Ministry of Labour's e-platform allows change of residency from family to work. The process allows residents in Qatar who live under non-work permits such as family residence visas, to join the labour market by changing their permits to “for the purpose of work.” The process starts with the new employer applying to add the resident as a worker through the e-platform of the Ministry of Labour. As per the requirements, smart card is needed to verify through National Authentication System (NAS) the identity of establishment personnel authorised to use the service. The phone number provided in the request by the establishment must match the phone number associated with the employee’s QID. The individuals should be registered with the National Address. The candidates are also required to register in the National Authentication System before entering the portal of the Ministry of Labour. The Establishment Card (EID) must be active in the system. There should be no personal suspension of the new employer, and there should be no other applications of the same type under study for the same worker. The new service has been added to MoL portal under “request to join the labour market (change from family residency to work residency)”. The process could either start with the new employer applying to add the resident as a worker, or it can start with the worker applying to join the labour market by entering the new employer details. The request can be approved or rejected depending on whether certain conditions are met. If the approval is granted, the contract attestation procedures start, the new employer settles fees online and the residency change approval information is then automatically exported to the Ministry of Interior (MoI ) for final implementation of the actual residency status change.
