The No Objection Certificate (NOC) is no longer required for workers to change jobs, the Ministry of Labour (MoL) has confirmed.
Arabic daily Al Khaleej quoted a MoL source as saying that the new law which came into effect from January 2011 has done away with the NOC requirement under two conditions.
“A person can join another company without the NOC of his current employer in the event that the person has completed two years with the employer and that he is shifting after a mutual agreement between the two parties,” informed the source.
However, the ministry identified exceptions to both conditions.
The confusion over change of job and NOC continues among the UAE workforce and the issue crops up again following a weekly meeting of the committee of MoL which is studying a request from a labourer for a new work permit.
The laborer’s application suggests that he resigned after completing 23 months with his employer and also has an NOC from the latter, however, the committee referred the case to MoL Legal Affairs Department, which has rejected the labourer a new work permit.
The source informed that the request was rejected on the ground that the applicant had not completed two years with his first employer, which is a must even though he has an NOC.
It is understood that there will be an automatic six-month ban if an employee cancels his visa before completing two years, regardless of having the NOC.
In another case a woman sought approval from MoL for transfer of job on the ground that her employer sacked without any reason. The committee has asked the applicant to provide proof that she was sacked without any reason, following which she would be granted to join a new job.