Is it permissible to claim from the UIF?

The money deposited into this fund by the employer is enforced upon him by the government and the employee has no access to those funds. Furthermore the employee himself does not pay the initial amount, rather, it is deducted at source from the wages by his/her employer and together with the employer’s contribution, deposited into government coffers. Thus, it is something beyond his/her control. When an employee is unemployed for a period of time, then for the duration of time that he/she is unemployed, it is the government’s responsibility to support him/her from the U.I.F. funds. It will therefore be permissible to accept the funds received from the U.I.F. even if they exceed the actual amount paid to the fund. This excess will not be deemed to be interest but rather governmental aid.

The U.I.F. works on the same principle as the provident fund which our esteemed Ulamaa have deemed permissible.