UAE businesses require various types of insurance — some mandatory, some strongly recommended. Here is the complete 2025 guide to UAE business insurance.
Mandatory UAE Business Insurance
Employee health insurance: mandatory in Dubai (since 2016) and Abu Dhabi (since 2006). All UAE employers must provide basic health insurance to all employees. Dubai: minimum basic health plan (Essential Benefits Plan) for employees earning AED 4,000/month or less. Minimum cost: AED 700-1,200/year per employee. Higher earners: typically get enhanced plans. Motor vehicle insurance: third-party liability is mandatory for all UAE-registered vehicles. Most businesses additionally carry comprehensive motor insurance for company vehicles. Worker’s compensation insurance (WCI): Iloe (Insurance Programme for Unemployment) replaced this in 2023 — it is a government-led insurance programme all UAE employees participate in.
Recommended UAE Business Insurance
Professional indemnity insurance: covers claims arising from professional errors, negligence, or omissions. Strongly recommended for: consultants, advisors, IT professionals, architects, engineers. Required for: licensed professional activities in some sectors (DIFC requires PI for Category 4 firms, for example). Public liability insurance: covers bodily injury or property damage caused to third parties by your business operations. Recommended for: businesses with a physical office or retail space, businesses that conduct work at client sites. Property insurance: covers office contents, equipment, and stock. Recommended if you have significant physical assets. Cyber liability insurance: growing relevance given the UAE PDPL data breach requirements. Covers costs of data breach response, regulatory fines, and third-party claims from data breaches.