How much notice does a UAE contract need to end it?

Employment

Article 43 of the Labour Law lets either party end the contract for a legitimate reason, with written notice and work through the agreed notice period, which must be not less than thirty days and not more than ninety. The contract stays in force through the notice period and the worker is owed full wage for it. The period must be the same for both parties unless the difference favours the worker, and the parties may agree to waive or shorten it while keeping the worker's rights for the agreed period. A party that does not observe the notice owes a notice allowance equal to the wage for the period or its remainder, even without harm.

Contracts in general

Article 232 of the Civil Transactions Law says a valid and binding contract may not be revoked, modified or rescinded by one party, except by mutual consent, litigation or a provision of law. A right to terminate at will, without cause or cure, is a right the parties have to write into the contract; where only one side has it, the clause is one-sided on its face, and in a contract of adhesion a court may modify it.

Dubai leases

Article 25 of the Dubai Tenancy Law lists exhaustively the cases in which a landlord may seek eviction before the lease ends. They include rent unpaid thirty days after a notice to pay, subletting without written consent, unlawful use, a commercial property left empty for thirty continuous or ninety intermittent days a year, damage from deliberate act or gross negligence, use contrary to the purpose or to planning rules, a building certified as unsafe, and a breach of a lease term not remedied within thirty days of notice. Several of these carry the words "unless the parties agree otherwise". Article 6 covers the other direction: a tenant who stays on after expiry without objection renews the lease on the same terms.

A lease clause that lets the landlord re-enter and end the lease without notice, cure or court is wider than Article 25.

Questions

What is the minimum notice period in a UAE employment contract?

Thirty days, and at most ninety, under Article 43 of the Labour Law; the period must be the same for both parties unless the difference favours the worker.

Can one party end a contract without a termination clause?

Not on its own. Article 232 allows revocation, modification or rescission only by mutual consent, litigation or a provision of law.

When can a Dubai landlord evict before the lease ends?

Only in the cases listed in Article 25 of the Dubai Tenancy Law, several of which require thirty days' notice first.