Abu Dhabi health insurance is not a benefit your employer might offer. It is a legal condition of living and working in the emirate, and it has been since 2005. Here is who must be covered, who pays, and what happens if nobody does.
The law, in one paragraph
Article 5 of Law No. 23 of 2005 Concerning Health Insurance in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi carries the whole framework in a single provision:
“The Employer shall undertake to provide health insurance coverage for all his employees/workers and their family members including an employee’s/worker’s wife and three children under 18 years of age. Every sponsor shall undertake to provide insurance coverage for those sponsored by him who are not covered by the Employers, as of the date of arrival in the State. A non-UAE national may not obtain a residence permit or renewal thereof, nor may he be employed, unless after enrollment into the health insurance scheme.”
Three duties in one article: the employer covers staff and immediate family; the sponsor covers anyone else they sponsor, from the date of arrival; and residency itself is conditional on cover. That last clause is why this is not optional in practice — no insurance, no visa.
The scheme applies to non-UAE national residents and their families in Abu Dhabi, and subscription is compulsory for them and optional for others. The law was issued on 10 September 2005, with its Implementing Regulation following in June 2006.
Who is exempt
The exemptions are narrow and specific: employees of establishments operating their own Authority-licensed medical facilities, where the Authority so decides; non-UAE national women married to UAE nationals; children of UAE national women married to non-UAE nationals; and people arriving on a tourist visa.
Visitors are not entirely outside the system, though. Under the Implementing Regulation, sponsors must insure people entering the country on their sponsorship on a visit visa where the stay exceeds two months.
What the cover must include
Article 12 sets a compulsory minimum, which is useful when comparing plans — anything below this is not a legal policy:
| Minimum benefit |
|---|
| Medical examination, treatment and primary healthcare by GPs and specialists |
| Laboratory tests and x-rays |
| In-patient stay and hospital treatment |
| Regular dental and gum treatment, excluding orthodontics and dentures |
| Medications required to treat the case |
| Accommodation charges for one escort in critical cases |
Thiqa, for nationals
Thiqa is the Abu Dhabi Government’s comprehensive healthcare programme for UAE nationals and those of similar status in the emirate, with eligible non-national family members covered under set criteria. It has been managed by Daman since 2008, and its legal basis is a 2007 Executive Council decision made under the same 2005 law.
The government also extends full medical coverage to UAE nationals from other emirates and to non-nationals sponsored by a UAE national family member.
The Basic Plan, for lower-paid workers
The Abu Dhabi Basic Plan covers domestic workers earning AED 5,000 or less a month without employer-provided housing, or AED 4,000 or less with housing provided, sponsored by citizens or residents of Abu Dhabi. Those thresholds come from an Abu Dhabi Media Office announcement of April 2024; older figures circulate widely and should not be relied on.
Renewal moved to the TAMM platform, managed by Daman, and takes about fifteen minutes with digital identity verification and no physical documents. Payment activates the policy within fifteen minutes, and the service also handles fines arising from delayed renewal. If you employ domestic staff, our guide to the domestic worker visa covers the rest of that process.
What non-compliance costs
Article 24 sets a fine of not less than AED 300 for each month not subscribed, compounded according to the number of people involved. For other violations of the law, the fine is not less than AED 5,000 and not more than AED 20,000.
Higher figures circulate on consultancy websites. The amounts above are what the law itself says.
How Abu Dhabi differs from Dubai
The distinction is easy to miss and matters if you move between emirates. In Abu Dhabi, employers and sponsors are responsible for cover — for employees and their families, being one spouse and three children under 18. In Dubai, employers are required to cover employees, and sponsors must cover their resident dependants: the split of responsibility is drawn differently.
Nationally, the direction is convergence. From 1 January 2025 employers must hold a health insurance policy as a prerequisite for issuing or renewing residency permits for private sector employees and domestic workers — mandatory in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and extending to Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah.
For the comparison in full, see our guides to UAE health insurance for expats and Dubai health insurance, and to the residence visa types this cover is tied to.
Primary sources: the Department of Health compendium containing Law 23/2005 and its Implementing Regulation (PDF), the Thiqa programme, the Abu Dhabi Media Office on the Basic Plan and the UAE Government portal on getting health insurance.
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