Insurance for clinics and dental practices in the UAE

Which insurance rules apply to clinics and dental practices?

These rules name this kind of business or the work it does.

• Dubai. If you are a healthcare professional or facility licensed by the Dubai Health Authority, medical malpractice insurance (professional liability insurance) must be kept in force throughout practice, and the policy must name the professional, their specialty, the employing facility and the cover.²
• Federal. You may not practise the medical profession in the UAE without insurance against civil liability for medical errors from an insurer licensed in the UAE, under Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 on Medical Liability.³
• Federal. If you own a health facility, you must insure the practitioners who work for you against civil liability for medical errors and against the risks of practising the profession, and you must pay all the premiums.³
• Federal. If you run a health facility, you must insure each practitioner before they take up their post and renew the insurance when it expires.⁴
• Federal. If you are a health professional other than a physician or pharmacist, such as a nurse or technician, you must submit a valid professional liability insurance policy against professional errors from an insurance company licensed in the UAE when your registration is approved, unless the policy of the health facility that will employ you covers your liability.⁵

Rules for any employer

• Dubai. Dubai Law No. 11 of 2013 requires employers to enrol employees in health insurance, bear the cost and keep it valid for the whole service period. It applies across the emirate, including special development zones and free zones such as DIFC.⁸
• Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi Law No. 23 of 2005 requires an employer to provide health insurance for its employees and their family members. There is no residence permit, renewal or employment without enrolment.⁹
• Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. From 1 January 2025 an employer buys a health insurance policy as a condition of the residence permit for private sector employees and domestic workers. The UAE Government portal names the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation as the source and describes the rule as extending to Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah.¹⁰
• Every emirate. If your establishment is subject to the federal Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021), you must provide either a bank guarantee of AED 3,000 for each worker or insurance for each worker, under the mechanisms approved by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation.¹¹
• Every emirate. If you employ staff in the private sector or the federal government, each worker must subscribe to the Unemployment Insurance Scheme by buying a policy that insures them if their service ends in the cases where they are eligible. The duty is on the worker, not on you as the employer, and investors who own and work at the establishment, domestic workers, temporary contract workers, workers under 18 and specified retirees are excluded.¹²

Each emirate page sets out the rule and the authority. Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

How many clinics and dental practices are licensed?

A licence counts once, however many activities it holds. Abu Dhabi and Ajman publish licence data by activity as open data.

Which types of cover should clinics and dental practices read about?

• Public liability
• Medical malpractice

Do free zones set their own insurance rules for this work?