DUBAI – United Arab Emirates is known for its stringent visa requirements, and in a recent announcement, the Gulf nation said employees who missed the deadline to register themselves in the job loss insurance scheme could face problems during visa renewal.

In a recent announcement, UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation said administrative measures are in place for financial penalties which will be deducted from salaries or end-of-service.

It further warned that those who will not register by the deadline need to pay a 400 AED fine, with an additional 200 Dirham fine for late payment of insurance premiums within 90 days.

The Emirate said if employees failed to pay remaining unpaid dues, they would not be issued new work permits. More than 6.6 million people have been registered under the social security scheme, which UAE rolled out in January this year to provide a vital safety net for workers in the public and private sectors if they lose their jobs.

For the unversed, the social programme is not obligatory for those working in free zones, whereas workers who just arrived in UAE for a new job will have 120 days to sign up for unemployment insurance.

The Ministry attributed the success of the scheme to high awareness of the insured and number of subscribers.

How to subscribe to employment scheme

Employees need to visit Involuntary Loss of Employment Insurance Pool portal (www.iloe.ae) for sign up.