National Bonds Corporation Golden Pension Plan

A Shari'a-compliant workplace end-of-service and retirement savings scheme launched 11 October 2022 for the UAE's private-sector expatriate workforce. Employers register and fund employees' end-of-service benefits (EOSB) into individual National Bonds accounts, as a lump sum for accrued benefits or via monthly contributions, while employees can add voluntary savings from AED 100 a month and track balances, profit and prize winnings in the National Bonds app in real time. Contributions are invested in the National Bonds pool across money market instruments, sukuk and the company's income-generating real estate portfolio. Employees can withdraw their own voluntary contributions at any time; employer-funded EOSB amounts are released per employer rules.

The Golden Pension Plan attacks the UAE's biggest retirement problem, expatriate gratuity that sits as an IOU on the employer's books, with the most credible Shari'a-compliant funding vehicle in the country. The design is right: individual accounts, app visibility, voluntary top-ups, real assets behind returns. The unknowns are commercial: fees are negotiated per employer, and portability follows the employer's rules rather than the employee's wishes. An employee whose company offers it should almost always opt in with voluntary contributions; an employer choosing between this and a DEWS-style trust scheme should demand the fee schedule and compare against the DEWS Sharia-compliant options' published 1.26% to 1.79% all-in cost.