DUBAI, 22nd January, 2023 (WAM) — Hessa bint Essa Buhumaid, Minister of Community Development, revealed that the total amounts disbursed for marriage grants last year reached AED199,080,000, reaching 2,844 beneficiaries across the UAE compared to 2,727 beneficiaries during 2021.

Buhumaid said that the marriage grants by the Ministry of Community Development (MoCD) align with the leadership’s keenness and government support to Emirati youth getting married, enabling them to build stable and cohesive families and communities.

She noted that each marriage grant is worth AED70,000 disbursed in one payment to eligible recipients. This confirms the ministry’s role in supporting the aspirations of young people looking to start new families that become financially and morally stable.

She elaborated on several continuous improvement measures initiated by the ministry three years ago to facilitate the procedures and documents for obtaining marriage grants through an electronic link with many relevant federal and local authorities. This step makes it easier for customers to receive the required documents and accelerate their marriage grant process.

Buhumaid pointed out that the marriage grant helps young future spouses to start a stable married life, meet the marriage requirements and reduce their financial burden.

The grants raise the awareness of family life after marriage and help younger generations to build and maintain a stable and cohesive family leading to sustainable support for the family and society by enhancing material and moral stability, she indicated.

Buhumaid stated that the increasing number of marriage grants reflects an increase in the desire of the younger generation to establish stable Emirati families. At the same time, an increase in the percentage of marriages among Emirati spouses is one of the primary conditions of the marriage grant disbursement. Additionally, the marriage grant comes in the context of a strategic development vision, reflecting the leadership’s directives to support young people and achieve their aspirations for stable family life and financial stability.

The marriage grant is disbursed under several conditions, mainly that the applicant and his wife must be UAE nationals; the husband must be older than 21, and the wife must be 18 years old; the groom’s net income should not exceed AED25,000. Therefore, it is mandatory to attend awareness courses for both spouses organised by the MoCD through its electronic platform.

The MoCD allows the obtaining of the marriage grant through its website www.mocd.gov.ae.