UAE SME HR Budget Planning: Complete Cost Guide 2025

Mandatory compliance includes WPS, contracts, insurance, and visa. Provisions include gratuity and leave encashment. HR operations include software and administration. HR staff includes salaries and benefits. Development includes training and recruitment.

Fixed costs include HR software base fee and HR staff salaries. Variable costs include per-employee insurance and visa processing. Contingent costs include terminations, disputes, and penalties.

Work permit AED 300-500, entry permit AED 500-1,000, medical test AED 300-500, Emirates ID 2 years AED 370, visa stamping AED 500-1,000, typing and admin AED 200-400. Total AED 2,170-3,770.

Cancellation from previous AED 200-500, new work permit AED 300-500, status change AED 500-700, medical if required AED 300-500, Emirates ID AED 370, visa stamping AED 500-1,000. Total AED 2,170-3,570.

Renewal fees AED 500-1,000, medical test AED 300-500, Emirates ID AED 370, admin and typing AED 200-300. Total AED 1,370-2,170. Annual visa cost amortized over 2 years is AED 685-1,885 per year.

Basic DHA minimum is AED 600-1,200 annually with inpatient and basic outpatient. Standard is AED 1,500-2,500 annually with good outpatient and dental. Enhanced is AED 2,500-4,000 annually with comprehensive options. Premium is AED 4,000-8,000 annually with full coverage and global options. Budget tip: Assume AED 1,500 per employee for standard coverage.

Employee age adds 20-50% for 50+ years. Number of employees gives bulk discounts at 5+. Claims history with good history gets better rates. Network size where larger network means higher cost. Higher deductible means lower premium.

For service period 1-5 years provision 21 days per year which is 5.83% of basic salary. After 5 years provision 30 days per year which is 8.33% of basic salary. Monthly provision formula for first 5 years is basic salary times 21 divided by 365. Budget tip: Provision 6% of total basic salary per month.

For AED 10,000 basic salary: Year 1-5 monthly provision is AED 575 or AED 6,900 annual. Year 6+ monthly provision is AED 822 or AED 9,864 annual. Cumulative after 5 years is AED 34,500.

1-10 employees use basic or free at AED 0-500 monthly. 11-25 employees use standard HRMS at AED 500-1,200 monthly. 26-50 employees use full HRMS at AED 1,000-2,500 monthly. 51-100 employees use advanced HRMS at AED 2,000-5,000 monthly.

10 employees costs AED 30-50 per employee monthly. 25 employees costs AED 20-40 per employee monthly. 50 employees costs AED 15-30 per employee monthly. 100 employees costs AED 10-25 per employee monthly.

1-10 employees has founder or manager handle HR. 11-25 employees needs part-time or outsourced HR. 26-50 employees needs 1 HR generalist. 51-100 employees needs 1 HR manager plus 1 admin. 100+ needs full HR team.

HR Admin or Assistant: entry AED 4,000-6,000, mid AED 6,000-8,000, senior AED 8,000-10,000. HR Generalist: entry AED 8,000-10,000, mid AED 10,000-15,000, senior AED 15,000-18,000. HR Manager: entry AED 15,000-20,000, mid AED 20,000-28,000, senior AED 28,000-40,000. PRO: entry AED 5,000-7,000, mid AED 7,000-10,000, senior AED 10,000-15,000.

Monthly HR budget: Health insurance 10 times 125 is AED 1,250. Visa amortization 10 times 100 is AED 1,000. Gratuity provision 6% of 60,000 basic is AED 3,600. HR software AED 400. PRO services AED 1,500. WPS and bank charges AED 200. Training provision AED 500. Contingency 10% is AED 845. Total monthly AED 9,295 or AED 930 per employee. Total annual AED 117,400 or AED 11,740 per employee.

Monthly HR budget: Health insurance 25 times 120 is AED 3,000. Visa amortization 25 times 90 is AED 2,250. Gratuity provision 6% of 175,000 basic is AED 10,500. HR software AED 800. HR admin part-time AED 4,000. PRO services AED 2,500. WPS and bank charges AED 400. Training provision AED 1,500. Contingency 10% is AED 2,495. Total monthly AED 27,445 or AED 1,098 per employee. Total annual AED 347,400 or AED 13,896 per employee.

Monthly HR budget: Health insurance 50 times 110 is AED 5,500. Visa amortization 50 times 85 is AED 4,250. Gratuity provision 6% of 400,000 basic is AED 24,000. HR software AED 1,500. HR manager AED 25,000. HR admin AED 8,000. PRO in-house AED 10,000. WPS and bank charges AED 600. Training provision AED 4,000. Contingency 10% is AED 8,285. Total monthly AED 91,135 or AED 1,823 per employee.

Group rates for 5+ employees saves 10-20%. Higher deductibles saves 15-30%. Broker negotiations saves 5-15%. Annual review and switch saves 10-20%.

Hire from within UAE saves AED 500-1,000 per visa. Bulk processing improves admin efficiency. In-house PRO at scale provides per-transaction savings. Plan timing to avoid rush and express fees.

Annual versus monthly billing saves 10-20%. Bundled solutions versus separate tools. Right-size the plan and do not overbuy. Outsource early stage for lower fixed cost. Hire at right threshold avoiding premature hiring. Multi-skill roles like office manager plus HR. Automate with software to reduce admin time.