Life insurance options for expats in the UAE, compared on term, currency and cover limits

An expat in the UAE who wants life cover can look at several providers. This article lists three that publish a life product on their UAE websites: HAYAH, a UAE-licensed life and health insurance provider regulated by the Central Bank of the UAE (hayah.com), Zurich Middle East and MetLife. The facts below come from each provider's own pages, read on 3 November 2026. The three products are not identical, so the table notes what type each one is.

The three options side by side

Provider	Product	Type	What the provider's page states
HAYAH	Term Life Protect	Term life	Terms of 1 to 35 years. Entry ages 18 to 79. Premiums in AED or USD, paid monthly, annually or as a single premium. Cover of up to USD 50,000,000. Fixed premiums throughout the term.
Zurich Middle East	International Term Assurance (ITA) and International Decreasing Term Assurance (IDTA)	Term life	A lump sum if the insured person dies during the term. With ITA the cover is fixed for the term, and with IDTA it decreases at a chosen rate. Cover length runs from short-term up to 35 years. Critical illness cover is an additional option.
MetLife	Future Protect	Life insurance and investment plan	A flexible coverage amount, payment mode and choice of currency. Cover of up to USD 50 million for residents and USD 5 million for non-residents.

What the differences mean

A term product pays only if death happens within the term, and the cover ends afterwards. Zurich states this directly, noting that its cover stops once the policy ends. An investment-linked product such as MetLife Future Protect adds an investment element, so its cost and value depend on more than the cover.

HAYAH Term Life Protect extras

HAYAH also lists free temporary life cover from the day the application is submitted until the policy is issued, and Priority Screening services as an added benefit.

Questions to ask any provider

Is the product pure protection or does it include an investment?
In which currency are premiums and benefits set?
What are the entry age limits and the cover limits?
Do the limits differ for residents and non-residents?
Which exclusions apply, and does cover stop when the term ends?

A note on this article

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal or insurance advice. It describes what each provider's website stated on 3 November 2026, and the order of the list is not a ranking. Policy terms, limits and eligibility change regularly. Always verify current terms with each provider or a licensed advisor before making decisions. HAYAH is licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE).