The UAE’s Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) has published guidelines spelling out exactly when a work permit application can be denied — or an existing permit revoked outright. The ministry identifies three employer-side failures as active grounds for refusal or cancellation, applicable even after a permit has already been issued: submitting incorrect or falsified documentation on behalf of the establishment; operating as a fictitious business, or having ceased the activity the company was registered under; and failing to comply with the Wages Protection System or other regulatory frameworks governing the UAE labour market.
Before a permit can be granted at all, MoHRE requires the employer’s trade licence to be current and free of outstanding violations, and the job title or occupation listed for the prospective worker to match the company’s actual registered business activity. Only a person with legal authority to represent the establishment may file the application. On the worker side, the minimum age for a standard work permit is 18, with exceptions for juvenile permits and student training/employment programmes.
MoHRE’s framework evaluates employer compliance and worker eligibility simultaneously: a shortfall on either side is enough to trigger rejection, regardless of whether the other party meets every other requirement. For employers and their staff on UAE work permits, the practical takeaway is that trade-licence status, wage-payment compliance, and accurate job-title matching are not one-time checkbox items — they remain live grounds for cancellation for as long as the permit is active.
References
YEN.com.gh – UAE Lists 3 Reasons a Work Permit Can Be Refused or Cancelled
