Personal loans

Personal loans in the UAE

The Central Bank limits on personal loans, how rates are quoted and which fees are allowed. Start with how much you can borrow, then flat versus reducing rates, the most misread number in a loan offer.

A personal loan in the UAE can be at most 20 times your monthly salary or income and must be repaid within 48 months, under Central Bank rules. All your monthly repayments to banks and finance companies, including the new loan, must also stay within 50% of your gross income. Within those limits, each lender decides how much to offer you and at what rate.

The Central Bank limits

Rule Limit
Loan amount 20 times monthly salary or total income
Repayment period 48 months
All monthly repayments 50% of gross salary and regular income
Repayments after retirement 30% of income or pension

Maximum debt burden ratio

50%

Monthly deductions for all loans and facilities from banks and finance companies together, including car loans, home loans, overdrafts and credit cards, must not exceed 50% of the borrower's gross salary and any regular income from a defined and specific source, at any time.

Applies to
Banks and finance companies licensed by the CBUAE (conventional and Islamic), lending to individuals
Checked

Our guide to how much personal loan you can get works through both limits in AED, and personal loan eligibility covers what else lenders check.

How rates are quoted

Some offers quote a flat rate, charged on the original amount for the whole term, so it reads lower than the reducing rate for the same loan. A lender that advertises a flat rate must show the equivalent reducing-balance rate next to it, and must disclose the annual percentage rate (APR), which includes interest and fees. Compare offers on the APR. Our guide to flat vs reducing rates shows the difference in AED.

Fees you may pay

All caps below are before VAT.

  • Early settlement, final settlement or partial payment: each capped at 1%, with a maximum of AED 10,000.
  • Moving the loan to another lender: at most 1% of the outstanding balance or AED 10,000, whichever is less.
  • Late payment: at most AED 200.
  • Loan cancellation: at most AED 100.

A top-up loan should not be granted until the original loan has been repaid without default for at least one year.

Before you sign

The lender must give you a Key Facts Statement before the contract, and you then have a cooling-off period of 5 complete business days to withdraw without undue cost. Unless the contract sets another time, approved funds must be paid out within 10 complete business days of signing. More in your rights as a borrower.

Guides on personal loans

  1. How much personal loan can you get in the UAE?

    The limits that decide your UAE personal loan amount: 20 times salary, 48 months and the 50% debt burden ratio, with worked AED examples and the DBR formula.

    Updated

  2. Flat rate vs reducing rate: what the difference costs you

    A flat rate charges interest on the full loan for the whole term; a reducing rate only on what you still owe. A worked AED example, the conversion and the APR.

    Updated

  3. Personal loans without salary transfer in the UAE

    How UAE personal loans without salary transfer work: who offers them, security cheques, the Central Bank caps on amount and term, and what to compare first.

    Updated

  4. Early settlement of a personal loan in the UAE: fees and steps

    How to settle a UAE personal loan early, in full or in part: the 1% fee cap and its AED 10,000 ceiling, the interest you stop paying and the letters to ask for.

    Updated

  5. Personal loan eligibility and documents in the UAE

    Who qualifies for a UAE personal loan: the Central Bank rules on income, DBR and credit checks, what each bank sets itself, and the documents to have ready.

    Updated

  6. Personal loan top-ups in the UAE: how they work and what they cost

    How a UAE personal loan top-up works: the one-year rule, why the 20 times salary, 48-month and 50% DBR limits still apply, and what the extra borrowing costs.

    Updated

Coming next in this topic

On our content plan. Each title gets a link here when the guide is published.

  • Loan buyouts: moving your personal loan to another bank
  • Personal loan fees and APR: the full cost of borrowing
  • Personal loans for UAE nationals

Calculators for this topic

Loan payment calculator

Monthly instalment and total cost of a loan, at a flat or a reducing rate.

Open calculator

Flat to reducing rate converter

Turns a flat rate quote into the equivalent reducing rate, and back.

Open calculator

Debt burden ratio calculator

How much of your monthly income already goes to debt repayments.

Open calculator

Early settlement calculator

The capped fee for paying off a personal, car or home loan early, in full or in part, and the interest you save.

Open calculator

Frequently asked questions

How much personal loan can I get in the UAE?

At most 20 times your monthly salary or income, and only if all your repayments stay within 50% of your income. A bank can offer less.

What is the maximum personal loan tenor in the UAE?

48 months.

What is the early settlement fee on a personal loan?

At most 1% of the amount settled, with a maximum of AED 10,000.

Can I cancel a personal loan after signing?

You have 5 complete business days after signing to withdraw without undue cost. The loan cancellation fee on a consumer loan is capped at AED 100.

Sources

Official and primary sources we used for this page, with the date we last opened each one.

  1. CBUAE Regulation No. 29/2011 Regarding Bank Loans & Other Services Offered to Individual Customers, Article (7) Repayment Installments Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  2. CBUAE Regulation No. 29/2011 Regarding Bank Loans & Other Services Offered to Individual Customers, Article (2) Personal Loan Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  3. CBUAE Regulation No. 29/2011 Regarding Bank Loans & Other Services Offered to Individual Customers, Article (6) Interest Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  4. CBUAE Consumer Protection Standards (Notice 1158/2021), Article 7: Responsible Financing Practice Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  5. CBUAE Regulation No. 29/2011 Regarding Bank Loans & Other Services Offered to Individual Customers, Appendix No. (2): Maximum Limits for Fees and Commissions Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  6. CBUAE Regulation No. 29/2011 Regarding Bank Loans & Other Services Offered to Individual Customers, Article (20) Currently Outstanding Loans Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  7. CBUAE Consumer Protection Standards (Notice 1158/2021), Article 2: Disclosure and Transparency Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .
  8. CBUAE Consumer Protection Standards (Notice 1158/2021), Article 5: Business Conduct Central Bank of the UAE. Accessed .