Business Activity Approvals and Special Licences in Qatar
In Qatar, the trade licence for some activities waits on another authority’s approval, both at first issue and at each renewal. The Single Window works out which approvals apply from your legal form, activity, capital and location. Factories need an initial approval from the Ministry’s Industrial Development Department, clinics a health facility licence, and training centres a Ministry of Education licence.
Activity approvals at a glance
- Legal form, activity, capital and location decide the approvals
- 4 factors
- From this size, the premises need a Civil Defence certificate
- 250 m²
- For a factory establishment through the Single Window
- about 3 months
- Industrial initial approval fee
- QAR 500
From the Single Window; see the sources at the end of the page.
When a business activity needs another approval
The Single Window works out the procedures and approvals automatically from the company you are setting up: its legal form, activity, capital and location. The requirements for each activity are listed in the Business Activities Search Tool.
The premises also have to meet the requirements of the authority that regulates the activity, and each activity has to fit the nationality of the company’s capital.
The rule in brief
- Regulated activity
- A valid licence or approval from its regulator
- Through the Single Window
- You can request the approval inside the application
- At renewal
- The same rule applies again
- Residential areas
- Get the approvals before you sign the lease
How to get an activity approval, step by step
- Look up the activity
The Business Activities Search Tool shows what that code requires.
- Check the premises
From 250 m² a Civil Defence certificate; some industrial zones add approvals.
- Request the approval
Inside the Single Window application, or attach one you already hold.
- Keep it valid
The same rule applies again at each renewal.
What we help with
Mapping the approvals
Which authority approves your exact activity, and when.
Premises check
Civil Defence, municipality and zone approvals, before you sign the lease.
Industrial route
The factory establishment request, feasibility study and environmental permit.
Health and education
What the Ministry of Public Health and the Ministry of Education ask for.
Documents
The attachments each approval needs, in the right order.
Renewals
Keeping approvals valid so the trade licence can be renewed.
Civil defence and municipality (baladiya) approvals
Civil Defence certificate
Needed if the site is 250 m² or more; some activities need one whatever the size.
Inside a mall
The mall’s certificate is enough at first issue, but not at renewal.
Building completion certificate
Issued by the municipality for the premises.
Industrial zones
Industrial Municipality approval for zone 57; extra approvals for zones 81, 92, 93 and 94.
Industrial licence
Factory set-up has its own Single Window route. You file one Factory Establishment request and get back both the CR and an initial approval from the Ministry’s Industrial Development Department. Industrial licensing is finished afterwards under License Your Business.
The factory route in brief
- Time
- About three months
- Fees
- About QAR 3,200 in total; initial approval QAR 500
- Documents
- A feasibility study (business plan, market, financial and technical study); an environmental permit if needed
- Zones 81, 92, 93, 94
- Preliminary approval from the Ministry of Environment and approval from the Industrial Development Department
Health, education and professional offices
Clinics and health
The facility licence must stay valid, the medical director must hold a Qatar licence, and so must each doctor and nurse.
Education and training
Training, language, tutoring and computer centres meet conditions set by the Ministry of Education.
Professional offices
A professional registration record for the licensee and the managers.
Restaurants and others
Anything else: look the activity up on the Single Window before a lease is signed.
Related services
Common questions about activity approvals
What is business activity approval in Qatar?
It is the approval another authority must give before some activities can be licensed on your CR and trade licence. The Single Window decides which approvals apply from your legal form, activity, capital and location. You can request the approval within the Single Window application, or attach one you already hold.
Source: Single Window, Start your business (establishment service)
How do you get an industrial license in Qatar?
You apply through the Single Window’s Factory Establishment service, which issues the CR and an initial approval from the Ministry’s Industrial Development Department in one request. It needs a feasibility study and, where relevant, an environmental permit. The Single Window estimates about three months, before the final industrial licence step.
What license does a clinic need in Qatar?
A healthcare facility licence from the Ministry of Public Health, renewed before it lapses. The clinic also needs a medical director who is licensed to practise in Qatar. No doctor or health worker may start there without a practice licence of their own.
Source: Ministry of Public Health, Circular DHP/2024/12 to private healthcare facilities
What are examples of business activities that need another approval?
Clinics, factories, training centres, limousine firms and web hosts are common ones. Say you plan a dental clinic in Al Sadd: the Ministry of Public Health licenses the facility before the commercial permit is issued. A factory goes to the Ministry’s Industrial Development Department, a training centre to the Ministry of Education, a limousine firm to the Ministry of Transport and the traffic department, and web hosting to the Communications Regulatory Authority.
Source: Single Window, Business activities search (activity details, approvals and fees)
What does a restaurant license in Qatar need?
More than the CR. Law No. 5 of 2015 puts restaurants and cafés among public shops, and no shop opens before its shop licence and every approval for its activity are issued; for food, the Ministry of Municipality’s health rules apply. Restaurant workers get a health check each year. Opening a café with no shisha? Then it needs a glass front, and seating, preparation and storage in separate areas.
Source: Law No. 5 of 2015 on commercial, industrial and similar public shops (Al Meezan)
How do you know which approvals your activity needs?
Look the exact activity up in the Single Window’s Business Activities Search Tool; the result shows what that code requires. Then look at the site. From 250 square metres the premises need a Civil Defence certificate, and a few industrial zones add approvals of their own. Do this before signing any lease.
Source: Single Window, Start your business (establishment service)
How do I add an activity to my CR in Qatar?
Use the Comprehensive Update service on the Single Window; the same request can change the trade name, capital, managers or address. Each request costs QAR 300 on the CR side, and the law wants the change recorded within 30 days. A regulated activity brings its own approval with it.
Did not find your question? Ask an adviser. We reply with what applies to your case.
Sources
Official sources for the facts on this page, last checked 19 Oct 2026.
- Single Window, Start your business (establishment service)
- Single Window, Comprehensive renewal
- Single Window, Factory establishment
- Ministry of Public Health, Circular DHP/2024/12 to private healthcare facilities
- Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Educational services centres
- Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Local investor services
- Single Window, Comprehensive update
- Law No. 5 of 2015 on commercial, industrial and similar public shops (Al Meezan)
- Minister of Commerce Decision No. 161 of 2017 on shop requirements (Al Meezan)
- Single Window, Business activities search (activity details, approvals and fees)
Send us the activity, the premises address and its size in square metres.
We reply with the approvals that apply and what to settle before any lease is signed.