A company in Qatar hires a foreign worker in four stages: the labour department’s approval and a work licence, the Ministry of Interior’s work visa on an attested employment contract, the worker’s biometrics and medical, often at a Qatar Visa Center at home, and the residence permit within 30 days of arrival. The company needs its establishment card before it starts.
Before you hire: what the company needs
Before the first visa, the company needs its establishment card. Think of it as the Ministry of Interior’s record of who may sign for the company in its services; the Executive Regulations require one for every project with even a single worker. It is issued on the CR and licence, and each employee’s first residence permit asks for a copy.
Qatari workers have priority under the Labour Law, which is why every foreign hire needs the labour department’s approval and a work licence. The same law asks the employer, before work begins, to give the department in writing its name, address, activity, workers and manager.
The steps for each worker
| Stage | What happens | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Labour approval | Approval to employ a non-Qatari worker, and a work licence | The labour department |
| Employment contract | In writing, in Arabic, attested by the labour department, in three copies | Employer and worker |
| Work visa | The Ministry of Interior’s work visa on company sponsorship | The company applies |
| Biometrics and medical | At a Qatar Visa Center in the worker’s home country, where one exists | The worker |
| Arrival and residence | Residence completed within 30 days of entry, after the medical and fingerprints | Company and worker |
The work visa
A worker from Kathmandu, say, can only be given entry for work under an employment contract with your company, and a work residence visa only once that contract is attested. The Ministry of Interior’s work visa on company sponsorship then wants the worker’s attested educational certificates, a good conduct certificate from Nepal attested by the Qatari embassy, the contract itself and a medical test before travel. The page shows a QAR 300 fee.
The visa fee is only one line in the cost of hiring, since the residence permit carries a fee of its own.
Qatar Visa Centers
The Ministry of Interior has mandated the Qatar Visa Center to carry out some residence procedures in eight countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Workers from those countries enrol their biometrics (face, fingerprints and iris), have their medical examination and sign their work contract at home before they travel.
The worker books an appointment with the visa number and passport number, but only after the employer has signed the contract in the system. The Center does not decide: the visa is granted or refused by the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Public Health.
After arrival: the residence permit
The worker must complete residence procedures within 30 days of entering Qatar, and the employer must let them do so. The residence permit is issued after the medical examination and fingerprints. The first permit on company sponsorship asks for the labour contract attested by the labour department, the original passport, a copy of the company’s establishment ID, a photo and a blood group certificate.
A residence permit lasts at least one year and up to five, and the employer renews it within 90 days of its expiry, on Metrash2 or the Ministry’s e-services. Wages are paid into the worker’s account at a financial institution in Qatar, and every six months the employer sends the labour department a statement of its workers.
How we help
We prepare the establishment card and work visa files, check that each contract and certificate is attested in the right order, and keep the dates: the 30 days after arrival, the renewal and the six-monthly statement. The labour department and the Ministry of Interior decide every application.
