If the desert landscape of the Inland Sea and the vibrant flavors of Doha are calling you to Qatar, consider extending your vacation through the next decade via the Middle Eastern country’s latest visa scheme.
On February 1, Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, announced the establishment of a 10-year residency program targeted at entrepreneurs and executives. According to the country’s investment agency, Invest Qatar, the new golden visa offers two five-year residency pathways (both renewable for up to 10 years)—one for entrepreneurs and another for executives.
If you’re an out-of-towner who wants to start or grow a project in Qatar, consider applying for the entrepreneur residency. You’ll first need to apply for endorsement by a Qatari incubator and have had at least 36,500 Qatari Riyals (about $10,020) in your bank account over the last three months. If approved, the program’s perks include mentorship, assistance with regulatory hurdles (such as work permits and licensing), healthcare, and access to benefits that can cut living expenses by 20%, according to Invest Qatar.
If you’re a senior businessperson who already resides in the country with a Qatar ID permit, then consider the executive residency. It’s exclusive to executive directors who make at least QAR 80,000 (about $21,945) a month, or to chairmen, chief operating officers, chief technology officers, chief finance officers, and chief executive officers who earn at least QAR 50,000 (about $13,715) a month.
They’ll need to have held these positions for at least five years and be nominated by their workplace (which must also meet its own set of requirements, such as being listed on the Qatar Stock Exchange or licensed by the Qatar Central Bank). But in exchange, approved applicants will receive premium benefits like the ability to sponsor domestic workers and open a business in Qatar.
The rollout of these two initiatives coincides with the Qatari government’s announcement that it will pour an additional $2 billion into its “Fund of Funds” venture capital program, which invests in sectors such as tech, healthcare, and real estate. The expansion of the fund, along with the launch of these residency opportunities, signals the country’s intent to further attract international talent and diversify its oil-reliant economy.
If you aren’t an entrepreneur or a local executive but want to move to Qatar, the country also has a residency-by-real-estate-investment program, which offers permanent residency (with perks such as healthcare and education) to investors who purchase a property valued at a minimum of QAR 3,650,000 (about $1 million), or a residency permit (without these perks) for purchasing a property worth at least QAR 730,000 (about $200,000).
Qatar isn’t the only country that is hoping to attract global entrepreneurs with a shiny new golden visa. Its neighbors, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, both have five-year residency plans for entrepreneurs. In a similar vein, Greece also recently announced it would grant five-year golden visas to foreign investors who support local startups.
