How much does a non-executive director cost in the UAE?

There is no single figure, and any firm quoting one before understanding your business is guessing. Non-executive directors are paid an annual fee for the time the seat takes, sized to company size, sector, regulatory load and the demands of the role. For listed public joint stock companies, UAE law also sets a ceiling: under the Commercial Companies Law, total board remuneration may not exceed 10% of the company's net profit for the year after deductions. Published examples exist: Dubai Investments PJSC's board remuneration policy provides for a lump sum of AED 200,000 per board member in years without distributable profit. For a private SME the right way to size the fee is a market benchmark range, not a headline number.

Do non-executive directors get paid a salary, or a fee?

A fee, not a salary. A non-executive director is not an employee: they hold a board seat, govern rather than manage, and are engaged for a small number of days a year. The fee reflects the responsibility and the time, and it is usually a fixed annual amount, sometimes with an additional fee for chairing a committee. The company pays it. A credible director is never charged a fee by anyone to be placed on your board.

What is a typical non-executive director day rate?

Non-executive work is light-touch, typically a day or two a month, so most roles are priced as an annual fee rather than a day rate. Where a day rate is quoted, UK market guides put it broadly in the region of a few hundred to well over a thousand pounds a day depending on seniority and sector. Because the commitment is usually 15 to 25 days a year, the annual fee is the more meaningful number to plan around.

How much does a board advisor cost in the US?

In the US the relevant products are the advisory board and the independent director rather than the "NED". Advisory board members are commonly compensated with a small equity grant, often in the region of 0.25% to 1%, or a modest cash retainer, or a mix of the two. Formal independent board seats at private companies are usually paid through a retainer plus equity, scaling with company stage.

What determines how much a non-executive director is paid?

Four things mostly. Company size and complexity: a larger or listed company pays more than an early-stage private one. Sector and regulatory load: a regulated financial-services or listed entity asks more of a director. Role: chairing the board or an audit, nomination or remuneration committee carries an additional fee. And risk: a director takes on real duties and accountability, and the fee reflects that responsibility.

Are non-executive directors personally liable, and does that affect the fee?

Yes, a director carries statutory duties and can be held accountable for how the board discharges them, which is part of why the role is paid rather than voluntary and why serious directors expect proper directors' and officers' insurance to be in place. The responsibility is real, and it is one of the reasons a good non-executive director is worth the fee: they take the standard of governance seriously because they are on the hook for it.

How does UAE non-executive director pay compare to the UK, US, Singapore and Australia?

The UK is the most benchmarked market, with SME non-executive fees commonly in the region of £15,000 to £50,000 a year and FTSE 100 medians around £80,000. Australia sits a little below the UK for comparable roles. The US uses advisory-board equity and retainers rather than a NED fee. The UAE has thin public benchmark data but a legal cap on listed-company board pay and a small number of published company policies. The sensible approach in the UAE is to read across from the UK and Australian ranges and adjust for sector and scale.

What a non-executive director costs: fees, day rates and time commitment

"What will it cost me?" is usually the second question a founder asks about a non-executive director, right after "what would they actually do?". It is a fair question and a hard one to answer honestly, because the real answer is a range, not a number, and because the market you are reading about matters as much as the role.

Here is the sourced version, written for a business in the UAE but drawing on the markets where the data is thickest.

The short answer

A non-executive director is paid a fee, not a salary. They are not an employee. They hold a board seat, govern rather than manage, and give the company a small number of days a year, so the cost is an annual fee sized to the responsibility, not a monthly payroll cost.

For a private small or mid-sized business, the useful benchmark comes from the UK, where the market is most transparent: non-executive fees for SMEs commonly sit in the region of £15,000 to £50,000 a year, according to guides from board networks such as Connectd and Dynamic Boards. Larger and listed roles run higher: NEDonBoard puts the FTSE 100 median around £80,000, and Board Appointments reports a UK average base fee of roughly £80,000 in 2026. Chairs of large boards can be paid well into six figures.

The important point for a founder is that the cost tracks the size and complexity of the business, not the person. A seat on the board of a scaling private company is a different commitment, and a different fee, from a seat on a listed board.

Fee, not salary: why that matters

It is worth being precise about the language, because it changes how you budget.

A salary buys someone's full-time working week. A non-executive fee buys judgement applied to a handful of important moments across the year: the board meetings, the reading around them, and the director's availability to the chair and chief executive in between. The typical commitment is 15 to 25 days a year, or put another way, a day or two a month. You are not paying for hours. You are paying for the responsibility of the seat and the experience of the person in it.

That is also why non-executive directors are almost always paid a fixed annual fee rather than a day rate. A day rate implies you are buying time; a fee reflects that you are buying accountability. Where a day rate is quoted, UK guides put it anywhere from a few hundred pounds to well over a thousand a day depending on seniority, but the annual figure is the one to plan around.

What the UAE picture looks like

The UAE has less public benchmark data than the UK, for a simple reason: the demand-side question is asked less often here, and much of the search traffic for "board of directors salary in UAE" is really about executive pay, not non-executive fees. That does not mean there is no framework. There are two anchors worth knowing.

The first is a legal ceiling. For listed public joint stock companies, the UAE Commercial Companies Law caps total board remuneration: it may not exceed 10% of the company's net profit for the year, after depreciation and reserves are deducted. So on a listed board, director pay is bounded by profitability, not set in the open market.

The second is that some listed companies publish their policies. Dubai Investments PJSC's board remuneration policy, for example, provides for a lump sum of AED 200,000 per board member in a year without distributable profit. Mercer publishes periodic UAE board remuneration insights for those who want a fuller market picture.

For a private UAE SME or family business, none of the listed-company mechanics apply. The practical approach is to read across from the UK and Australian ranges, adjust for your sector and scale, and treat any single quoted number with suspicion.

The markets side by side

Because the data is uneven, a comparative view is the most honest way to size the cost. These are market benchmark ranges for a comparable non-executive seat, not our fees.

Market	What the seat is called	Typical annual fee for an SME/mid-market seat	Source
United Kingdom	Non-executive director	~£15,000 to £50,000 (FTSE 100 median ~£80,000)	Connectd, NEDonBoard, Board Appointments
United Arab Emirates	Non-executive / independent director	Thin public data; listed pay capped at 10% of net profit; published examples exist (e.g. AED 200,000 lump sum)	UAE Commercial Companies Law; Dubai Investments PJSC
Australia	Non-executive director	~AUD 75,000 average for larger non-listed and public boards; less for small listed	Board Direction / AICD
Singapore	Non-executive / independent director	Thin public data; fees set per company	Company disclosures
United States	Advisory board member / independent director	Equity ~0.25% to 1% and/or a cash retainer; independent seats via retainer plus equity	Market guides

The pattern is clear: the UK is the reference market, Australia sits a little below it, the US prices advisory seats in equity, and the UAE and Singapore are set company by company against a lighter benchmark. If you want the fuller detail on the UAE regulatory backdrop, our explainer on board governance in the UAE covers the listed-company rules in depth.

What actually moves the number

If you are trying to budget, four factors do most of the work.

Size and complexity. A larger, more complex or listed business pays more than an early-stage private one. This is the biggest single driver.
Sector and regulation. A regulated financial-services entity, or one preparing for a listing, asks more of a director's time and expertise, and pays accordingly.
Role on the board. Chairing the board, or an audit, nomination or remuneration committee, carries an additional fee on top of the base seat.
Responsibility and risk. A director takes on genuine statutory duties and accountability. The fee reflects that this is a role with real weight, backed by proper directors' and officers' insurance.

One thing that should never be a cost

There is a line in this market worth stating plainly: the company appoints and pays the director. A credible non-executive director is engaged by the business and is never charged a fee to be placed on a board. Candidate-paid board "membership" platforms exist, and they are the model to be wary of. The company pays, the director never does.

If you would like a straight, benchmarked view of what the right seat would cost for your stage and sector, rather than a headline number, tell us what you are working through and we will give you an honest range. For where the role fits before you get to cost, start with what a non-executive director actually does.