A flurry of year-end hiring in the Emirates has revived a perennial compliance question: can an employee start a new job while a previous residence visa is still active? In a reader Q&A published on 24 February 2026, The National’s workplace columnist Keren Bobker sets the record straight.
Under Federal Decree-Law No (33) of 2021, the onus is on the former sponsor to cancel both the labour card and the residency permit as soon as employment ends. The cancellation process at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) and the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP) typically takes only a few days, yet some companies delay the paperwork to retain leverage over departing staff or to avoid end-of-service liabilities.
Individuals who need extra help navigating these formalities may consider VisaHQ, which offers a streamlined UAE visa portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) and practical guidance on everything from cancellation to fresh applications—services equally useful for departing employees and HR teams under deadline pressure.
![Changing jobs in the UAE? Why your old residency visa must be cancelled first]()
Working for a new employer before the old visa is cancelled is illegal. Both the worker and the new sponsor expose themselves to fines and, in serious cases, deportation or business-licence suspension. The employee is also unprotected under labour law if a dispute arises because—without a valid work permit—he or she is technically working “off the books.”
If the former sponsor drags its feet, the worker may file a complaint with MoHRE. The ministry can compel visa cancellation and, where appropriate, impose administrative penalties on the employer. Free-zone workers have a similar recourse through the zone authority.
For mobility and HR managers, the article is a timely reminder to build visa-cancellation checkpoints into off-boarding procedures and to verify in the ICP/GDRFA system that a candidate’s previous file is closed before issuing a new offer letter. Multinational firms that overlook this step risk compliance breaches that can derail onboarding schedules and incur avoidable costs.
Under Federal Decree-Law No (33) of 2021, the onus is on the former sponsor to cancel both the labour card and the residency permit as soon as employment ends. The cancellation process at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) and the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP) typically takes only a few days, yet some companies delay the paperwork to retain leverage over departing staff or to avoid end-of-service liabilities.
Individuals who need extra help navigating these formalities may consider VisaHQ, which offers a streamlined UAE visa portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/) and practical guidance on everything from cancellation to fresh applications—services equally useful for departing employees and HR teams under deadline pressure.
Working for a new employer before the old visa is cancelled is illegal. Both the worker and the new sponsor expose themselves to fines and, in serious cases, deportation or business-licence suspension. The employee is also unprotected under labour law if a dispute arises because—without a valid work permit—he or she is technically working “off the books.”
If the former sponsor drags its feet, the worker may file a complaint with MoHRE. The ministry can compel visa cancellation and, where appropriate, impose administrative penalties on the employer. Free-zone workers have a similar recourse through the zone authority.
For mobility and HR managers, the article is a timely reminder to build visa-cancellation checkpoints into off-boarding procedures and to verify in the ICP/GDRFA system that a candidate’s previous file is closed before issuing a new offer letter. Multinational firms that overlook this step risk compliance breaches that can derail onboarding schedules and incur avoidable costs.
