Recent news

Labour Law 18/20 now obliges employers providing accommodation to meet certain strict standards; allows both employers and employees to terminate employment, with (one or two months) notice, both during a probation period and thereafter; introduces a requirement to give notice to the Ministry of Administrative Development before declaring a redundancy; and reduces maximum post-compete clauses to one year …

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A former law requiring migrant employees to obtain permission from their employer to change employment has been rescinded …

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Private sector company offices are allowed to reopen, but only if they operate with the maximum of 80% of their workforce present in the workplace …

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Qatari and Russian citizens will now be able to visit each other’s country without a visa and stay up to 90 days, provided that their passports are valid for a period of at least 6 months …

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Under the new National Address Law (Law No 24 of 2017), any Qatari national or foreigner must register with the Ministry of Interior specified details …

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Until last year the “kafala”, or sponsorship system, required employees to obtain permission from their employers in order to leave the country …

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A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed with the USA on the introduction of a labour reform programme in Qatar …

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The Qatari Ministry of Interior has announced that the on-arrival visa for Indian nationals will not now be extendable beyond 30 days …

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It now appears that the government will be introducing its new exit law by next month …

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It is not entirely clear why the UN’s International Labour Organisation has established a new office in Doha …

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Employers struggling to meet the deadline for compliance set by the 2016 Data Protection law (No 13/2016) will be relieved to learn that a further ‘grace period’ has been issued by the Emir …

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A temporary minimum wage of 750 riyals (US$195) per month has been set by the government and will come into effect immediately …

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The government of Qatar has now signed 36 bilateral agreements with countries from which it draws most of its two- million-strong foreign workforce – undertaking to provide legal protection to workers …

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As a gesture no doubt linked to the sanctions being enforced by several neighboring countries the Qatar government is opening up the country for more visa-free travel …

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Although Qatar has been in the news recently over a boycott by many neighboring states because of links between its ruling elite and terrorist groups employers may also feel unease about many of its restrictive and often arbitrary laws …

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