The Visa Support Services Department at the Ministry of Interior (MoI), in collaboration with the Ministry of Administration Development, Labour and Social Affairs, has held a seminar to explain the details of an initiative that allows expatriate workers to complete Qatar residency permit (RP) procedures in their home countries.

The project covers procedures such as fingerprinting and biometric data processing, medical examination and the signing of work contracts for expatriates abroad, the MoI said on Twitter on Thursday.
The initiative was first announced in November last year, with the MoI signing an agreement with a Singapore-based company to carry out the procedures.
Major Abdullah Khalifa al-Mohannadi, director of the Visa Support Services Department, on Thursday explained the procedures for bringing expatriate workers from eight nations by completing all procedures in their home countries while the employer in Qatar can initiate the procedures electronically via the MoI website.
“Through this project, an expatriate worker will be able to complete fingerprinting, biometric data processing, medical examination and signing of the work contract from his home country,” Major al-Mohannadi said.
The countries where the project is being implemented in the first phase are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tunisia, the Philippines and Indonesia, starting with Sri Lanka.
Fingerprinting, biometric data processing, medical checkup and work contract signing will be completed through Qatar Visa Services Centres set up in the eight countries in co-operation with the Singapore-based company, the MoI informed.
The process starts with an application made at http://www.moi.gov.qa by the employer, followed by the MoI’s approval. Then, the worker can book an appointment via http://www.qatarvisacenter.com and complete the biometric, medical and work contract procedures at the service centre in his/her home country.
The new system will facilitate recruitment procedures by saving time and effort and providing all recruitment services and procedures through one channel, Major al-Mohannadi stressed.
The MoI noted that the new system to bring workers will help protect the rights of both workers and employers by documenting employment contracts signed between the parties before their arrival in Qatar, ensuring the compliance of both parties with the terms and conditions of the contract.
When the project was announced last year, a senior MoI official had said the ministry undertook extensive studies before the decision to outsource the services was taken. The documentation and signing of contracts in an employment seeker’s home country would help an individual start his or her work with the employer soon after entering Qatar, he added.
Once the procedures are completed in their home countries, expatriates need not undergo any further visa procedures on their entry to Qatar, according to earlier reports. The processes, it was announced, would be linked electronically to the departments concerned to avoid mismanagement and could be verified on their arrival. The medical checkup will be approved electronically by the e-governance service.