Kuwait Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, Article 51: end-of-service indemnity
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To check this, or for anything official:
Kuwait's Public Authority for Manpowermanpower.gov.kw
Know your indemnity in KWD under Articles 51 and 53, capped at 18 months' wage.
Enter your monthly wage and your length of service. Article 51 gives a monthly-paid worker 15 days' wage for each of the first five years and a month's wage for each year after, capped at 18 months' wage, and Article 53 sets your share of the indemnity on resignation. The wage under Article 55 is the basic plus everything paid to you periodically.
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How is end-of-service gratuity calculated?
- Monthly wage = basic + fixed allowances
- first 5 years: half a month of wage per year · after 5 years: one month of wage per year
- Gratuity = the bands added, × the entitlement fraction
Symbols
- wage
- The last actual wage: basic plus fixed allowances
- years
- Service including fractions of a year, not whole years only
- entitlement fraction
- Full on termination or contract expiry, and possibly reduced on resignation depending on the country
What is the gratuity on 500 and 7 years of service?
An employee whose comprehensive monthly wage is 1,000 KWD (800 basic + 200 regular allowances) is terminated by the employer after 7 years of service.
- First five years: 5 × 0.5 × 1,000 = 2,500 KWD
- Next two years: 2 × 1 × 1,000 = 2,000 KWD
- Total indemnity: 2,500 + 2,000 = 4,500 KWD
Had the same 7 years ended in resignation, only two-thirds would be due: 3,000 KWD under Article 53. And 25 years of service would compute to 22,500 KWD but is cut to the cap of 18,000 KWD.
What counts towards the calculation, and what does not?
Under Article 51 of Kuwait's Private Sector Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, a monthly-paid worker is owed an end-of-service indemnity of 15 days' wage, that is half a month's wage, for each of the first five years of service, and one month's wage for each year after that, with the total capped at a year and a half's wage (18 months).
The indemnity is calculated on the comprehensive wage, not the basic salary alone: Article 55 requires the wage including regular allowances to be used. This page covers monthly-paid workers only. Workers paid by the day, week, hour or piece instead receive 10 days' wage for each of the first five years and 15 days' wage for each year after that, a case this calculator does not cover.
If an indefinite contract ends because the worker resigns, the Article 53 ladder applies: nothing before 3 years of service, half the indemnity from 3 years to under 5, two-thirds from 5 years to under 10, and the whole indemnity at 10 years or more. Exactly 5 years falls in the two-thirds step, and exactly 3 years in the half step. The indemnity is forfeited on dismissal under Article 41 and is preserved in full when the worker leaves for a lawful reason under Article 48.
- First five years: 15 days' wage (half a month) per year
- After the fifth year: one full month's wage per year
- Wage used is comprehensive: basic salary + regular allowances (Article 55)
- Cap of a year and a half's wage (18 months), plus the Article 53 resignation fractions
The same calculation in other Gulf countries
| Country | Wage basis | Rate | On resignation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Saudi ArabiaSaudi Labor Law, Article 84: end-of-service award | Basic plus fixed allowances | half a month's wage for the first 5 years, then a month's wage | Reduced by length of service | End-of-service gratuity, Saudi Arabia |
 UAEUAE Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021, Article 51: end-of-service benefits | Basic wage only | 21 days of wage for the first 5 years, then 30 days of wage, capped at 24 months of wage, from 1 year of service | No reduction | End-of-service gratuity, UAE |
 QatarQatar Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, Article 54: end-of-service gratuity | Basic wage only | 21 days of wage for every year, from 1 year of service | No reduction | End-of-service gratuity, Qatar |
 KuwaitKuwait Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, Article 51: end-of-service indemnity | Basic plus fixed allowances | half a month's wage for the first 5 years, then a month's wage, capped at 18 months of wage | Reduced by length of service | This page |
 OmanOman Labour Law, Article 61: end-of-service gratuity | Basic wage only | a month's wage for every year, the rule in force now | No reduction | End-of-service gratuity, Oman |
 BahrainBahrain Labour Law, Article 116: leaving indemnity | Basic wage only | half a month's wage for the first 3 years, then a month's wage | No reduction | Leaving indemnity, Bahrain |
Questions people in your position ask
Do allowances count towards the Kuwait end-of-service indemnity?
Yes. Article 55 requires the indemnity to be calculated on the comprehensive wage, meaning the basic salary plus regular allowances, not the basic salary alone. This differs from Qatar and the UAE, where only the basic salary is used.
I resigned. How much of the indemnity am I owed?
Under Article 53 for an indefinite contract: nothing before 3 years of service, half from 3 years to under 5, two-thirds from 5 years to under 10, and the whole indemnity at 10 years or more. Exactly 5 years earns two-thirds, and exactly 3 years earns half.
Is there a cap on the indemnity?
Yes. The indemnity cannot exceed a year and a half's wage, that is 18 months. On a comprehensive wage of 1,000 KWD, the indemnity stops at 18,000 KWD however long the service.
Does this calculator work for daily-paid or piece-rate workers?
No. This page is for monthly-paid workers. Workers paid by the day, week, hour or piece are entitled to 10 days' wage for each of the first five years and 15 days' wage for each year after that.
Why does my result differ from my employer's calculation?
This calculator treats 15 days as half the monthly wage, while some employers divide the monthly wage by 26 working days and multiply by the number of days, which gives a different figure. Check your payslip or contract to see which method is used.
When is the indemnity forfeited, and when is it kept in full?
It is forfeited on dismissal for one of the grounds in Article 41. It is kept in full when the worker leaves for one of the lawful reasons set out in Article 48.
Sources
Read against the statuteReviewed September 2026- Labour Law in the Private Sector No. 6 of 2010, official text (PDF, English): Public Authority of Manpower
- Public Authority of Manpower: State of Kuwait
Statutory articles this calculator applies
- Kuwait Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, Article 51: end-of-service indemnity
- Kuwait Labour Law, Article 55: definition of the wage
- Kuwait Labour Law, Article 53: indemnity on resignation
- Kuwait Labour Law, Article 41: dismissal without notice or indemnity
- Kuwait Labour Law, Article 48: leaving employment with rights preserved
Kuwait Labour Law in the Private Sector: Law No. 6 of 2010, as amended