Do you need ILOE insurance, and what does it pay if you lose your job?

Yes, if you work in the private sector or the federal government, unless you are in an exempt group. Subscription is mandatory, and the scheme pays a monthly sum for a limited time if you lose your job for a reason other than resignation or disciplinary dismissal.¹²

Who has to subscribe?

Every worker in the private sector and the federal government, Emirati or expatriate, except:

• investors who own the business they work in
• domestic workers
• workers on a temporary contract
• people under 18
• retirees receiving a pension who have taken a new job.¹³

The Cabinet resolution also exempts citizens who meet the conditions for a pension.³

Check your subscription on the ILOE website or app with your Emirates ID and mobile number.²

What does it cost?

The resolution sets the premiums as “up to” AED 5 and AED 10 a month.³ ILOE sells policies for one or two years and adds the full VAT to the first payment.⁴ The policy period is at least 12 months and renews automatically while you keep paying.⁵

Subscribing through the ILOE website and app is free of extra charges. ILOE lists exchange centres, business centres, SMS and phone bills, kiosks, bank apps and ATMs as other channels that add a service charge.⁴

What does ILOE pay if you lose your job?

60% of your basic salary each month, for up to three months for each claim, up to AED 10,000 a month in category A and AED 20,000 in category B.³ Over your whole working life in the UAE it pays for at most 12 months in total.³

The resolution calculates the benefit on your monthly basic salary.³ ILOE’s policy terms use the average basic salary of the six months before you lost the job.⁵

For example, on AED 8,000 basic salary the benefit is AED 4,800 a month, or AED 14,400 for three months. On AED 40,000 it is capped at AED 20,000 a month. The ILOE calculator works it out for your salary.

The insurer pays within two weeks of receiving a complete claim.³ The benefit stops if you join another employer while you are being paid.¹

When does ILOE not pay?

You must meet every condition in the resolution, including:

• 12 consecutive months of subscription, with all premiums paid
• you did not resign
• you were not dismissed for disciplinary reasons
• you claim within 30 days of the job ending, or of the court ruling if your complaint went to court
• no absence-from-work complaint is pending against you
• you are legally resident in the UAE.³

The policy also excludes job losses caused by war, nuclear events, terrorism-related contamination, or government seizure of the employer’s assets.⁵

What happens if you do not subscribe or stop paying?

If you do not subscribe, or you miss premiums for three months from the due date, you lose the cover and must buy a new policy that starts on the date of purchase. MOHRE fines AED 400 for not subscribing and AED 200 for not paying premiums for more than three months. Amounts due can be taken from your salary account or from your end of service gratuity.³

ILOE says a policy is cancelled when a payment is more than 90 days late, and you then need a new policy.⁵²

Set up automatic payment for the whole policy period so the 12-month count is not broken. When you need to claim, follow how to claim ILOE.

The small print

• Law. Scope is Article 3, entitlement conditions Article 5 and the benefit Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. 13 of 2022. The law sets the benefit at 60% of the subscription salary, capped at AED 20,000 a month.¹
• Resolution. Exempt groups are Article 2, premiums Article 7, fines Article 8, conditions Article 9, benefit and caps Article 10, the 30-day claim window Article 12 and payment within two weeks Article 13 of Cabinet Resolution No. 97 of 2022. The resolution defines the subscription salary as the basic monthly wage.³
• Insurer. The policy is issued by Dubai Insurance Company with the members of an insurance pool. Its administrator lists 600599555 and ILOEHELP@ILOE.AE. Complaints go to the insurer first, which should respond within five working days, then to the Central Bank of the UAE.⁵