Employment Law in Angola

Legal system, currency, language

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Legal system, currency, language

Legal system, currency, language in Angola

Constitutional. The official currency is the Kwanza (AOA). The official language is Portuguese.

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Corporate presence requirements & payroll set-up

Corporate presence requirements & payroll set-up in Angola

A foreign entity may engage employees in Angola with proper payroll registrations, subject to business, corporate and tax considerations. The employer is responsible for withholding from an employee's pay, and delivering to the tax authority, income tax and contributions to Angolan social security. The level of income tax is defined by the government and varies in line with the employee's salary.

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Pre-hire checks

Pre-hire checks in Angola

Required

Immigration compliance and pre-hire medical examinations.

Permissible

Reference and education checks are permissible.

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Immigration

Immigration in Angola

Criminal and medical checks must be issued by competent authorities, a criminal record must be issued by the home country and a medical certificate must be issued by a doctor in the employee’s home country.

The visa/work permit requirements for overseas nationals to work in Angola are having a recognized travel document valid for the Angolan territory for at least 6 months, being of legal age, not being included in the national list of undesirable persons prohibited from entering into the national territory, not constituting a danger to public order or to social security interests, complying with all health regulations established by the Ministry of Health for entry into the national territory, having an employment contract or promissory employment contract, having a certificate of professional and educational qualifications and curriculum vitae, and obtaining a positive opinion of the competent Ministry.

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Hiring options

Hiring options in Angola

Employee

Indefinite-term contract (which is the rule), fixed-term or open-term (ie, a term contract whose termination date has not yet been defined, but that will be terminated as soon as the underlying need for contracting is no longer verified – for example, as a contract to cover absence), part-time contract, telework contract and contract under service commission regime – a particular type of contract for high-level employees which provides flexibility for termination and is not common. The parties may execute an employment contract for a fixed term or open term, which must be done in writing. Part-time, fixed-term and open-term employees may not be discriminated against due to their status.

Independent contractor

Independent contractors may be engaged directly by the company or via a personal services company. Engagement may be subject to misclassification exposure. The factors that tend to indicate an individual is an employee (rather than, for example, a self-employed independent contractor) are the existence of a work schedule, the scheduling of vacation, the worker’s legal subordination to the company, the company’s authority, direction and disciplinary powers, control of punctuality and attendance over the individual, integration into the structure of the company and use of work tools belonging to the company, among others.

In the event of misclassification, the relationship may be converted into an employment relationship on a permanent basis, and the employer may be liable to pay: a fine for non-compliance, employment entitlements owed as of the commencement of the activity and social security contributions.

Agency worker

Agency workers may only be engaged to fulfill a temporary need for work. The agency work contract duration depends on the underlying reason for hiring and does not typically exceed 24 months. Agency workers have the right to equal treatment to employees in relation to pay and other regular benefits.

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Employment contracts & policies

Employment contracts & policies in Angola

Employment contracts

Written employment contracts are common but not mandatory, except for fixed-term, part-time, telework and service commission regime contracts as well as contracts with foreign employees and underage employees. Employment contracts cannot contain conditions that are less favorable to employees than mandatory employment legislation.

Probationary periods

Permissible.

Employment contracts for an unlimited period of time may be subject to a probation period corresponding to the first 60 days of performance of work; the parties may, by written agreement, reduce or waive this period.

The parties may extend the probation period, in writing, to up to 6 months in case of employees who perform management duties.

In an employment contract for a fixed-term, the parties may set forth a probation period in writing, and its duration cannot exceed 30 days.

Policies

Employers with more than 50 employees must, in order to organize the work and labor discipline, draft and approve work rules or policies defining rules for the technical organization of work, work discipline, safety, hygiene and health protection of work, performance indicators, a remuneration system, working hours for the several sections of the company or work center, control of entrances and exits and circulation within the premises of the company, and surveillance and control of production.

Employers with 50 or fewer employees may, but are not required to, implement employee policies or handbooks on the matters described above.

Third-party approval

Whenever the employee’s handbook or any other rules and regulations establish rules on performance and discipline, remuneration systems, work performance or safety, hygiene and health protection at work, the employer must forward such regulations for information and registration purposes to the General Labor Inspectorate.

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Language requirements

Language requirements in Angola

Portuguese. Nevertheless, employment contracts and other documents may be drafted in a bilingual template.

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Working time, time off work & minimum wage

Working time, time off work & minimum wage in Angola

Employees entitled to minimum employment rights

All employees are entitled to minimum employment rights.

Working hours

Maximum daily and weekly working hours are 8 hours per day and 44 hours per week. Overtime pay is required for hours worked in excess of these limits. These limits may be inapplicable to employees who perform direction and leadership duties, duties of inspection, or provide direct support to the employer, teleworking employees and for other employees who regularly perform their duties away from the workplace , without the immediate control of their manager or performance of work which, by its nature, can only be carried out outside the limits of working hours (ie, employees who may be exempt from a work schedule). The corresponding written agreement, ie, the agreement establishing exemption from work schedule for one of the above mentioned reasons) shall be included in the employee’s individual file. Typically, employees under exemption regime are entitled to an exemption bonus.

Overtime

Overtime may occur with an extraordinary increase in workload, to prevent serious damage or if due to force majeure. It is subject to the following maximum limits: (a) 2 hours per day, (b) 40 hours per month and (c) 200 hours per year.

Each hour of overtime work is compensated with additional payment of up to 30 hours per month, corresponding to 50 percent of the value of the normal working hour. Overtime exceeding that limit is compensated with additional payment of 75 percent for each hour.

For purposes of payment for overtime work:

(a) fractions of time of less than 15 minutes are not considered;

(b) fractions of time between 15 and 44 minutes are considered as half an hour;

(d) work performed on the day or half-day of complementary weekly rest is considered a normal working day.

Employees who perform overtime work that prevents them from taking daily rest are entitled to paid compensatory rest equivalent to the hours of rest missed, to be taken on the following working day. Employees who perform overtime work on a mandatory weekly rest day are entitled to a paid compensatory rest day, to be taken on the following working day.

Wages

The minimum wage is established by Presidential Decree. It is set out as a general minimum wage, but there is also a minimum wage for trade and extractive industry groups, transport services and manufacturing groups and agriculture groups. Under the Decree currently in force, the general minimum wage is AOA32,181.15. The following sector-specific minimum wages also apply:

Trade and extractive industry groups: AOA48,271.73
Transport services and manufacturing groups: AOA40,226.44 and
Agriculture groups: AOA32,181.15.

Vacation

Minimum 22 working days per year, plus 12 public national holidays.

Sick leave & pay

Employees are entitled to take off as much time as they need for sick leave. In this case, the employer continues to pay the employee’s salary for a period of 6 months, with the right of reimbursement from Social Security. For fixed-term employees, the obligation to pay salary ceases on the date of expiry of the fixed-term contract if the illness continues after that date.

Employees can take up to 8 paid working days of leave per year to provide unavoidable assistance to members of the family, in case of illness or accident of the spouse, parents and children up to the age of 18.

Maternity/parental leave & pay

A pregnant employee is entitled to a paid maternity leave of 3 months. The amount of the maternity allowance is equal to the average of the 2 best monthly salaries from the 6 months preceding the commencement of the maternity leave. The maternity allowance is paid directly by the employer to the employee and, subsequently, the Social Security services reimburses the employer in full. Fathers are not entitled to any paid leave on the birth of a child; it is only considered as a justifiable reason for absence from work for 1 day. The father is also entitled to an unpaid supplementary leave of 7 consecutive or non-consecutive working days.

Fathers are also entitled to replace the mother of their newborn child while on maternity leave in the event of the mother's proven physical or mental incapacity for the duration of the incapacity or in case of mother's death.

Other leave/time off work

Employees may also be entitled to leave for other purposes, such as for their wedding; relatives’ death, fulfillment of legal or military obligations which must be performed within the normal working period; attendance to tests by working students; attendance of training, professional proficiency, professional qualification or job conversion courses authorized by the employer; participation in cultural or sporting activities, either in representation of the country or the company or in official contests; the performance of necessary and urgent action in the exercise of leading tasks in labor unions as a union representative or as a member of the employee’s representative body; or the participation of the employee as a candidate to general or municipal elections approved by the competent authority.

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Discrimination & harassment

Discrimination & harassment in Angola

Discrimination based on the following protected characteristics is prohibited: race, color, gender, ethnic origin, marital status, origin or social rank, religious beliefs, political opinion, union affiliation and language.

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Whistleblowing

Whistleblowing in Angola

There is no special provision in this regard in Angola. Protection is only granted in the course of criminal action at the request of a whistleblower or by decision of the Public Prosecutor's Office.

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Benefits & pensions

Benefits & pensions in Angola

Both employer and employee must pay contributions to social security in Angola to cover various employee benefits (eg, maternity leave payment and retirement pension). The employer must withhold the contribution due by the employee and deliver both contributions (ie, employer and employee) to social security every month.

Current general rates are 3 percent of the gross wage for the employee and 8 percent for the employer.

Employees with a minimum contributory period (ie, 35 years) qualify for a retirement pension at age 60 or in cases of total incapacity.

Employers have no legal obligation to provide complementary or supplementary social benefits in addition to the social coverage provided for by the social public scheme. However, some companies – mostly large companies or multinational companies who have their own schemes worldwide – set up and provide private complementary health and pension schemes to their employees.

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Data privacy

Data privacy in Angola

The Data Privacy Law No. 22/11, June 17 governs Angolan data privacy and determines, in general terms, how to collect, use, disclose, store and give access to "personal information."

As a general rule, employers cannot require job applicants or employees to provide information about their life, health or pregnancy status.

Job applicants or employees who have provided information containing personal data have the right to control their personal data, and may be informed of its content and the purposes for which it is intended, as well as demand that it be rectified and removed.

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Rules in transactions/business transfers

Rules in transactions/business transfers in Angola

Provided that the same business activity is maintained, the new employer takes the position of the former employer in the employment contracts and takes their position in respect of the rights and obligations arising from the employment relationships. This is the case even if the employment contract is terminated before the transfer. The new employer takes their position as the employer of such former employees in respect of due and non-paid credits. Employees keep the same seniority and acquired rights which they had in the service of their former employer.

The transferor must inform the employees' representative bodies or, in the absence of such bodies, the employees themselves of the transfer of the undertaking or establishment, the reasons for it and the date on which it is to take effect, its consequences for the employees and the measures envisaged for them.

Employees must be informed in writing at least 22 working days before the transfer takes place or by posting a notice on the company's premises in the most accessible and visible places.

The new employer must communicate the change of employer to the General Labor Inspectorate. The communication must be served within 15 business days following the transfer, stating the reason for the transfer and the future status of the employees.

The transferor must inform the transferee of the terms and conditions that govern the employment relationship.

Within 22 business days following the change of employer, the employees have the right to terminate the employment contract with prior notice, but this does not confer any right to compensation.

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Employee representation

Employee representation in Angola

Employee representative bodies are permissible but not mandatory.

Trade unions are not common in Angola.

In order to carry out their duties, trade union representatives are entitled to the following paid absences:

4 working days per month for carrying out duties as a member of the union's executive body;
4 or 5 hours per month for each union delegate or each member of the workers' representative body, depending on whether there are up to 200 or more employees affiliated to the respective unions at the work center.

The employee must notify the employer in advance of the date and number of days they require for the exercise of trade union functions. Employers are obliged to provide a suitable place for workers' meetings whenever this is requested by the union representatives. Special protections against dismissal are granted to employees who perform, or have performed, duties as union representatives, either as leaders or delegates, or members of the employees’ representative body performing union-related activities.

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Termination

Termination in Angola

Grounds

Unilateral termination by the employer: dismissal based on objective grounds (ie, redundancy reasons); disciplinary dismissal with just cause (ie, based on serious breach of the employee's duties).

Termination without cause (with notice): only for employees hired under an employment contract of service commission regime (a particular type of contract for high-level employees which provides flexibility for termination but is not common).

Other termination causes: mutual agreement, termination by the employee (ie, termination with notice or constructive dismissal with just cause), expiration (ie, fixed-term and open-term contracts or retirement).

Employees subject to termination laws

All employees.

Restricted or prohibited terminations

Special protection against dismissal is granted to employees who perform, or have performed, duties as union representatives, either as leaders or delegates, or members of the employees’ representative body performing activities; women covered by the regime of maternity protection; war veterans as per the definition provided by the applicable law; employees under the legal age; employees with a reduced work capacity or with a disability degree equal or higher than 20 percent.

As a general rule, a copy of the notice served on the employee must be forwarded to General Labor Inspectorate.

Third-party approval for termination/termination documents

Except in respect of protected employees, third-party approval is not required to terminate an employment.

Mass layoff rules

If economic, technological or structural circumstances occur, which may be clearly demonstrated and which involve an internal reorganization or conversion, or the reduction or the shutting down of activities, which makes it necessary to eliminate or significantly change job positions, the employer may terminate the employment contracts of the employees who perform such job positions.

Collective dismissal rules are triggered if the dismissal involves at least 6 employees.

Information to the General Labor Inspectorate is required. However, there is no need to obtain approval for termination.

The General Labor Inspectorate may undertake the diligence deemed necessary for clarification of the situation and, in case of a collective dismissal, during the period in which the evaluation of the General Labor Inspectorate occurs, the employer may promote a meeting with the representative body or with the committee appointed for the purpose of exchange of information and clarification and may forward the conclusions of the meetings to the General Labor Inspectorate.

Notice

For individual dismissals based on objective grounds (up to 5 employees): the employer must forward, at least 30 days in advance, prior notice of dismissal to the employee or employees who occupy the job positions to be extinguished or transformed.

For collective dismissal: the prior notice is 60 days.

Notice periods in case of a fixed-term contract where the termination occurs by expiration: 30 days.

Statutory right to pay in lieu of notice or garden leave

Payment in lieu of notice is permitted (and required if the notice period is not honored).

Garden leave is allowed during the notice period.

Severance

Fair dismissal based on objective grounds (redundancy/collective dismissal):

1 monthly base salary multiplied by the number of years of service up to 5 years, and .5 base salary multiplied by the number of years of seniority exceeding 5 years.
Fair disciplinary dismissal: no severance.
Higher severance payments may be agreed and are usual as a way to avoid litigation.

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Post-termination restraints

Post-termination restraints in Angola

A clause of the employment contract which restricts the activity of the employee for a period of time, which may not exceed 3 years from the termination of the contract, is lawful if the following conditions are met: (a) such clause is included, in writing, in the employment contract, or in its addendum; (b) the activity performed may cause real damage to the employer and may be considered as unfair competition; (c) the employee is paid a salary during the period of restriction of work: the corresponding amount will be included in the contract or its addendum.

A clause which requires an employee who benefits from professional improvement or higher level education at the expense of the employer to remain at the service of the same employer for a certain period of time, provided that such period does not exceed 1 year, in case of training of professional improvement and up to 3 years in case of courses of high level education, is also lawful if established in writing. In this case, the employee may release themselves from remaining at the employer’s service by repaying to the employer the amount of the expenses incurred by the employer, in proportion to the remaining time until the term of the agreed period. The employer that hires the employee within the period of restriction of activity in the company is jointly liable for the damages caused by the employee or for the amount not returned by the employee.

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Waivers

Waivers in Angola

In principle, statutory rights cannot be waived and any waiver of such rights will be null and void.

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Remedies

Remedies in Angola

Discrimination

Fine corresponding to 5 to 10 times the average salary paid by the company.

Unfair Dismissal

The employee may challenge the validity of the dismissal before the labor courts.

If the relevant court declares the dismissal to be unlawful, by final judgment, the employer must immediately reinstate the employee in the same job position and benefiting from the same previous conditions and compensate the employee for all damage caused, both pecuniary and non-pecuniary.

In addition to reinstatement and compensation, the employee is entitled to the base salary they would have received if they had continued to perform work, until the date of final judgment, less the amount of salary for the period from the date of dismissal until 30 days before the legal proceedings are initiated, if the legal action is not brought within 30 days of the dismissal. The amount due is always limited to a maximum of 6 months’ salary.

If reinstatement is not possible or the employee does not want reinstatement, the employer must compensate the employee by paying them compensation corresponding to their base salary as of the date of dismissal multiplied by the number of years of their seniority, with the minimum amount corresponding to 3 months’ base salary.

Failure to inform and consult

Not applicable.

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Criminal sanctions

Criminal sanctions in Angola

Typically, non-compliance with employment laws leads to administrative proceedings which may lead to the payment of fines. If such non-compliance is based on violation of rights that deserve protection under criminal law, it may also lead to this type of judicial proceedings.

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Key contacts

Employment lawyers in Angola

João Guedes

Partner

DLA Piper

Lisbon

Email Full bio

Daniela Rosa

Senior Associate

DLA Piper

Lisbon

Email Full bio

Constitutional. The official currency is the Kwanza (AOA). The official language is Portuguese.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Constitutional and civil law with certain application of case law. The official currency is the Argentine Peso (ARS). The official language is Spanish.

Last modified 10 May 2023

Common law jurisdiction with employment laws that operate at both the federal and state levels. The official currency is the Australian dollar (AUD). The official language is English.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is German.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law system. Employment matters are governed by Law No. 36 of 2012 (Labor Law) as amended. The official currency is the Bahraini Dinar (BHD). The official language is Arabic.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law. Member of European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official languages are Dutch, French and German.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Brazilian Real (BRL). The official language is Portuguese.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Common law throughout the majority of the country and civil law in the province of Quebec. The official currency is the Canadian dollar (CAD). The official languages are English and French.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Continental law. The official currency is the Chilean peso (CLP). The official language is Spanish.

Last modified 13 June 2024

Civil law. The official currency is the Chinese Renminbi (CNY). The official language is Mandarin.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Colombian Peso (COP). The official language is Spanish.

Last modified 7 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union. The official currency is the Czech Crown (CZK). The official language is Czech.

Last modified 14 June 2024

Civil law. Member of the EU and required to implement relevant EU Directives. The official currency is the Danish kroner (DKK). The official language is Danish.

Last modified 14 June 2024

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official languages are Finnish and Swedish.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is French.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU) and required to implement relevant EU Directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is German.

Last modified 14 June 2024

Common law. The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) provides that courts of HKSAR may refer to the precedents of other common law jurisdictions when making decisions. The official currency is the Hong Kong dollar (HKD). The official languages are English and Chinese.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Hungarian Forint (HUF). The official language is Hungarian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

India uses a common law legal system, except in the State of Goa, which has a civil code. The official currency is the Indian Rupee (INR). India is a multilinguistic country with many languages and dialects across the country. The official languages of the union government are Hindi and English. Individual states may set their own official language.

Additionally, in a major move to streamline, simplify and reform Indian employment laws, the Indian government has legislated 4 labor codes. These new codes are expected to significantly impact labor reforms, affecting more than 500 million organized and unorganized workers in India, including work structures such as “gig workers.” The codes are not yet in effect, nor has the government indicated when they will be put into effect. Below is a brief overview of the codes:

The Code on Social Security, 2020 (SS Code) intends to consolidate, into a single code, 9 central labor statutes related to social security, which inter alia include the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952; the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948; the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961; the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972; and the Unorganized Workers' Social Security Act, 2008. It proposes to extend the social security benefits to employees and workers, in both the organized and the unorganized sectors, including “gig workers”.
The Industrial Relations Code, 2020 (IR Code) intends to consolidate and amend the existing laws relating to conditions of employment in an industrial establishment and proposes to subsume, into a single code, 3 central labor statutes: the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947; the Trade Unions Act, 1926; and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act (IESO Act). A key feature of the IR Code is that it proposes to increase the threshold for applicability of the provision relating to the requirement of taking the prior permission of the appropriate government before layoff, retrenchment and closure from 100 to 300 workmen. It also seeks to provide fixed-term employees with all the benefits akin to permanent workers (including gratuity), except for notice upon conclusion of a fixed period and retrenchment compensation. The employer has been provided with the flexibility to employ workers on a fixed-term basis based on requirement and without restriction on any sector.
The Occupational Health, Safety and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code) seeks to consolidate and amend the laws regulating the occupational health, safety and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment. It subsumes and replaces 13 central labor statutes including inter alia the Factories Act, 1948; the Mines Act, 1952; the Dock Workers Act, 1986; and the Contract Labour Act (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970.
The Code on Wages, 2019 (Wage Code) consolidates 4 central labor laws relating to wage, bonus and related matters: the Payment of Wages Act, 1936; the Minimum Wages Act, 1948; the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965; and the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976.

Currently, certain Indian states are yet to frame draft rules under the above codes. Recently, the Central Ministry of Labour and Employment has issued a press release on December 28, 2024, stating that all states and Union Territories of India are expected to frame their draft rules for the labor codes by March 31, 2025. The labor codes are expected to be brought into effect once all the states have framed their draft rules.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Indonesian Rupiah (IDR). The official language is Bahasa Indonesia.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Common law. Member of the EU and required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Strong common law heritage with elements from other legal systems. New Israeli Shekel (ILS). Hebrew and Arabic (English commonly spoken).

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is Italian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Japanese yen (JPY). The official language is Japanese.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Common law. The official currency is the Kenya Shilling (KES). The official languages are Swahili and English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil Code; employment matters are governed by Law No. 6 of 2010 (the Labor Law), as amended. There are also relevant provisions in the Penal Code and Civil Code. The official currency is the Kuwaiti Dinar (KWD). The official language is Arabic.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official languages are French, German and Luxembourgish.

Last modified 20 June 2024

Common law and statute. Malaysian Ringgit(MYR)/Ringgit Malaysia(RM). Malay/Bahasa Malaysia and English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Mexican Peso (MXN). The official language is Spanish.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law, inspired by French law. The official currency is the Moroccan Dirham (MAD). The official language is Arabic, but French is common for business purposes.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Mozambican Metical (MZM). The official language is Portuguese.

Last modified 14 March 2023

New civil laws co-exist with the old British colonial laws and regulations, and the laws and regulations issued by the various military governments over the last fifty years. Further, there has been a liberal application over the last few decades of "policies and practices," which are not detailed in any laws or regulations and are often unpublished.

Myanmar/Burmese Kyat (MMK).

The official language is Burmese. English has become increasingly popular in the business community. In practice, dual language (Burmese/English) contracts will be required to ensure that all parties understand the contents of the employment contract.

Last modified 14 March 2023

Civil law. Member of the European Union, so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is Dutch.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Common law. The official currency is the New Zealand dollar (NZD). The official language is English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

The legal system in Nigeria consists of a) Nigerian legislation; b) English law, which includes the common law, doctrine of equity and statutes of general application in force in England on January 1, 1900; c) Sharia law, applicable in some parts of the North, and customary law; and d) judicial precedent.

The official currency is the Nigerian Naira (NGN). The official language is English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Norwegian krone (NOK). The official language is Norwegian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil legal system; employment matters are governed by the Oman Labor Law issued by Royal Decree 53/2023 (Labor Law), as amended. There are also relevant provisions in the Penal Code and Civil Code. The official currency is the Omani Rial (OMR). The official language is Arabic.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Sol (PEN). The official language is Spanish.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Philippine Peso (PHP). The official languages are English and Filipino.

Last modified 12 April 2023

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Polish zloty (PLN). The official language is Polish.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is Portuguese.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Employment matters are predominately governed by Law No. 14 of 2004 (the Labor Law) (as amended). There are also relevant provisions in Law No (21) of 2015 (Sponsorship Law) (as amended) and its Executive Regulations No. 25 of 2019 that primarily govern the sponsorship, residence and exit of expatriate employees.

Companies established in the Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) will be governed by QFC laws and regulations with the primary employment law provisions being contained in QFC Regulation No (10) of 2006 (Employment Regulations) (as amended) and QFC Regulation No (11) of 2006 (Immigration Regulations)(as amended). This guide focuses on the State of Qatar (Qatar) labor laws.

The local currency in Qatar is the Qatari Riyal (QAR). The QAR is pegged to the US dollar. The official language of Qatar is Arabic. Legislation in Qatar is primarily drafted and issued in Arabic and all Qatari court proceedings are heard in Arabic.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Romanian leu (RON). The official language is Romanian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Russian Ruble (RUB). The official language is Russian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Shariah law is the applicable law in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Saudi Arabia or KSA). Despite being a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Saudi Arabia is generally not required to implement the relevant GCC laws except where it enacts them into law through domestic legislation. Saudi Arabian Riyal (SAR) is the national currency. Arabic is the official language, though English is increasing in recognition.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Common law. The official currency is the Singapore dollar (SGD). The official languages are English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. English is the main language of law and business.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of the European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is Slovak.

Last modified 28 June 2024

Common law, civil law and customary law, subject to the Constitution. The official currency is the South African Rand (ZAR). There are 11 official languages: Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Sotho, Swazi, Tswana, Tsonga, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law, though court precedents play an important role. The official currency is the South Korean won (KRW). The official language is Korean.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Euro (EUR). The official language is Spanish. There are regional official languages in Catalunya, Galicia, Basque Country, Navarra, Valencia, and the Balearic Islands.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Member of European Union (EU), so required to implement relevant EU directives. The official currency is the Swedish Krona (SEK). The official language is Swedish.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. Not a member of the European Union (EU), but member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Swiss Francs (CHF). German, French, and Italian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the New Taiwan dollar (TWD). The official language is Mandarin.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law based on various laws and practices, particularly the Napoleonic Code and German civil law. The official currency is the Thai Baht (THB). The official language is Thai.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Hybrid system of French civil law and Islamic Law, Tunisian Dinar (TND) and Arabic.

Last modified 10 April 2023

Civil law. The official currency is the Turkish lira (TRY). The official language is Turkish.

Last modified 3 July 2024

Common law. Member of the African Union (AU), so required to implement relevant AU directives. The official currency is the Uganda Shilling (UGX). The official language is English.

Last modified 2 July 2024

Civil law. The official currency is the hryvnia (UAH). The official language is Ukrainian.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Federal and civil legal system; employment matters are governed by Federal Law No. 33 of 2021 (the Labor Law), as amended. There are additionally relevant provisions in the Penal Code and Civil Code. The official currency is the Dirham (AED). The official language is Arabic.

In addition to the Federal system, the United Arab Emirates contains around 44 economic free zone areas where goods and services can be traded. The majority of the economic free zones are subject to the Labor Law, with some of the free zones, such as the Dubai Development Authority, subject to additional labor law provisions. The DIFC and ADGM free zones are governed by 2 separate labor laws which are specific to the DIFC and ADGM entities and which differ from the Labor Law.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Common law. The official currency is the pound sterling (GBP). The UK left the European Union (EU) on January 31, 2020; however, the UK's exit was followed by a transition period during which the UK was still subject to EU rules. The transition period ended on December 31, 2020. While there is now no freedom of movement of workers between the UK and the EU, there is little short-term impact on employment laws which continue to apply for the most part until UK legislators seek to make changes – which, under the terms of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement agreed between the UK and EU, are only permitted if they do not impact on trade or investment. The government has wide-ranging powers to revoke or restate EU law. The government has expressly restated certain principles of EU case law mainly in relation to discrimination and equal pay, and made changes to EU-derived law on working time and business transfers. Some big changes to UK employment law are expected in 2025/6.

The official language is English.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Combination of federal statutory law, state statutory and common law, and local statutory law. Regulations vary significantly from state to state. The official currency is the US dollar (USD). The official language is English.

Last modified 12 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Bolívar (VES). The official languages are Spanish and local native languages.

Last modified 13 June 2025

Civil law. The official currency is the Vietnamese dong (VND). The official language is Vietnamese, but English has become increasingly popular in the business community.

Last modified 2 July 2024

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Employment Law in Angola

Legal system, currency, language

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