UAEssentials | Ask The Law
Ask the law: July 10, 2009
Ask the law: July 10, 2009
- Compiled by Dina Aboul Hosn
- Published: 16:29 July 10, 2009
Demands for rent increases are illegal in the first three years
A reader from Sharjah asks: I rented a villa in Sharjah and signed a contract for one year. I decorated the villa which cost me a large amount of money. I received a letter from the owner stating that the tenancy contract will expire in two months, and that the owner will renew the contract provided that he could include a rent increase in the new year by 20 per cent. If I disagree with such an increase I shall have to vacate the villa at the end of the contract. My question here is whether the landlord is entitled to claim such rates legally, and what to do in this regard.
I would like to clarify that the request for an increase by the landlord is illegal and contrary to the Sharjah Rent Law, as the Rent Law in Sharjah prohibits the landlord to ask for any increase within the first three years of the contract. Therefore, the questioner shall respond to the landlord's letter thus: He will renew the contract as per the law and at the end of the contract he shall pay the rent agreed upon in the contract without any increase within fifteen days from the expiry date of the contract. If the landlord refuses to receive the rent instalments, the questioner shall deposit the instalments in the municipality - the section for rental disputes.
Contract hassle
A reader from Dubai asks: I have been working for a company for more than three years on a contract for a limited period. My contract expired one month ago and I did not sign a new one with the company. I am still working there. The company is asking me to sign a new employment contract with a limited period for three years, but I refused to sign it as I do not want to continue with the company for more than one year. The company refuses stating that as per the Labour Law I must sign a contract for a limited period because my previous one was for an unlimited period. Please advise me and explain my legal status in this regard as per the Labour Law.
I would like to clarify to the questioner that article 40 of the UAE Labour Law states the following: "Where the two parties continue to perform the contract, without an expressed agreement, after the expiry of its initial period or after the completion of the work agreed upon, the original contract shall be deemed to have been tacitly extended on the same conditions as those already contained therein, other than the condition respecting its duration". Therefore, such an article does not oblige the questioner to sign a contract for a limited period as per the above mentioned article unless the contract contains a provision to the contrary. The questioner has two choices: Either the questioner may ask to renew the contract for one year as per his request or refuse the renewal.
Court must decide
A reader from Dubai asks: Three months ago, I took an amount of money from a person as a loan and issued a cheque for the amount payable to the debt owner. One month ago, I reimbursed the amount in cash and the owner of the cheque told me that he would repay the cheque later. But I found later that the owner of the cheque had filed a complaint against me before the police claiming the value of the cheque. My question is how to prove before the court that I have paid the value of the cheque and that the owner of the cheque is not right in his request.
I would like to advise the questioner to ask the criminal court to summon the complainant (owner of the cheque) and to ask him for the amount he received against the value of the cheque - note the complainant will be questioned before the court after swearing under oath. The questioner may also request the court to hear the testimony of the friend who was there when the questioner paid the value of the cheque. Accordingly, the court will pass a resolution according to the court's conviction in this case.
Company is liable for gratuity
A reader from Dubai asks: I would like to know my end-of-service gratuity as per UAE Labour Law as I have worked in a company for more than a year. I want to transfer to a new company after being terminated by the company. My question here is whether my end-of-service gratuity is calculated on the basis of 21 or 30 days and whether I am entitled to a return ticket.
I would like to clarify to the questioner that article 132 of UAE Labour Law states the following: "A worker who has completed a period of one or more years of continuous service shall be entitled to severance pay on the termination of his employment. The days of absence from work without pay shall not be included in calculating the period of service. The severance pay shall be calculated as follows:
1. 21 days remuneration for each year of the first five years of service.
2. 30 days remuneration for each additional year of service provided that the aggregate amount of severance pay shall not exceed two year's remuneration. As for a return ticket, the questioner is entitled to the same so long as he has not contracted to another company within the UAE.
Passport as security
A reader from Dubai asks: I work with a Dubai based company and one of our activities is leasing and hiring of instruments and equipment catering to the construction industry. As a usual practice when anyone wants to hire an instrument they have to provide us an undated cheque as security upon the instrument value, but there were cases where some customer could not provide us cheque, instead they put their passport as security. My question is
1. Is it legal to hold someone's passport as security against the instrument rented?
2. If yes, what documentation and paper works need to be maintained?
3. Can we file a complaint if the customer fails to return the instrument or run away with the instrument?
I would like to clarify to the questioner that no one may hold the passport as guarantee, because such conduct is contrary to the law, as the passport is considered a document related to the person and shall be detained only by a competent judge.
Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Bahar Advocates and Legal Consultants
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