Qatar

Starting a Business in

Qatar

Below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles faced by entrepreneurs wishing to incorporate and register a new firm in Qatar. It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income.

This information was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 185 economies. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2012.

Compare Qatar to 184 other economies.

  • Standardized Company

  • Legal Form: Limited Liability Company (LLC)
  • Paid in Minimum Capital Requirement: QAR 200,000
  • City: Doha

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Apply online for approval of the proposed name with the Ministry of Business and Trade

The applicant’s first step is to get the approval of the Commercial Companies Inspection Department ("Department") at the Ministry of Business and Trade, on the Articles of Association of the company. This is done to ensure the Articles are conforming to the law and regulations in place. The Department will request from the applicant to obtain the approval on the name of the company. This process of name approval used to be done at Commercial Registry Department and the Trademarks Department located at the Ministry of Business and Trade, but starting May 1, 2011 it can be done online. The fees can also be paid online. The fees are QAR 500 for an Arabic name and QAR 1,000 for a non-Arabic name.
1 day QAR 500
2 Submit the Articles of Association for review at the Commercial Companies Inspection Department at the Ministry of Business and Trade

Once the name is approved, the Commercial Companies Inspection Department will review the articles of associations and if these are approved, will then issue the Bank Certificate for depositing the capital of the company at the bank
1 day QAR 1500
3 Open bank account and deposit minimum capital

Once the capital is deposited, the Bank will issue a letter that the money is deposited into the company bank account. The deposit cannot be withdrawn until the company is incorporated.
1 day no charge
4 Sign the Articles of Association before an agent at the Ministry of Justice counter located at the OSS

The Company’s Articles of Association (AOA) should be prepared in Arabic in the standard format of the Ministry of Justice. The Commercial Companies Inspection Department will have to stamp this official form of the AOA before the parties sign the Articles at the Authentication Department. Authorized signatories must be present for the authentication process that will be carried out by an officer at the Ministry of Justice counter. The AOA should include the following:

• The name, including the phrase "with limited liability"
• The address of the LLC head office
• The objectives
• The fixed term of duration
• The amount of the LLC capital and the manner in which it has been subscribed
• The restrictions of the transfer of shares
• The names of the shareholders
• The manner in which profits or losses will be distributed between the shareholders
• The names of persons entrusted with the company's management
• Capital structure
If any shareholder is an entity they will need to provide the following documents to the Ministry of Justice before signing the Articles of Association:
• Duly legalized and authenticated Board/Shareholders Resolution approving the incorporation of the company and appointing a representative to sign the Articles of Association.
• Duly legalized and authenticated Certificate of Incorporation or equivalent document.
• Duly legalized and authenticated Articles of Association.
• A passport copy of the representative authorized to sign the Articles of Association on behalf of the company



 1 day QAR 24 for first 2 shareholders + QAR 9 for each additional shareholder
* 5 Obtain commercial registration from the Ministry of Business and Trade and register with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry at the single counter located at the OSS

Once the authentication process is finalized, the applicant should submit the documents to a now-single counter at the Ministry of Business & Trade that is in charge of the activities of both the Commercial Registry (of the Ministry of Business & Trade) and the Chamber of Commerce. Before May 2011, the entrepreneur had to go to 2 counters, one for each and the Chamber of Commerce registration was needed to obtain a Commercial Registration.

For registration with the Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the following documents need to be presented:

• The Chamber of commerce and Industry application form that should be signed by the appointed managers and company representatives
• The Chamber of Commerce authorized signatories form
• The approved Draft AOA
• The original AOA Authenticated, and
• Copies of authorized signatories’ ID cards.
• The following documents are needed for Commercial Registry:
• A copy of the Memorandum of Association;
• A copy of the receipt of the fee paid for reviewing the Memorandum of Association;
• A copy of the certificate of deposit of the capital in an approved bank in Qatar;
• Copies of the ID’s of the partners; and
• The registration application form provided by the Commercial Registry.
The fee for registering the company at the Commercial Registry depends on the scope of activity of the company. The fee to register with the Chamber of Commerce & Industry depends on the capital of the company.

 1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) QAR 2,200 (Chamber of Commerce) + QAR 500-5,000 (Commercial Registration)
* 6 Obtain trade license and signage license from the municipality counter located at the OSS

The supporting documents of the trade license application are:
• Commercial Registration Certificate
• Lease agreement (must be signed in Arabic or translated into Arabic after it is signed) for premises that the company will operate from (the premises need to be commercial and the lease must be with the landlord, or, if subleased, must be accompanied by a document evidencing the landlord’s consent to sublease).
• Photograph of the premises
• Copy of the title deed.
The trade license fee is QAR 10,020 for the first year.
-The supporting documents of Signage License are:
• A sketch of the logo that will be placed on the door of the office including size with the name of the company in Arabic and English;
• A photo of the premises’ exterior
The lease agreement concerning the premises of the LLC along with the trade license and the suggested signage (a sketch of the signage is enough; name has to be in Arabic; English can be added) that will be posted at its premises will then be submitted to the Municipality of Doha that now has a counter at the Ministry of Business & Trade. The municipality usually sends an inspection team to inspect the contemplated premises of the company prior to granting the Trade License. License approval will be granted only if the leased premises are designated as a 'commercial' property.
The signage fee is QAR 50-150/ square meter.

 1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) QAR 10,020 (Trade license) +QAR 50-150 (signage license)
7 Register for taxes and obtain Tax Identification number

The requirements for registering the company at the Tax Department at the Ministry of Finance are as follows:
1. The Articles of Association of the company
2. The IDs of the partners and founders
3. The Commercial Registry of the company (CR)
4. The Immigration Card and the Trade License
5. A certificate proving the registration number of the company at the Water and Electricity Authority (Kahramaa) for the company’s offices
6. A certificate proving the appointment of Auditors for the Company

Every company is required to be registered at the Tax Department according to the tax law or it will be subject to a fine. This is however a post-incorporation step and a company can start its operations right after obtaining a trade license. Companies have a month to register for taxes.

 1 day no charge
8 Obtain a company seal

It’s a practice to have a company seal . certain documents must be stamped with the company seal before government agencies accepts it.
2 days QAR 150
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.
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