So many international major events, such as the 2017 World Cup in Qatar, offer businesses intriguing new options. Companies frequently need to engage significant numbers of workers for a brief period to maximize these events’ financial potential. Therefore, companies must evaluate the many choices available to them for mobilizing staff, either from outside Qatar or from inside the nation.
Qatari mobilization
To mobilize personnel to work in Qatar, the business must first establish a legal presence in compliance with applicable rules. Employers must evaluate what activities workers will perform, where they will perform them, and how long they will be in Qatar as part of their mobilization plan. Each of the visa types listed below has an expiry date and penalties for overstaying.
Permit to Reside
This is the primary means via which all ex-pat personnel is employed and live in Qatar. The following are the main stages of immigration:
- On-line application for block visa allotment to the Ministry of Labour (MOL), including gender, nationality, and work title. This initial phase typically takes around five to ten business days to complete, although it might take less or more time.
- Applicants can apply online for a work permit (Work Permit) at the Ministry of Interior (MOI), submitting a name, passport copy, and necessary education documents; applications are typically approved within five to ten working days.
- This final stage can require between seven and ten working days when you submit an application for a residence permit to the MOL and MOI, including a physical, blood group, x-rays, fingerprints, and certification of the E-Government Employment Contract (EGov Contract) by the MOL.
A work permit is needed to enter Qatar, and a residence permit must be obtained within 30 days. If you are an Indian, Indonesian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Philippines, or Tunisian national, all medical work, fingerprinting, as well as the EGov contract must be performed at a Qatar Visa Centre in your country of origin. It will take approximately two to three working days after the employee’s arrival in Qatar to receive their residency permit.
Business Visas
These visas are single-entry/single-exit visas that are typically limited to applicants from the government and semi-government domains and oil and gas. Business visas allow holders to represent their firm or themselves, but not to work, save in very limited situations. Business visas are comparable to multi-entry, multi-exit visas.
Temporary Work Visas
These are unique work visas now available exclusively in the government and semi-government sectors. These, unlike Work Permits, cannot be changed into resident permits. These visas are increasingly referred to as “FIFA Visas” since they will now be utilized to mobilize short-term staff on World Cup projects. The company owner must have a World Cup-related contract to apply for a FIFA Visa.
Visas On Arrival for Tourists
Tourist Visas and On Arrival Visas are often used to visit Qatar for pleasure and to visit. While these visas are not ideal for mobilizing staff, firms utilize them in practice. If a commercial choice is made to mobilize in this manner, employers must examine each risk and reduce it to the greatest degree feasible. Individuals on a tourist visa or a visa on arrival may not always be able to visit government services and facilities.
COVID-19
The COVID-19 epidemic has hampered mobilization into Qatar even further. As a result, employers must carefully manage an employee’s travels to prevent “dead” time, which occurs when an employee is within or outside Qatar. At the same time, they are supposed to be elsewhere because they are awaiting a PCR test or subject to isolation.
Individuals entering Qatar must be immunized entirely with a vaccination recognized by the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH). Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson are among the companies that have received approval for vaccines. Additional vaccinations have been granted conditional approval. In addition, a negative PCR test must be done within 72 hours following entering Qatar. Hotel quarantine may apply to those traveling from specified countries. The MOPH website contains up-to-date travel information.
Mobilization Inside Qatar
Transfer
Employers might explore mobilizing staff in the nation to mobilize personnel in Qatar. This can save the employer money and time since, for example, arrival flights into Qatar do not require to be organized or given, and the procedure can typically be completed faster than mobilizing from outside Qatar.
The MOL’s computerized system is used to complete the immigration transfer procedure between two State employers. The MOL will provide its permission after the employee’s notice period with the existing employer expires. The new E-Gov Contract is then generally certified within seven days. The new residence permit will be available to the employee following the new EGov Contract. The exact timing is, of course, contingent on the parties acting promptly at each stage, the existing employer not objecting to the transfer, public holidays, and no difficulties with the employee’s documents; there are always exceptions. Transfers between a state-licensed entity and a free zone entity may take longer and include additional stages.
Secondment/Borrowing
The MOI’s previously allowed six-month secondment or borrowing agreements are now not generally accessible in the market.
Subcontract
Employers in Qatar may enter into a services agreement with an entity or service provider within Qatar for various reasons, including during the employment transfer process and when accelerated mobilization is not possible; employees of the service provider provide the services. While the employee receives the services, the service provider should remain the primary employer.
Planning
Employers must carefully assess the many alternatives available for mobilizing staff from outside Qatari borders or inside the nation and then prepare appropriately. To decrease fines, risks should be avoided, and visa expiration dates should be checked. For any journey into or out of Qatar to a foreign nation, the continuing COVID-19 pandemic travel bans and airline criteria should be addressed.
If you need more information about Qatar visas, check out our articles about Qatari visas to learn about all the various aspects of them.
