Annual leave and flights: how they are earned
What paid leave you are entitled to, who pays for flights, and how to request leave without a dispute.
Leave and flights get agreed verbally before travel and disputed a year later. The difference between them matters: leave is a legal right; the flight comes from your contract.
Annual leave
Labour law in Saudi Arabia and the UAE provides paid annual leave after a qualifying period of service, increasing with length of service. It is not a favour from the employer or subject to their mood, and untaken leave carries a payment at the end of service.
The figures differ between the two and are updated, so check with the authority. But know two things: leave is paid, and it does not lapse simply because you did not ask.
Flights — read your contract
A flight is not a general legal right in the way leave is; it is a contractual term. So your contract must state it explicitly and in detail:
- Who pays for the first flight out?
- Is there a leave flight, and how often?
- One way, or return?
- Who pays the final flight home when the contract ends?
- Is it paid in cash if you do not travel?
Five questions answered in a line before signing, or a dispute two years later.
Requesting leave without trouble
- Ask early and in writing, not a week before and verbally.
- Propose timing that suits the work cycle — after a project, not at its peak.
- Keep a copy of the request and the approval.
- Make sure your residence permit stays valid throughout, and that your return is arranged before you go.
An important warning before travelling on leave
Do not travel until you are sure your status is in order and everything needed for your return is complete. Leaving with incomplete paperwork can strand you outside the country, unable to return to your job — a problem that is hard to solve from a distance.
And if earned leave is refused repeatedly without reason, or its payment withheld at the end of service, that is a matter for a labour complaint like any other.
Rules are updated and differ between the two countries. Check with the authority before building a claim on a figure.
Rules and fees change and differ by country and employer. Always check with the official authorities before paying or signing anything.