Michael Page's UAE Salary Guide 2027 shows that employers in the United Arab Emirates are recruiting across 18 sectors, with top-tier executive roles offering monthly salaries of up to AED 200,000, according to a report by The Global Filipino Magazine. The top AED 200,000 monthly figure applies to four positions: finance chiefs at investment and funds businesses, management consulting partners, energy company chief executive officers, and law firm partners.
Other senior executive positions also command high compensation tiers. Managing directors in investment banking can earn up to AED 180,000 per month, while chief procurement and supply chain officers, as well as chief information and technology officers, receive up to AED 150,000. Ceilings stand at AED 130,000 for chief human resources officers or human resources vice presidents, and AED 120,000 each for chief data officers, chief medical officers, and chief information security officers.
Demand remains acute in artificial intelligence disciplines, where agentic AI architects earn up to AED 75,000 per month and agentic AI engineers reach up to AED 70,000. Other hard-to-fill technical roles include applied AI engineers, data scientists, machine-learning platform engineers, and AI product managers. In addition, demand spans tax directors and treasury heads in finance, alongside renewable energy project managers and sustainability consultants.
Legal employers are hiring at all levels from newly qualified lawyers to partners, with practice demand concentrated in mergers and acquisitions, real estate, and dispute resolution. Across industries, employers favor bilingual professionals who understand UAE labor regulations and visa procedures, possess business establishment experience, and maintain flexibility across time zones.
Citing earlier reporting by Khaleej Times, the publication noted that 80 percent of UAE businesses expected to maintain or expand hiring in the second half of 2026 amid shortages of cloud architects and AI engineers. Furthermore, an October 2026 analysis of 7,025 job postings in the UAE found that communication skills were specified in 22.4 percent of listings.
Sources
- The Global Filipino Magazine · 2026-11-05
