Organisation : Ministry of External Affairs
Facility : Procedures for Filing Compensation Claims for Indian Nationals who died United Arab Emirates
Home Page : http://www.mea.gov.in/compensation-claims.htm
Download Guidelines : https://www.statusin.in/uploads/34515-compendium.pdf
Procedures for Filing Compensation Claims :
First point of Contact in U.A.E :
Embassy of India, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E
Plot No. 10, Sector W-59/02,
Diplomatic Area,
Off the Airport Road,
P. O. Box 4090, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E
Related : Ministry of External Affairs Overseas Citizenship of India Scheme : www.statusin.in/34512.html
Telephone No.- 00-971-2-4492700
Fax No.- 00-971-2-4444685
Office Working Hours- Sunday to Thursday 08:30 Hrs – 17:00 Hrs(13:00 Hrs –13:30 Hrs Lunch Break)(Friday & Saturday – Weekly Off)
First point of Contact in India :
MADAD
(Consular Grievances Monitoring System)
Ministry of External Affairs &
Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs
Government of India
Web link- org2.passportindia.gov.in/AppConsularProject/welcomeLink
List of documents required to file the death compensation claim :
1. Death Certificate and Bank details of the deceased
2. Original Passport of the deceased along with a photocopy
3. Power of attorney from next-of-kin authorising Embassy of India, UAE to follow up the case through Embassy advocates or power of attorney in the name of any individual residing in UAE whom the deceased’s family would like to appoint.
4. Legal Heir Certificate, to be obtained by the next-of-kin through the concerned Taluk/Thasildar or through the District Civil Court of the concerned area in India. Both the Legal Heir certificate and Power of Attorney should be attested by the state’s nodal agency as well as the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi or its Branch Secretariats.
Procedures to claim compensation :
To claim the compensation in case of the death of the Indian national abroad, steps to be followed are:
i. The next-of-kin should appoint the Embassy or someone they know in UAE as the attorney to obtain the compensation. To start with, a request has to be made to the employer/sponsor company after registering the death with the Embassy/consulate in UAE, to settle the compensation.
ii. The request is then pursued with the employer or the concerned local courts directly by the Embassy or by the Power of Attorney holder.
iii. In court cases, the matter is followed up in the concerned courts through the local legal counsel.
iv. After receiving the amount of death compensation from the employer based on the court’s judgement, the Embassy sends the same to India for disbursement to the legal heirs of deceased Indian nationals through concerned district authorities. In some cases, the compensation amount is given to the family of deceased by the concerned court directly.
Death at work place due to occupational accident :
In case the death happens at work place there is a provision for workmen compensation which is realized through insurance companies and for which concerned employer/company is required to insure the employee beforehand. Also, in case of accidental deaths there is a provision of ‘Diya (Blood) Money’ which depends on the judgment of the judicial courts. In many such cases the family of the deceased receives the blood money directly from the concerned courts.
However, in some cases families authorize Embassy/Consulate to do the same on their behalf by executing Power of Attorney in favour of the Embassy/Consulate. In these cases, the matter is followed up in the concerned courts through the local legal counsel. After receiving the amount of death compensation, the same sent to India for disbursement to the legal heirs of deceased Indian nationals through concerned district authorities.
Death due to Road Traffic Accident :
In case of death due to Road Traffic Accident or places not related to work, a compensation claim can be filed with the accused or the Vehicle’s Insurance company involved in the accident. Initially, the concerned insurance company or the causer is approached for settling the compensation claim. However, if the insurance company does not agree, then a case can be filed in the court and either the Embassy or the Power of Attorney holder will follow up the case through civil or criminal court.
Death due to illness or natural cause (not related to work place) :
If the death happens due to illness or any other reason, away from the work place, then no compensation is applicable unless the individual has a personal insurance. In case the person has a personal insurance, then the next-of-kin may file the compensation claim with the concerned insurance company.
Any other circumstances of Death :
In case, death has happened due to any other causes such murder, etc., then the victim’s legal heir is entitled for blood money (compensation following death of a person) from the accused based on the court’s verdict. For this, the attorney of the deceased can approach the concerned court for verdict on blood money. Based on the verdict, the legal heir will get the compensation amount.
Outstanding salary of the deceased :
In case there is any outstanding salary of the deceased Indian national in his/her bank account in foreign land, then the foreign employer should be approached with a letter seeking the salary due or other service benefits.
For returning the belongings or mortal remains of the deceased :
** For returning the belongings or mortal remains of the deceased, procedural formalities in normal deaths require obtaining death certificate, death notification from concerned mortuary/hospital in the UAE, authorization letter from family of the deceased for transportation of mortal remains and registration in the Embassy/Consulate of India.
** In unnatural deaths investigation and autopsies are done by the local authorities. After completion of formalities by the local authorities, death registration and other formalities are completed by the Embassy/Consulate of UAE without any delay; this service is being provided free of cost on 24×7 basis, and after which the mortal remains get transported to India or last rites are done in the UAE depending on the wishes of the family of the deceased.
** All the above formalities are carried out by the sponsor of the deceased and all costs including airfare and other charges are born by the sponsor. In cases of destitute/stranded/ illegal Indians, the Embassy and the Consulate provide full assistance including airfare and all other charges (from ICW Fund) for transportation of mortal remains to India and also one-way air ticket for the escorts where necessary.
** In normal death cases, time required for completion of all procedural formalities for transportation of mortal remains to India is 5 working days, and in unnatural deaths the average required time is 15 working days.