This paper deals with the unknown input observer (UIO) design problem for a class of linear time-delay systems. A case in which the observer error can completely be decoupled from an unknown input is treated. Necessary and sufficient conditions for the existences of such observers are present. Based on Lyapunov stability theory, thedesign of the observer with internal delay is formulated in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMI). The design of the observer without internal delay is turned into a stabilization problem in linear systems. Two design algorithms of UIO are proposed. The effect of the proposed approach is illustrated by two numerical examples.