Expatriate residents in UAE to pay Dh500 for health cards from Spetember

Dubai – Expatriate residents will have to pay a fee of Dh500 for issuing and renewing their health cards that will enable them to receive medical treatment at government hospitals and facilities across the UAE.

The move is in line with the Cabinet resolution, issued by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The decision provides for levying Dh500 for issuing and renewing health cards for expats of all ages. It will come into force on September 30, the Ministry of Health announced today. Earlier, the health card issuance or renewal fee was Dh300.

Shaikh Mohammad has issued resolution No 18 for 2013 concerning the fees of health cards and curative and diagnostic services for non-nationals.

According to the resolution, an additional fee of Dh300 will be charged for the issue of a health card in lieu of a lost one.

Article No 3 of the decision stipulates that the fees will be levied against curative and diagnostic services provided by the Ministry of Health to expats holding health cards. These fees will be doubled for those who do not hold ministry-issued health cards.

Non-Muslim UAE expats advised to write will or face family disputes

Abu Dhabi/Dubai: Non-Muslims living in the UAE should make a will in case of death or undergo time-consuming procedures to ensure that the inheritance scheme is implemented according to their own country’s laws, experts said.
Failure to do so may result in family disputes, according to a report by the Ministry of Interior’s monthly publication, 999 Magazine.Only about 10-20 per cent of expat residents in the UAE have taken legal steps towards asset distribution, according to the report.

Sources confirmed that a comprehensive will ensures that a person’s possessions are distributed according to his wishes in the event of death. “Oftentimes the family of the deceased can obtain official documents from their country of origin asking that distribution of assets be done according to their country of citizenship,” said Emirati lawyer Hussain Al Jaziri.

In Islam, the rules of inheritance are made clear and oftentimes there is no need for a will. However, Muslims can write a will in which they can give out only one third of their property to non-family members, including charity organisations and the less fortunate.

Additionally, Lt Col Awad Saleh Al Kindi, editor-in-chief of 999, said: “There’s a need for residents to be aware of the inheritance rules in the country. This is important to preserve peace and harmony within the family, which forms the basic unit of our society.”

For non-Muslim expatriates who don’t have a will, there is a likelihood that Sharia law or forced rules on inheritors will apply. The court may also decide on who takes care of the surviving children upon the untimely death of the parent/s. If the expatriate has assets outside the UAE, he could lose a huge proportion of his inheritance to excessive taxes.

“If you want the right money in the right hands at the right time, the starting point is a properly executed last will and testament, without which your dependants may be in dire straits for some considerable time before assets are released,” Steve Gregory, managing partner at Holborn Assets, told Gulf News.

“Worse, without a statement about guardians for the children, courts have no reason to follow what might seem reasonable, and may make decisions that leave children with grandparents or others whom the parents may never have wanted.”

Gregory explained that a valid will is required in every jurisdiction where there are assets. So, someone with properties in the UK and France and bank accounts in the Isle of Man and UAE, already has four jurisdictions for his executors to deal with.

If a non-expatriate Muslim in the UAE has assets in the country and abroad, Gregory said it is advisable to get an international will or a similar document from their home country.

Andrew Prince at Acuma Independent Financial Advice explained that Sharia inheritance provisions are a form of forced heirship which is used in a number of countries, including France. “However, unlike France, in the UAE, the Sharia provisions will tend to pass a much greater share of the estate to the male bloodline. The female spouse, for example, may only receive one eighth of the estate held in the UAE,” he said.

“Additionally, your surviving family will have the extra problem that your Dubai, Abu Dhabi or UAE-based assets are likely to be frozen while the local legal system works through the process of assessing debts that need paying from your estate. The delay might be a couple of years or so getting all these matters dealt with,” he added.
    By Nada Al Taher, Staff Reporter and Cleofe Maceda, Senior Reporter Gulf News

Can a boss check your personal e-mail? UAE Law

A British professional living in Dubai found out that his boss was reading his personal e-mails. He, inadvertently, saved the password to his email on his office computer, giving access to all his correspondence - whether personal, financial or professional - to his boss.

When he discovered this, the matter was taken up with the HR and the boss had to apologise to him before the team.

In an office, work email is probably your employer’s property, not yours. Most people also access their personal emails from the office computer. If they do so, all personal emails on a company-owned computer, phone or other device, may be available on the company’s server and can be accessed if somebody in command wants to.

Eid Al Fitr holiday announced in UAE

Federal government offices in the UAE will be closed from Wednesday, August 7, corresponding to Ramadan 29 and will reopen on the fourth day of the month of Shawal in celebration of Eid Al Fitr.

Shawal 4 falls on Sunday, August 11, if Eid begins on Thursday, August 8.

Work in the government will resume on Monday, August 12, if the start of the new lunar month of Shawal is not confirmed by Ramadan 29 and subsequently Ramadan completes 30 days.

The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Federal Authority of Human Resources.

Dubai property buyers' protection law Tanweer is ready and waiting for final approval

The Real Estate Investor Protection law, or ‘Tanweer’, as it is called now, is ready and awaiting clearance from higher authorities“Tanweer is ready we are just waiting for final approvals from higher authorities,” said Majida Ali Rashid, Chairwoman of the Real Estate Investment and Promotion Centre, Dubai Land Department.
“Tanweer is the first of its kind regionally and globally, the senior management has devoted considerable time and efforts in discussing its provisions with a large segment of workers in the real estate market and with consulting and legal firms to draft legal articles to reach the ambitions of the emirate in protecting investors,” Majida said.

She added: “This law will take full, complete and accurate inter legislative laws and regulations issued between 2003 and 2008 to ensure optimal application of those laws and legislations.”
Law allows full refund

In June 2012, the draft of investor protection law was released to get suggestions from industry participants.

The draft allows investors to get full refund if the developer fails to complete or handover a property within a certain timeframe or deliberately defrauds an investor or alters the specifications of the unit without obtaining requisite permission.

Investors can also claim compensation for breach of any warranty or undertaking contained in the contract for sale by the seller and the broker, misrepresentation by the developer or investor or broker, and specification in violation of the contract for sale after obtaining an expert’s report to that effect.