It’s illegal for visit visa holders to work
By Nizar Kochery/DohaQUESTION: An expatriate, brought to Qatar on a visit visa, has been working with a company for a couple of months. If he wants to resign now:1) How many days’ notice should he give to the company?2) What claims could the company make for the money spent on his plane tickets and visit visa processing?3) Please note that the employee has not yet undergone any medical examination in preparation for residence visa and work permit.4) Is the employee illegally working in Qatar as he is on a visit visa? Isn’t it the employer’s responsibility to make sure that his visa papers are in accordance with law? The employee had no idea under what visa he had been brought into the country.GH, DohaANSWER: Article 23 of the Labour Laws provides that non-Qataris may only be employed after approval of the Department of Labour and the possession of a valid work permit. The conditions to get work permit issued includes possession of a residence permit and shall be medically fit. Visit visa is not for entering into employment obligations. Accordingly the visitor is illegally employed and punishable under sponsorship laws. According to Article 21 of the Sponsorship Laws, the sponsor of the visitor shall be on charge of his host. Visitor also will be penalised; ignorance of law is not an excuse.End-of-service benefitsQ: Will I be entitled to a pro-rated end-of-service benefits or to a fraction of the gratuity in proportion to the length of time I have served my company even if it is not specifically stated in my contract? I signed a contract in March last year and it is of an indefinite duration. I plan to terminate it in December which gives me 21 months’ service. The contract only indicates that I am entitled to end-of-service benefits of one month’s basic salary on completion of each 12-month continuous service period, and mentions both parties recognise that this satisfies the end-of-service benefits payment under Qatar’s Labour Law. There is nothing about pro-rated or fraction benefits in my contract.AB, DohaA: Article 54 provides that end-of-service benefits shall be payable to those workers with one or more years of continuous service. The benefit level shall be agreed upon between the employer and worker, but must be no less than three weeks’ basic salary per year of service. It shall only not be payable in instances of summary dismissal as under Article 61. The worker shall be entitled to gratuity for the fractions of the year in proportion to the duration of employment. However the employer is entitled to deduct from the service gratuity the amount due to him by the worker. Regarding requirement of specific provision in the employment contract, Article 4 is relevant. The provision stipulates that the entitlements prescribed by the Labour Law represent the minimum entitlements of the workers. Therefore even without any specific understanding the worker is entitled for prorate benefits at the rate one month salary per year of service.Termination notice periodQ: I came to work in Qatar almost six months ago but the next day after my probation period, my employer terminated me, giving just three days’ notice. Is this valid? As per the contract, I can be terminated only after giving a three months’ notice. Can I claim three months’ salary as agreed in the contract for termination notice? Can I claim a refund of the air ticket I had bought? Can I ask the employer to provide my return ticket? The employer holds my passport and I need to know how to get my passport back. Can they force me to sign papers without giving my entitlement?KJ, DohaA: The service with the company got automatically confirmed on completion of the probation term. No specific confirmation letter is required to establish the service confirmation. Any termination after probation is subject to termination notice. The worker is not obliged to sign any documents made by the sponsor unless you receive your benefits. In the event of failure to reach an amicable solution with the employer, you may file a complaint with the Ministry of Labour to claim your entitlements. As for tickets, the worker is entitled for return tickets from his home country to Qatar and return, if the worker had entered into the contract with the company and the latter was to bring him from his country. With respect to your passport, as per the Sponsorship Law, the sponsor has no right to retain the worker’s passport.♦ Please send your questions by e-mail to: leges@qatar.net.qaLEGAL SYSTEM IN QATARThe employer shall maintain registers relating to employee details, payment of wages, penalties imposed, register of injuries sustained by workers at site and end of service details. 1. Register of employees: Names, nationality, type of work, salary, date of ending service, place of permanent residence, marital status, qualifications, experience, annual leave entitlements and penalties, if any, imposed on employees. 2. Register of payment of salaries: This contain amount of daily or weekly or monthly wages including any additional payments or deductions made. 3. Register of penalties: Details of penalties imposed over employees, including monetary penalties. 4. Register of injuries: Injuries at work with details. 5. End-of-service records: Names of employees whose services have completed, including dates, reasons for leaving, payments made to them and/or the next of kin. Unless otherwise the contract was signed on a personal basis and was based solely on the employer’s activities the death of the employer shall not invalidate the contract. The employment contract shall remain valid in occasions of merger, change in ownership or its administration to other parties for any reasons. In such cases, the new owner shall be responsible to pay all the entitlements prescribed in the employment contract to the employees. On ending a contract, the employer shall issue to the employee, upon request, an experience certificate free of cost specifying service details, nature of work and salary paid. Employer must return to the employee, all documents, certificates and any other possessions they may have maintained. On termination after completion of one year continuous service, in addition to any amounts due to the employee, the employer shall pay the end-of-service benefits subject to a minimum of three weeks’ salary for every one year worked and shall be paid according to the period of work. The end-of-service benefit will also include any number of months for which the employee has worked, after completing one year. The basic salary on the date of entitlement is the basis for calculating the benefits. Regarding continuous service, service of an employee is considered as continuous, except termination otherwise under Article-61 and the employee was asked to return to work within a period of two months from the date. The employer may deduct dues to the employer from the end-of-service benefits. In the event of death of the worker, the employer shall deposit at court within 15 days of the death, any entitlements and payments including the end-of-service benefits regardless of the cause of the death. The court will disburse the amount to the inheritors as per Islamic Sharia laws or personal statute of the deceased. If these entitlements remain unclaimed for a period of three years, the court shall return the amount to the state treasury.