and overtime should not exceed 2 hours a day unless it is necessary to prevent a serious loss.

What is the public holiday overtime rate in the UAE?

Working an official holiday pays the wage for that day plus an increase of not less than 50% of the basic wage for that day, which comes to 150% of the basic hourly rate for the hours worked. Your employer may instead grant a substitute day off. This sits in Article 28 of Federal Decree-Law 33/2021, the official holidays article, not in the overtime article.

How much do I get paid for working on a public holiday in the UAE?

On an AED 9,000 basic salary and an 8-hour day, the basic hourly rate is AED 37.50, so a full holiday shift pays 37.50 × 1.50 × 8 = AED 450. That is the AED 300 you would have been paid for the day plus a AED 150 increment. If your employer opts for the substitute day off instead, you take the day back later and the holiday itself is paid normally.

Is public holiday pay different from normal overtime in the UAE?

Yes, and the difference is which article applies rather than the percentage. Ordinary overtime on a working day is 125% under Article 19. A public holiday is 150% under Article 28, and it carries the substitute-day-off alternative that ordinary overtime does not. The weekly rest day is separately governed by Article 21, also at 150%.

Can my employer choose to give me a day off instead of holiday pay?

Yes. Article 28 gives the employer both options, a compensating day off or the enhanced pay, and the choice is the employer's, not yours. Bahrain and Oman hand that election to the worker instead. If your employer picks the day off, it is in addition to your annual leave, not deducted from it.

Is Friday or rest-day work paid extra?

Yes. Work on your weekly rest day is paid at 150% of the basic hourly rate, or the employer must give you another day off instead.

Does this overtime calculator apply in Dubai and the free zones?

Yes. The overtime rates in Federal Decree-Law 33/2021 apply through MOHRE across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and every emirate, and to most free zones. The two financial free zones — DIFC and ADGM — run their own employment laws and do not set the same statutory overtime premiums, so check your contract if you work there.

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