Law grants Emirati mothers 3 years conditional leave from job to look after their children

The General Pension and Social Security Authority (GPSSA) has confirmed that under Federal Law No. 57 of 2023, Emirati mothers who wish to take leave from their jobs to look after their children are granted the opportunity to do so for a maximum of three years given that they continue to pay monthly contributions to secure themselves with a lucrative end-of-service benefit.

GPSSA highlighted the UAE’s commitment to supporting and empowering Emirati women across various fields, including legislation, education, economy, and politics. This dedication reflects the nation’s belief in the significant role women play in strengthening and developing the country, a vision established by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who recognised the integral role of women in all aspects of life.

The UAE, under its wise and prudent leadership, continues to pursue this approach towards empowering women across all sectors, ensuring their active participation in the nation's progress.

In recognition of the traditional roles and societal contributions of working Emirati women, pension laws have been tailored to provide them with certain benefits, as outlined in Federal Law No. 57 of 2023, which offers optional contribution rights for Emirati women. Additionally, special provisions are granted to female breadwinners, particularly in the event of their husband’s passing. For example, widows are entitled to merge their pension amounts with that of their deceased husbands.

Additionally, Federal Law No. 57 regarding pension and social insurance and its amendments redistributes pension percentages amongst beneficiaries by raising the widow/s entitlement shares. If the widow has more than one child she receives a 40% pension share, while children (male and female) are entitled to 40% share of the pension; the father or mother or both are entitled to 20% of the pension share. This distribution of shares has raised the widows’ percentages at the expense of her children, since she supports them after the decease of the breadwinner.

The law has also reduced the age and contribution duration for married, divorced or widowed females with children given that they have contributed with the GPSSA for 30 years and reached the age of 55. This has resulted in a reduced two years of contribution payments and three years in age for each of an Emirati mother’s fifth and sixth child, and 3.5 years less in contributions and four years for the seventh child.

The support towards females was evident prior to Federal Law No. 57 of 2023 as shown in Federal Law No. 7 of 1999 regarding pension and social security and its amendments, which grants women the right to purchase ten years of service, while men are allowed to purchase only five years. The pension law also allows the repayment of the share for each daughter and sister.

The pension amount however is immediately suspended in case a daughter gets married, joins an entity due to a divorce or leaves a job, while the son stops receiving pension once he reaches the age of 21 or 28 in case he is still studying, contrary to a daughter who does not stop receiving pension due to age related reasons.

If the mother, sister or daughter become widowed or divorced after the decease of the pensioner and neither of them receive an alternative salary or pension, a share is created for them equal to the share amount at the time the pension is due, without prejudice to the shares of the other beneficiaries.

Moreover, the law provides equal distribution of pension payments amongst daughters and sons, with daughters being entitled to the same share amount as sons, since the federal pension law does not consider pension a legal inheritance.

Contrary to popular belief, a woman's pension is distributed to her eligible family members, similar to that of a man.

WAM