UAE Unemployment Insurance Scheme: More than 250,000 people register since Jan 1

More than 250,000 people have subscribed to the UAE’s Unemployment Insurance Scheme since registration opened for the scheme on January 1, 2023.

Read: UAE’s Unemployment Insurance Scheme kicks off on January 1

Khalil Khoury, Under-Secretary for Human Resources Affairs at the Ministry of Human Resources Affairs, said, “The Unemployment Insurance Scheme comes as part of the implementation of Federal Decree Law No 13 of 2022, which forms an essential part of a legislative and legal structure that the UAE government is keen to develop to respond to the priorities of the country’s economy.”

He called on all workers in the labour market to expedite registration to the scheme.

Read: UAE unemployment insurance scheme: Over 60,000 subscribers sign up in two days

The insurance pool, represented by Dubai Insurance Company, provides eight channels for registration and subscription to the scheme.

To date, about 88 per cent of the subscribers have preferred to register through the website, while 8 per cent chose the smart application to subscribe to the system, whereas 4 per cent chose to subscribe through the other channels.

More than 250 thousand subscribers have joined the Unemployment Insurance Scheme since the subscription started in 2023. pic.twitter.com/PujVP0n5Ww

— وزارة الموارد البشرية والتوطين (@MOHRE_UAE) January 13, 2023

Different categories of the scheme

The Unemployment Insurance Scheme includes two categories. The first are workers with a basic salary of Dhs16,000 or less, which offers an insurance premium of Dhs5 per month, i.e. Dhs60 annually. The maximum monthly compensation for this category is Dhs10,000.

The second category covers those with a basic salary of Dhs16,000 or more. The insurance premium for this category is Dhs10 per month, i.e. Dhs120 annually and the maximum monthly compensation is Dhs20,000.

The employee can choose to pay the premium monthly, quarterly, once every six months, or annually.

About 86 per cent of the subscribers have chosen an annual payment of the premium while 6 per cent have chosen premium payment once every six months. About 4 per cent of the subscribers have chosen the quarterly payment, and the balance 4 per cent prefer the monthly payment option.

Validity of the cover

The insurance scheme is valid for a period of 12 consecutive months from the date of registration, provided that the termination/unemployment is not for a disciplinary cause or by resignation.

The insured will lose the right to claim the compensation should he/ she leave the country or take up a new job. The compensation should be paid within two weeks from the date the claim is submitted.

The insurance programme compensates the insured employee for a maximum period of three months from the date of his or her unemployment, provided that he or she did not resign from the job or is dismissed on disciplinary grounds. The compensation is calculated at 60 per cent of the basic salary in the last six months prior to unemployment.

The scheme covers workers in the federal government sector and the private sector.

The exempted categories include investors or owners of establishments, domestic workers, temporary contract workers, juveniles under 18 years, and retirees who receive a pension and or have joined a new job.