Looking for work in Qatar

thank you for this more detailed explanation!

Eleanor's not quite correct. Technically as a married woman in Qatar you should always be on your husband's sponsorship but there are married couples who do have individual sponsorships (usually from both working from arrival in Doha. It's difficult to change from husband to company sponsorship whilst you're here). To work on your spousal visa you need a 'working women's permit' which is permission from the Ministry of Labour to do that particular job. This requires your husband's approval but also requires the Ministry of Labour's approval for you to do that job. People do get turned down for them (usually when the post is flagged for Qatarisation) but it's fairly rare and unlikely to happen if you're a qualified professional such as a GP. Many women work without this but as a GP you'll need to be licenced by the Supreme Council of Health and I imagine this is something that is checked as part of the process (although I don't know for certain). Generally packages for 'local hires' - normally women who are recruited from within Qatar are much lower than for people recruited from outside of the country. If you know you're going to want to work here then it's worth trying to find a job on your own sponsorship from outside the country. That said, in Qatar you need your sponsor's permission to change jobs (actually to change sponsor). This means that if (for example) you're working for one clinic and get a better offer at another one the first one has to approve the new job. It is very common for this approval to be refused, particularly for transfers to competitors. It's also very difficult to get approval in the first year - the authorities are likely to reject. The advantage of being on your husband's sponsorship is that this doesn't happen you have free movement. edited by lalala on 16/04/2015 <em>edited by lalala on 16/04/2015</em>

Both options are possible. In case you are on the RP of your husband, he will have to sign his permission to let you work. The same with the driving licence. He will sign his permission to let you drive. I find this frustrating and humiliating, although it is just a formality, but this is the law of the country. I have seen employers (also US employers) that make the most of the fact that a spouse (generally a woman) is on the residence permit of the other one for not giving the benefits, i.e. a house allowance or travels home. So in this case at the end women are strongly discriminated. Good luck, don't be discouraged anyway.