VoxxArrive · Emirate
Onboarding new hires in Abu Dhabi: compliance checklist
Abu Dhabi processes residency through the federal ICP, but its health insurance regime is the strictest and longest-standing in the country, regulated by the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH). Government services, including many employment and residency steps, run through the emirate's own TAMM platform, and Abu Dhabi hosts ADGM, a financial free zone with its own employment law separate from MOHRE.
What's different
- Residence visas are issued via the federal ICP (Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security), with many services surfaced through Abu Dhabi's own TAMM government platform (tamm.abudhabi).
- Health insurance is regulated by the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH), which has the widest employer obligation in the UAE: the employer/sponsor must cover the employee and their family, defined as one spouse and up to three children under 18. UAE nationals are covered separately under the government-funded Thiqa programme (administered by Daman).
- Abu Dhabi's mandatory health insurance predates the 2025 federal Basic Health Insurance scheme by many years, so employers here have long operated under a DOH-regulated market rather than the new AED 320 federal basic package used in the northern emirates.
- ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) companies are governed by the ADGM Employment Regulations 2019, a common-law regime independent of federal MOHRE labour law, and can run their own end-of-service savings scheme in place of statutory gratuity.
- Key Abu Dhabi free zones for onboarding include ADGM, KEZAD/KIZAD (Khalifa Economic Zones), Masdar City and twofour54; apart from ADGM, these follow federal MOHRE rules.
Which onboarding steps this affects
This affects 25 of the 57 onboarding tasks, concentrated in the Pre-boarding, Day 1, Week 1, Month 1, Month 3+ phases. Work through them in the live demo to see the compliance-readiness score respond as each is ticked off.
Your task slice
25 of the 57 onboarding tasks apply here.
Verify MOHRE establishment card is active and labour quota is available for the role
Establishment card / labour quota confirmation
Issue MOHRE-standard job offer letter and obtain the employee's signed copy
MOHRE job offer letter (signed)
Apply for the MOHRE work permit (labour card) via Tasheel/MOHRE portal
Work permit approval
Apply for entry permit (e-visa) or initiate in-country status change
Entry permit (60-day validity)
Collect and attest pre-boarding documents (passport, photos, degree/qualification attestation)
Attested document pack
Purchase mandatory health insurance policy (prerequisite for residency since 1 Jan 2025)
Health insurance policy certificate
Prepare fixed-term employment contract aligned to the signed offer
Employment contract (draft)
Define working hours, overtime, and weekly rest-day terms in the contract
Employee signs the employment contract on Day 1
Signed employment contract
Collect original passport and entry permit for residence visa processing
Issue health insurance card and policy details to the employee
Health insurance card
Book and complete medical fitness test at an approved centre (communicable-disease screening)
Medical fitness certificate
Complete ICP Emirates ID biometrics (fingerprints, iris scan, photo)
Emirates ID application receipt
Submit residence visa application to GDRFA/ICP after medical and EID biometrics
Complete residence visa stamping / e-visa linking to the passport
Residence visa
Register the signed employment contract with MOHRE within the statutory deadline
MOHRE-registered labour contract
Confirm health insurance activation is linked to the residency file
Collect the issued Emirates ID card once produced by ICP
Emirates ID card
Verify residence visa and Emirates ID are fully issued (post-entry chain within 60 days)
Review health insurance coverage adequacy and dependant options
Confirm gratuity/end-of-service accrual tracking has started in payroll
Assemble audit-ready employee compliance file (contract, visa, EID, insurance)
Employee compliance file
File original Emirates ID and residence visa copies in the personnel record
Issue confirmation-of-employment letter on passing probation
Confirmation letter
Confirm health insurance validity aligns with residency expiry
Some figures on this page vary by jurisdiction, zone or nationality, or could not be independently confirmed from a public source at time of writing - confirm the current figure with the regulator before relying on it.
Sources
Frequently asked
Which authority issues residence visas in Abu Dhabi?
The federal ICP (Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security). Unlike Dubai (which uses GDRFA), Abu Dhabi is on the federal ICP system, with many services also accessible through the emirate's TAMM platform.
What health insurance must an Abu Dhabi employer provide?
Insurance regulated by the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH). The employer/sponsor must cover the employee plus one spouse and up to three children under 18 - a broader family obligation than other emirates require.
What is TAMM and do employers use it?
TAMM is Abu Dhabi's unified government services platform (tamm.abudhabi), consolidating hundreds of services from Abu Dhabi entities. Many residency and employment-related services for the emirate are accessed through it, alongside the federal ICP.
Is ADGM onboarding different from Abu Dhabi mainland?
Yes. ADGM operates under the ADGM Employment Regulations 2019, an independent common-law framework outside federal MOHRE labour law, with its own contracts and the option of a workplace savings scheme instead of statutory gratuity.