GPSSA Organizes Forum to Raise Awareness on Pension Law Changes

A forum regarding Decree Law No. (57) 2023 has been organised by the General Pension and Social Security Authority (GPSSA) to raise awareness amongst employers regarding the new law.

Over 50 government and private sector entities, that consist of the largest number of GPSSA contributors, attended the bilingual awareness forum today, which was held at the Radisson RED Hotel Dubai.

Attendees were introduced to information on the mechanism for paying contributions at the new rates for three months, starting October until December 2023 as per the new law’s regulations. In addition to the meeting, a circular was sent at the end of November 2023 to government and private sector entities, subject to the provisions of Decree Law No. (57) of 2023 regarding pension and social security, attaching an explanatory guideline on ways by which contribution payments are transferred on behalf of Emiratis joining work for the first time as of 31st October 2023, and who were not previously covered by the provisions of the current Law No. 7 of 1999.

To further strengthen the frameworks of joint collaboration between the GPSSA and its employer/entity partners, while offering them sufficient time to prepare their system in line with the new changes in the law, with emphasis on the newly issued contribution rates for Emiratis who are contributing for the very first time, representative/s from across government and private sector entities were familiarised with the contents of the new law’s guideline regarding contribution payments in accordance to the new rates, without the need to bear any additional costs that may arise as a result of delays in paying on time, in addition to continued diligence.

During the forum, the GPSSA stressed on the fact that government and private sector employers are offered two options to pay contributions from October – December 2023), and that is to either continue paying contributions for the three months (October, November, and December 2023) at the current rate of (20 percent) and pay the (6 percent) difference on 1st January 2024, or to pay the entire (26 percent) rate in accordance with Law No. (57) of 2023, starting from the date the insured joined work in October 2023, regardless of the day.

The new rate - (26 percent) - is applicable to Emiratis who have joined the workforce for the first time from 31st October 2023 with a government or private sector entity, out of which the insured bears (11 percent) of that amount, while the employer pays the rest of the 15 percent. For Emiratis working in the private sector whose contribution account salaries are less than AED20,000 a rate of (2.5 percent) is paid by the UAE government as a form of support and encouragement to hire Emiratis in the private sector.

It is worth noting that the percentage of contributions paid according to the contribution account salary is a maximum of AED100,000 for government sector employees and AED70,000 for private sector employees, given that the contribution account salary of the employee working in the private sector is not less than AED3,000.

Entities will not bear any additional amount as a result of a delay in paying the contribution differences for the three months from October to December 2023, provided that the employer is committed to being accurate in all statements, data and documents submitted, including details of the insured’s salaries and all the necessary documents for the purposes of calculating the assessed contributions, in accordance with the provisions of this legal decree, since this has a huge impact on balance statements created later by the GPSSA.

As part of the circular and during the workshop, the GPSSA stressed on the importance of updating insured Emiratis covered by Law No. (57) on the affiliated steps that will be taken, including the new rates deducted by entities and the insurance benefits that will arise as a result. The Authority urges entities to send their designated employees to attend the workshops and follow-up on GPSSA’s awareness campaigns regarding insurance obligations and benefits affiliated with the new law.

News Source: Emirates News Agency