• The pension laws applied by the GPSSA do not give an insured the option to select between a pension and/or end-of-service gratuity 
• A duration of service is what determines the type of insurance benefits an insured receives upon the end of his/her service period
•  In order to receive pension, age is a retirement criterion 

Abu Dhabi, 29th April 2024: The longer an insured Emirati is employed for, the higher the insurance benefits when ready to receive pension or end-of-service gratuity, clarified the General Pension and Social Security Authority (GPSSA) today, adding that an insured individual is allowed to legally retire and receive a pension amount if the retirement criteria’s have been fulfilled.

As part of the ‘Know Your Law’ awareness campaign launched at the beginning of the year, the GPSSA reviewed pension entitlement cases in Article 13 of Law No. 57 of 2023, regarding newly employed Emiratis who are registered with the GPSSA from 31st October 2023 onwards, and not to those employed prior to that date who remain covered by the provisions of the previous Law. No. 7 of 1999.

It is important to note that there are several situations by which pension is disbursed, sometimes before their time, depending on the circumstance and condition, i.e. during times when an insured’s employment service has been ‘terminated’ due to a decease, total disability or a health-related incident that occurred due to, or during working hours, in which case, pension is disbursed to the pensioner if still alive, or to his/her heirs (known as beneficiaries), as long as it has been proven by an official medical committee.  Pension is also paid to insured individual’s once they retire, given that they have spent 15 or more years working. If the insured has not worked for that long, he/she becomes entitled to receiving an end-of-service gratuity instead, which is why the GPSSA continues to encourage Emiratis to work past 15 years, in order to receive fixed pension amounts that may sustain and benefit an entire family.

Pension is also allowed to be disbursed if an insured has received a disciplinary decision or judicial dismissal ruling, under the condition that the contribution period is 30 years and that the insured has reached 55 years of age. 

Under normal circumstances, an insured receives his/her entitled pension amount upon his/her request, provided that he/she has contributed for at least 30 years and has reached the age of 55.

Insured females, whether married, divorced or widowed, are entitled to receiving pension if they contributed for 30 years and reached the age of 55. The law also considers the pivotal role mothers play in caring and bringing up children, by offering them different conditions regarding minimum contribution years and the pension entitlement age, with a reduction of two years in the contribution period (28 employment years) and three years less in age (52 years) for each of the 5th and 6th child; three and a half years for the contribution period (26.5 years of employment service), and four years for a 51-year-old female or a mother with a 7th child.

As a general rule and as per the UAE’s federal law, pension is disbursed at the end of an insured employee’s period, provided that the governments treasury in the relevant emirate bears the amount, and that a decision has been issued by the Council on the method of calculating the cost.