A listing on a popular regional job site has prompted debate over the legality and ethics of unpaid internships in the UAE. <a href="https://www.gulftalent.com/uae/jobs/customer-service-hr-internship-british-company-284565">The anonymous advertisement</a> was published to GulfTalent last month by a "British company with an expanding office in Dubai." <span>It offered two potential </span><span>posts – a customer service position and a human resources role </span><span>– as internships lasting between three and six months.</span> <span>Successful candidates were expected to work 9am to 6pm from Sunday to Thursday in the company's Jumeirah </span><span>Lakes Towers office, without pay.</span> <span>The post said the "executive-level recruitment company, which specialises in placing management-level professionals in roles across the Middle East</span><span>", would not provide successful candidates an employment or residency visa for the duration of the internship.</span> <span>As compensation, the company offered to "help rewrite" the successful candidates' CVs after three months to give them "the best </span><span>chance" of securing a full-time job in Dubai. </span> <span>The </span><span>advertisement said previous interns </span><span>had secured permanent roles in the UAE as a result of the experience.</span> <span>Claire Granger, a senior partner at a law firm in Dubai, said that while the </span><span>advertisement was not illegal, it was </span><span>unethical.</span> <span>“It is disappointing that employers are seeking to take advantage of individuals unaware of the laws and seeking work experience or perhaps hoping an internship will lead to a fully paid position,” said Ms Grainger, of Naji Beidoun Advocates & Legal Consultants.</span> <span>According to federal law, all positions of employment in the UAE require a work permit from the Department of Labour. UAE residents can take on internships without an employment visa but still require a work permit.</span> <span>"If a </span><span>non-resident intern does not have a mission visa it is illegal for them to work in the UAE on a visit or tourist visa, and both the individual and employer may be fined or even deported," </span><span>Ms Grainger said.</span> <span>Companies caught employing illegal workers can face a fine of Dh50,000 per worker </span><span>for the first offen</span><span>ce, and Dh100,000 per worker </span><span>for a second offen</span><span>ce. Regulations and visa requirements also depend on whether the company is </span><span>in a free zone or not</span><span>.</span> <span>"The company in the </span><span>job posting says it's based in JLT under the DMCC [Dubai Multi Commodities Centre] free zone, which offers two intern-friendly work permits that are available to individuals on a student visa or already on a company visa," Ms Grainger said.</span> <span>A survey conducted by Oliv</span><span>, a Dubai</span><span> technology </span><span>company that runs </span><span>an employment platform for young people, and Noon.com, a UAE</span><span> e-commerce platform, this year found that 70 per cent of 452 graduates polled had completed some form of work experience, of which almost a third – 27 per cent – was unpaid. The figures are</span><span> a</span><span>n improvement on last year, when the survey found that four </span><span>in </span><span>10 internships or work placements were unpaid.</span> <span>Natalie, a Dubai resident</span><span> from the UK, has completed several unpaid internships in the emirate. She said that</span><span> while work experience </span><span>was often a great way </span><span>to train, </span><span>it </span><span>rarely </span><span>led to anything tangible. "Where do you draw the line with interning? I have many friends who intern, yet receive no valid compensation or prospects for a full-time job afterwards," she said.</span> <span>"You may spend months working for a company, getting trained in their work style, and then have to cut short this working experience and find another internship or job, which is tough</span><span>. It seems as though employers do not value us interns as much as we value working for them." </span><span> </span> <span>Jonathon </span><span>Davidson, founding partner of Davidson & Co Legal Consultants, said companies that offer internships are typically</span><span> looking for UAE students sponsored by their parents.</span> <span>“Usually one would not expect an internship to exceed a few months and thereafter it is usual that the individual might return to college to complete his or her studies or proceed to a better paid job either within the same company or elsewhere,” Mr Davidson said. </span> <span>He said a fair wage for internships was a subjective issue. “Many people are prepared to work for a very low salary for a period of time to learn key skills and to encourage an employer to take them on a better-paid basis after what they hope to be a relatively short period of time.”</span>