UAE Unemployment Insurance Scheme: All you need to know

The new scheme is applicable to all federal government employees and the private sector.

Here is all you need to know about the new insurance scheme.

• The insurance scheme is applicable for nationals as well as, resident employees of the federal government and private sector.
• Private and government employees will have to pay an insurance premium per month into the scheme to be eligible.
• The employee must have been insured for 12 consecutive months, calculated from the date of subscription, to be able to receive the insured amount.
• The compensation will be paid on a monthly basis, calculated on 60 percent of the employee’s basic salary and subject to a maximum of AED20,000 per month.
• The amount is only payable for a period of three months from the date of unemployment.
• Investors (business owners), domestic workers, contractual/temporary employees, juveniles under the age of 18 and pension-receiving retirees who have joined a new employer, will not be covered by the unemployment insurance scheme.
• Insured amount will not be applicable if the employee was dismissed for disciplinary reasons under the Labour Relations Law and Human Resources Law, in addition to any applicable legislation.
• The insured compensation will not be given if there has been fraud or deceit involved in the claim or if the listed place of employment is fictitious. Fines and penalties will be issued in this case.
• If the individual finds a job during the period of compensation entitlement, the payment will cease.
• Additional benefits can be negotiated between the insured and service provider.

The objective of this new insurance scheme is to provide the insured with income for a period of time during unemployment, enhance competitiveness of the labour market and provision of social protection to ensure ‘continued decent living’ and to achieve a competitive knowledge economy by attracting and retaining best international talent from skilled workers, according to the ministry.