Personal Loan Eligibility in UAE

Personal loans make for a popular type of loan in the UAE, with these products helping borrowers fulfil personal requirements by quickly receiving funds without much documentation. With a personal loan, you can pay for medical expenses, home renovations, business expansion, marriages, debt consolidation, and more.

Before applying for one, however, you must be aware of the personal loan eligibility criteria in the UAE. As a borrower, you must clear the set of requirements as per the concerned provider to qualify for a personal loan in the country.

While personal loan eligibility criteria in the UAE vary as per the lender, certain factors are common for all providers. Let’s understand the general eligibility requirements for personal loans in UAE as well as those of the top options regarding the same.

General Personal Loan Eligibility Factors in UAE

Before moving on to the eligibility criteria for the best personal loan plans, let’s have a look at the general personal loan eligibility criteria in the UAE -

You must have a stable source of income
Your salary must cross the minimum salary limit specified by the lender - this limit can go as low as AED 5,000
As an applicant, you should have a good credit history, which is typically demonstrated by a high credit Score.
Most lenders require the applicant to be at least 21 years old at the time of application

Note that you should also be ready with the documents required for personal loans such as bank statements, salary certificates, proof of employment, and more at the time of application.

Top UAE Personal Loans Eligibility Criteria

Lets go through the eligibility criteria for the top personal loans in UAE -

Lender	Eligibility Criteria
Emirates NBD Personal Loan	The applicant must be at least 21 years old Salary transfer is mandatory The applicant must be a UAE resident and possess fundamental literacy Monthly salary requirement - AED 5,000 or more
Mashreq Bank Personal Loan	Minimum salary required - If working in a company in the list of approved-companies of the bank - AED 5,000 If working in a non-listed company - AED 10,000 The applicant should be a confirmed employee or must have an experience of at least 6 months in the current organisation
ADCB Personal Loan	Salaried employees having a salary of AED 5,000 or more can apply The employer should be present in the approved list of employers by ADCB The applicant must be at least 21 years old
Emirates Islamic Bank Personal Loan	Minimum salary required - AED 10,000 for both UAE nationals and expats At least one month’s salary has to be transferred to an Emirates Islamic Bank account The applicant must be of the age of 21 years or more The maximum age limit (at the time of maturity) - UAE nationals - 65 years Expats - 60 years
RAKBANK Personal Loan	Minimum age requirement - 21 years Upper age limit at maturity - UAE nationals - 65 years Expats - 60 years Salary transfer is mandatory The applicant’s credit score must be at least 541
FAB Personal Loan	Minimum monthly salary of the applicant must be AED 7,000 (with salary transfer) or AED 15,000 (without salary transfer) Employment with a legitimate organisation is required Applicant must be at least 21 years old The applicant must have worked for at least 6 months with their current employer

Factors Affecting Personal Loan Eligibility

Several factors can affect your personal loan eligibility. Lets discuss the major ones that affect the decision of the lender whether to approve your application -

Credit Score: The credit score, calculated by the al etihad credit bureau (AECB), is a three-digit number that represents your creditworthiness to lenders and financial institutions. As a high credit score indicates that you have a good credit history and are likely to repay the loan on time, lenders are more likely to approve your loan application and offer the loan at favourable terms as well.
Income: Lenders typically require borrowers to have a steady income that is sufficient to repay the loan. In general, borrowers with higher incomes are more likely to be approved for a personal loan.
Employment History: Lenders generally prefer borrowers who have a stable employment history. If you have been working with your current employer for a long time and have a stable income, you wouldn’t be considered a risky borrower by the lender.

Debt-to-Income Ratio: Banks and financial institutions also look at your debt-to-income ratio, which is the percentage of your income that is utilised for the repayment of your debts. A high debt-to-income ratio indicates that you are using a large part of your salary towards repaying existing debts and loans. In this case, you may find it difficult to get approval for your loan application.
Age: Generally, borrowers who are young and near the minimum age limit may have a hard time getting approval, as they may not have a long credit history or steady employment. However, lenders generally prefer younger borrowers as they tend to have lesser obligations and more scope for growth in careers and income.
Nationality: While most lenders offer personal loans to both UAE nationals and expats, the eligibility criteria related to income, maximum age, and others may vary for each category. This also applies to documents, with different sets of documents being required as per your nationality or visa status.

Documents Required for Personal Loans in UAE

While the documents required for personal loans are different for each lender, here are the standard documents required by most banks -

Completed application form
Emirates ID or copy of residency visa
Bank statements for the last 3 to 6 months
Copy of passport
Proof of residence (like utility bills)
Salary certificate

Note: The concerned lender may ask for additional documents at its discretion.

How to Improve Your Chances of Getting a Personal Loan in UAE?

Let’s go through some steps that you can take to improve your chances of approval for a personal loan in UAE -

Keep a good credit score - Your credit score, as we saw earlier, indicates your creditworthiness to the lender. With a high score, you can easily get approvals and have the loan at lower interest rates as well.You can improve your credit score and maintain it by having a low credit utilisation ratio, repaying your debts on time, having a good mix of credit, and so forth.
Improve Your Income and Declare All the Income Sources - Your Income is a good indicator of whether you would be able to repay the loan without being required to exhaust your savings. For easy approvals, you can work towards increasing your income, whether through freelancing, appraisals, etc. Another thing to note is that when you fill out your loan application form, you should clearly write all the sources from where you get an income - this can include, on top of your salary, income from rent, dividends, investments, and more.

Optimise Your Debt-to-Income Ratio - Your debt-to-income ratio should not be more than 50% of your income as per the guidelines of the Central Bank of the UAE. To get your loan application approved easily, you should try to get this ratio below 30%. This can be done by clearing your existing debts, increasing the credit limit on your credit card, and more.
Get a Co-Applicant - If you are applying for a personal loan but have a low credit score and income, you can turn to a friend or a family member and ask them to become a co-applicant. When you add a co-applicant, it increases the chances of approval, with your combined income being considered for the loan. Note that if you are unable to repay the loan, your co-applicant would be required to repay the loan.
Strictly Limit Your Number of Applications - When applying for a personal loan, you may get tempted to apply for multiple loans at a time. This, however, can be detrimental to your approval chances. Besides showing you as a desperate borrower, it can also lower your credit score, which can further hurt your chances of approval. Consequently, you should not apply for too many loans at a time.

Top UAE Banks Personal Loan Eligibility
RAKBANK Personal Loan Eligibility	CBI Personal Loan Eligibility
AI Hilal Bank Personal Loan Eligibility	HSBC Personal Loan Eligibility
ADCB Personal Loan Eligibility	SIB Personal Loan Eligibility
Mashreq Personal Loan Eligibility	EIB Personal Loan Eligibility
FAB Personal Loan Eligibility	Finance House Personal Loan Eligibility

Personal Loan Eligibility FAQs

While the eligibility criteria are different from one bank to another, you should be at least 21 years old and have a monthly income of at least AED 5,000 to be eligible for a personal loan in the UAE.

The limit for the maximum loan amount varies as per the loan plan and the lender. In general, you can find personal loans with a maximum limit of up to AED 5 million.

Most personal loans in the UAE have repayment tenures of up to 48 months.

Interest rates vary from one bank to another and depend on factors such as your credit score, income level, chosen repayment tenure, and so on.

You would need to provide documents like valid UAE ID, passport, salary certificate, bank statements, proof of residence, and so on.

Generally, it may take anywhere between a few days to a week to get a personal loan in the UAE.

Yes, you can easily apply for a personal loan online from policybazaar.ae and find the best loans from various providers in one place.

While you can apply for a personal loan if you have a low credit score, you may find it difficult to get approval and at low interest rates.

Yes, most banks in the UAE offer personal loans to both salaried and self-employed individuals.

Yes, you can pay off your personal loan early in the UAE, although an early settlement fee may be charged for the same.

You can get a personal loan even with an existing loan. However, it must be noted that your total monthly debt obligations must not exceed 50% of your income.

Yes, various banks and lenders offer personal loans to UAE residents and expatriates, although they may have to provide additional documentation.

Whether you can negotiate the interest rate would depend on your profile, credit score, and other factors as well as the bank’s willingness.

Various banks offer personal loans without salary transfers. However, with salary transfer, the applicable interest rate and salary requirement may decrease.

Yes, most banks in the UAE offer personal loans without a guarantor.

If you miss a payment on your personal loan, the bank may charge a late payment fee and report the missed payment to credit bureaus, which could negatively impact your credit score.