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Retirement Age in Doha Qatar

31 March 2019

Retirement age and pension for nationals

Qatari nationals, both men and women employed in government or public sector, who have completed a total of 15years worth of contributions, are eligible to receive a state pension when they are aged 60 or 55. There is also an option for early retirement at 40, but, 15 years of contributions is a 'must'.

The pension system by the government in Qatar is governed by the General Retirement and Social Insurance Authority (GRSIA) and is supervised by the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs. The GRSIA provides social protection to retired Qatari nationals and their family members, in case of demise of the employee, through allocation of pensions as per the provisions of the Retirement and Pension Law No.24 of 2002. This is achieved by collecting pension contributions and managing and investing public funds.

The Qatari pension scheme is open to employees in ministries, public institutions, agencies, joint stock companies and others as determined by the Council of Ministers. The Authority also issues pensions to civilian and military retirees, or to their eligible beneficiaries in the event of death.

The pension amount drawn will depend on the last drawn salary of the employee at the time of retirement. Further, social allowance benefits are designated based on an individual’s final salary and time of service.

retirement age in qatar

Retirement age and pension for expatriates

Expatriates are not eligible for pensions from the Qatari government. While the retirement age for nationals in public sector jobs is 60yrs, there is no age limit for retirement for employees in private sector jobs. Here, people well above the age of 60 yrs continue to work in private sectors.

The only problem in private sector is that sponsorship change is not allowed for expatriate employees over 60yrs of age, and written requests are made to renew their visas. Moreover, a new retirement law likely to come up in Qatar, will ensure that employers contribute regularly to some state-run corpus. This is because, with several locals beginning to join private sectors, the private sector should prepare to offer employment and retirement benefits to nationals. In any case, the new Retirement Law is hoped to cover the private sector as well. However, the law will not cover employees who do not hold a valid Qatari passport.

Robin Vinod

Writer/blogger who writes on topics such as travel, real estate, employment and everyday life on GCC countries.

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