A part-time maid in Dubai is an hourly cleaner employed and sponsored by a licensed cleaning company, so you pay per visit and carry no visa, contract or leave duties. A full-time or live-in maid is your own employee under the UAE domestic workers law, owed one paid rest day a week, 30 days' paid annual leave and housing.
Most Dubai households make this decision backwards. The usual start is a monthly salary a friend mentioned, which makes a full-time maid sound cheaper than paying by the hour. The rest only shows up after signing: the visa, the agency contract, the medical insurance, the room, the meals, the flight home every two years, and the legal duty to give a day off every single week.
None of that is a reason not to hire full-time help. Plenty of families need it. The point is to know exactly what each option commits you to before you choose, and to stop comparing a salary with an hourly rate as if they were the same kind of number.
What is the difference between a part-time and a full-time maid in Dubai?
The difference between a part-time and a full-time maid in Dubai is who employs them. A part-time maid is employed, sponsored and insured by a licensed cleaning company that sends them to you by the hour. A full-time or live-in maid is employed by you, on a MoHRE contract, with every employer duty in the domestic workers law.
The table below compares the two side by side.
What does a full-time or live-in maid legally require from a Dubai employer?
A full-time or live-in maid in Dubai requires the employer to sign a MoHRE contract and provide housing, meals, clothing, medical care or health insurance, a weekly paid rest day, 12 hours of daily rest and at least 30 days' paid annual leave. The u.ae summary of the domestic workers law lists these duties.
The full list of entitlements the u.ae page gives for domestic workers:
- Wages paid as set out in the standard contract, within 10 days of the due date
- One day of paid rest per week
- 12 hours of rest per day, including at least 8 hours of consecutive rest
- Paid annual leave of no less than 30 days
- A round-trip ticket home every 2 years
- No more than 30 days of sick leave per year
- Possession of their own passport and identity documents
On top of those, the employer must provide appropriate accommodation, meals and clothing, medical care or health insurance, compensation for work injuries, and must not employ any worker without a valid work permit. Gulf Today reported MoHRE confirming that the employer pays the round-trip ticket every two years when the worker travels home on leave, and a one-way ticket only if the contract then ends.
Public holidays are a common surprise. Khaleej Times reported that the law's provisions do not include paid public holidays, so time off on long weekends is at the employer's discretion, but a worker asked to work on their rest day must get an alternative day off or cash compensation.
How much does a part-time maid cost in Dubai?
A part-time maid in Dubai is priced by the hour, usually with a minimum booking, and the cleaning company's rate already covers the cleaner's wage, visa, insurance and transport. Our guide to maid service rates in Dubai lists published hourly rates, minimum bookings and what a monthly arrangement costs.
The hourly rate looks higher than a salary divided by hours, and it is supposed to. With a part-time maid you are buying finished hours of cleaning, while the employment costs, the rest days, the leave and the replacement when someone is ill stay with the company.
If price is the deciding factor, read what the cheapest cleaning services in Dubai actually get you before booking the lowest hourly rate you can find.
Is it legal to hire a freelance part-time maid in Dubai?
Hiring a freelance part-time maid in Dubai who is not working under a valid permit puts you on the wrong side of the law, because the domestic workers law prohibits employing any worker without a valid work permit. A cleaner sent by a licensed company works under that company's permit, which is what makes hourly help legal.
The practical test is simple. Ask who employs the cleaner and who you are paying. If the answer is a licensed company with a trade licence that covers cleaning, the employment risk is theirs. If the answer is a person paid in cash with no company behind them, ask what permit they are working under before they start.
✓ Book through a licensed cleaning company, not an individual paid in cash
✓ Ask whether the cleaner is the company's own employee
✓ Confirm the minimum booking and whether materials are included
✓ Ask what happens if the usual cleaner is ill
✓ Agree in writing what one visit covers
What is Tadbeer and when do you need it in Dubai?
Tadbeer is the name of the domestic worker service centres approved by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, and you need one, or another licensed recruitment office, when you hire a full-time or live-in domestic worker. You do not need Tadbeer to book a part-time cleaner from a cleaning company.
The u.ae page sets out what a recruitment office must do. The office must give the worker the type, nature and wage of the job before entry, run medical examinations within no more than 30 days before entry, and must not take any commission from the worker. The recruitment contract with you must state the agency's service fees and the timeframe, and if the office breaches it, it must provide a replacement or refund the recruitment fees.
MoHRE also runs an online platform for domestic worker queries and complaints, which both employers and workers can use.
Which does a Dubai household need, a part-time or a full-time maid?
Most Dubai households that need cleaning, not childcare or elderly care, are better served by a part-time maid booked a few times a week. A full-time or live-in domestic worker makes sense when you need someone in the home for most of the day, for children or an older relative, and can meet every employer duty.
Starting part-time is the low-risk route. Book the same cleaner on fixed days for a few weeks, and you will know quickly whether the household really needs someone full-time, without a visa, a contract or a spare room. For a one-off reset first, see what same-day cleaning in Dubai covers.
Try regular help without the contract first
A full-time maid is a job you create, with every duty that comes with it. A part-time maid is a service you book, and stop, and change, with none of them. For most Dubai homes that need a clean flat rather than a live-in carer, the second is the smarter place to start.
TaskRight is a verified, zero-commission home services platform in the UAE. Every cleaning company on it is RightPro-verified, the cleaners are theirs, and you book and pay the company direct, with no cut taken by us. Tell us your home and how often you want help, and compare what comes back.
👉 Book a verified part-time cleaner in Dubai →
Related reading:
Part-time and full-time maids in Dubai: your questions answered
What is the difference between a part-time and a full-time maid in Dubai?
A part-time maid in Dubai is employed, sponsored and insured by a licensed cleaning company and booked by the hour. A full-time or live-in maid is your own employee on a MoHRE contract, and you must provide housing, meals, medical care or insurance, a weekly paid rest day and at least 30 days' paid annual leave.
What must an employer provide for a live-in maid in Dubai?
An employer of a live-in maid in Dubai must provide appropriate accommodation, meals and clothing, medical care or health insurance, one paid rest day a week, 12 hours of rest a day including 8 consecutive hours, at least 30 days' paid annual leave and a round-trip ticket home every 2 years, under the domestic workers law.
Is there a minimum salary for a full-time maid in Dubai?
MoHRE does not publish a single minimum salary for a full-time maid in Dubai. The wage is whatever the MoHRE standard contract states, and it must be paid within 10 days of the due date. Any single all-in monthly figure quoted for a live-in maid is that publisher's estimate, not a government figure.
Is it legal to hire a part-time maid in Dubai?
Hiring a part-time maid in Dubai is legal through a licensed cleaning company, because the cleaner works under that company's permit. The UAE domestic workers law prohibits employing any worker without a valid work permit, so paying an individual in cash with no company or permit behind them puts the risk on you.
Do I need Tadbeer to hire a part-time maid in Dubai?
You do not need Tadbeer for a part-time maid. Tadbeer centres are MoHRE-approved domestic worker service centres used to recruit full-time or live-in domestic workers. A part-time maid in Dubai is booked by the hour from a licensed cleaning company, which already employs and sponsors the cleaner, so no Tadbeer contract is involved.
Do full-time maids in Dubai get public holidays off?
The UAE domestic workers law does not include paid public holidays, Khaleej Times reported, so time off on long weekends is at the Dubai employer's discretion. A maid asked to work on their weekly rest day must be given another day off or paid compensation in cash, and gets at least 30 days' paid annual leave.
Last updated: November 2026
