Qatar Law No. 4/2009, Immigration Law, sets out regulations under which expatriates may enter, work and reside in and exit from Qatar. The Immigration Department of the Ministry of Interior and the Labour Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs are the main agencies of administration. The law defines an Expatriate as any individual entering Qatar who is not a Qatari national.

Unless an individual is a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) national he or she must be sponsored by either a Qatari national or an entity registered to undertake business in Qatar. This arrangement does not lend itself to short term or casual employment arrangements. It is also important to note that there are laws and regulations in place to encourage the employment of nationals, known as Qatarisation.