Dh25,000-a-month Employee Must Repay Dh1.2M Loans, Court Rules
Judge finds loan and credit card deductions remained within legal limits even as employee struggled with mounting liabilities.
Staff WriterJan 30, 2026, 11:42 AMThe Abu Dhabi Commercial Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by an employee seeking a reduction in her monthly loan repayments, ruling that the deductions imposed by four banks did not breach the legally permitted salary cap.
In its judgment, the court noted that although the woman had accumulated more than Dh1.2 million in personal loans and credit card liabilities, each bank had acted within the law, as none deducted more than 50 per cent of her monthly salary of Dh25,000.
The employee had requested the court to urgently direct the banks to limit deductions to 25 per cent of her income, refund what she described as excess payments totalling Dh100,000, and award legal costs, Emarat Al Youm reported.
Court records showed that she had obtained a Dh555,000 personal loan from the first bank, with monthly instalments of Dh10,419, in addition to two credit cards. From a second bank, she borrowed Dh368,000, with monthly deductions of Dh6,996, along with a credit card. She also secured a Dh230,000 car loan from a third bank, requiring monthly payments of Dh4,358, and held another credit card with the same lender. A fourth bank had issued her a credit card through which she borrowed Dh81,000.
The claimant argued that her salary was her sole source of income and that additional deductions left her struggling to meet daily living expenses. She maintained that, since the banks had no collateral other than her salary, they were required to strictly comply with borrowing regulations and judicial principles.
However, a court-appointed expert found that the total outstanding amount, following reconciliation, stood at Dh1.146 million. The expert confirmed that when assessed individually, each bank’s deductions remained within the 50 per cent salary limit prescribed by law.
In its reasoning, the court observed that the employee had failed to clearly identify which deductions she sought to suspend or specify the relevant accounts, rendering her claim legally ambiguous. The lawsuit was consequently dismissed, and she was ordered to pay court fees along with Dh200 in legal costs.
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