Can a company hold my passport in UAE?

If your employer is withholding your passport and you want to know how to get back your passport from your employer in Dubai or UAE? 

Withholding employee passports is a punishable offense in the UAE and is prohibited under Circular No.267 of 2002 by the Ministry of Interior (MoI). The punishment for an employer holding an employee's passport in the UAE is an AED 20,000 fine per passport withheld and up to a 3-year jail sentence. 

Passports may only be held by judicial authorities per provisions of the law such as courts, police, or the employee's relevant home embassy.