Articles Article 1
An office called the “Commercial Registry Office” shall be established at the Companies Control Department at the General Administration of the government. A register called the “Commercial Registry” shall be prepared in this office in which the names of the Qatari and foreign traders, individuals or companies that have a main business, general headquarters, branch or agency shall be recorded. All the details stipulated in this law shall be entered in the abovementioned registry and any change or amendment that occurs shall be noted therein. |
Article 2
As amended by Law No. 3 of 1976 published in the Official Gazette Issue 3 of 1976): Each trader whose main business is in Qatar must submit, within two months from the effective date of this Law, an application to the Commercial Registry Office to enter his name in the Registry. The application for such registration must be in the form of two copies signed by the applicant and must include the following details: 1) The trader’s name, title, date of birth and nationality. 2) Business name by which the trader engages in his trade. 3) Trading name of the business and trademark if any 4) Type of trade 5) Capital of the trader invested in the main business and its affiliated agencies. 6) Date on which the trader commenced business in Qatar and the date of the opening of the business premises. 7) Address of the main business. 8) Addresses of the branches and agencies affiliated to the main business whether in Qatar or abroad. 9) Names and titles of the authorized agents and date of birth and nationality of each of them. 10) The businesses the trader has in Qatar together with the type of trade of every business, the address and date of opening. The abovementioned details must be supported by an official certificate approved by the Qatar Chamber of Commerce confirming its accuracy. |
Article 3
The trader may apply, in accordance with the conditions prescribed for registration, for notation in the registry of any change or amendment made to the details set forth in Article 2. The application for the notation shall be submitted within one month of the date of the contract or the event that requires the same.
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Article 4
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The name of the trader who has a branch or agency in Qatar shall be entered in the Commercial Registry if his main business is abroad.
The entry shall take place on the request of the trader or the manager of the branch or agency within two months from the effective date of this Law. The application for such registration must be in the form of two copies signed by the applicant and must include the details stipulated in Article 2 of this Law together with the name and title of the manager of the branch or agency, his date of birth and nationality.
All events stipulated in Article 3, as well as any change in the manager of the branch or agency, shall be noted in the Registry.
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Article 5
As amended by Law No. 3 of 1976 published in the Official Gazette Issue 3 of 1976): Mangers of commercial companies or their managing agents must submit an application for registration within two months from the effective date of this Law in the form of two copies signed by the applicant. The application must include the following details: 1) Type of company 2) Its address or name and trademark if any 3) Purpose of the establishment of the company 4) Address of its general headquarters. 5) Addresses of the branches and agencies whether in Qatar or abroad. 6) Amount of capital, the amounts discharged thereof, the amounts the partners have pledged to discharge, and the value of shares in kind if any. 7) Date of commencement of the company and date of termination. 8) Names and titles of the partners and the date of birth and nationality of each of them. 9) Names and titles of the partners or others entrusted with management of the company and those who have the right to sign on its behalf, the date of birth and nationality of each of them, with an indication of the extent of their authority in the administration and their signing powers. The abovementioned details must be supported by an official certificate approved by the Qatar Chamber of Commerce confirming its accuracy. The application must be submitted together with the company’s Memorandum of Incorporation and a true copy of the same. The Registry office shall retain the copy. |
Article 6
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The manager or the commercial company or its managing agent or liquidators, as the case may be, may request - in accordance with the conditions prescribed for registration - for notation of the following in the registry:
1) Any change or amendment that takes places to the details stipulated in Article 5 of this Law.
2) Any contract that requires dissolution of the company or placing it under liquidation together with the names, titles and powers of the liquidators as well as any change that occurs to their persons.
The application for the notation must be submitted within one month of the date of the contract or the event that requires the same.
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Article 7
The commercial company that has a branch or agency in Qatar shall be entered in the Commercial Registry if its general headquarters are abroad. The entry shall take place on the application of the directors or managing agents of the company or the manager of the branch or agency within two months from the effective date of this Law. The application for such registration must be in the form of two copies signed by the applicant and must include the details stipulated in Article 5 of this Law together with the name and title of the manager of the branch or agency, his date of birth and nationality.
The application must be submitted together with a true copy of the company’s Memorandum of Incorporation which shall be retained by the Registry office.
All events stipulated in Article 6, as well as any change in the manager of the branch or agency, shall be noted in the Registry - in accordance with the abovementioned conditions - whenever such change takes place.
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Article 8
Every trader, branch or agency manager must place on record - with the Commercial Registry Office - a copy of his signature and that of his authorized agents. Every commercial company must place on record - with the same office - a copy of the signature of the partners or others entrusted with the management of the company as well as those that have the right to sign on its behalf. This placing on record shall be at the same time the application for registration or the application for notation in the Registry is submitted if it contains an amendment to the details of those whose signatures were previously placed on record at the time of the application for registration. |
Article 8 - BIS
The entry in the Commercial Registry shall be renewed every five years from the date of registration or the last renewal, failing which the Commercial Registry Office may delete the entry on its own after verification that the cause necessitating the same has been found. The application for renewal shall be submitted within one month from the date of the end of the period referred to, as per the terms and conditions to be determined by a resolution of the Minister of Economy and Commerce . The resolution shall also determine the renewal fee which shall not be more than five riyals. |
Article 9
No person, natural or legal, from the effective date of this Law, may engage in trade or establish business or industrial premises in Qatar, prior to obtaining a license from the Commercial Registry Office. The applications shall be submitted on the forms prepared for that purpose together with the documents supporting the accuracy of the information contained therein. The Commercial Registry Office must grant the license within one month from the date of submission of the application. Any person whose application is rejected may appeal to the Minister of Economy and Commerce , within thirty days from the date of his being informed of the resolution of the Registry Office. The Minister's resolution shall be final and may not be challenged in matters relating to public interest. |
Article 10
The Commercial Registry Office in Qatar shall reject the applications for entry into the register submitted by traders and companies that have commenced business in Qatar after the effective date of this Law unless they are accompanied by the license referred to in the preceding article.
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Article 11
The trader, his heirs or the liquidators - as the case may be - must apply, in accordance with the conditions prescribed for registration, for deletion of the entry in the following cases: 1) The trader’s abandoning his trade 2) His demise 3) Liquidation of the company The application must be submitted within one month from the date of the incident that requires the deletion of the entry. If the stakeholders do not submit the application for deletion, the Commercial Registry Office may delete the entry on its own. |
Article 12
The Commercial Registry Office shall record the contents of the application for registration in the Commercial Registry. One copy of the application shall be returned to the applicant indicating that the entry has been made in the Registry. |
Article 13
The application for registration or notation in the registry or the application for deletion shall not be accepted unless it fulfils the conditions required by the law and the executive bylaws issued in implementation thereof. The Commercial Registry Office must verify that these conditions are found. The said office may ask the applicant to submit documents supporting the validity of the details contained in the application. Any person whose application is rejected may appeal to the Minister of Economy and Commerce , within thirty days from the date of his being informed of the resolution of the Registry Office. The Minister's resolution shall be final and may not be challenged in matters relating to public interest. |
Article 14
Every trader or company must mention - in all correspondence and publications related to its business - the details of its registration number in the Commercial Registry. It must also place - in Arabic - on the front of the business its trading name, together with the registration number. |
Article 15
The judicial bodies concerned with issuing the judgements set out hereafter, against one of the traders or trading companies, must send a copy of each judgement within one month from the date of its issuance, to the Commercial Registry Office for notation of the same in the Registry: 1) Judgements declaring bankruptcy or restitution. 2) Judgements and resolutions issued for placing an interdiction on the trader or for raising an interdiction from him. 3) Judgements issued for imposing a criminal sanction on the trader. 4) Judgements issued for the dissolution, nullification or liquidation of companies. |
Article 16
Any person may obtain from the Commercial Registry Office extracts from the registration page. In the case of non-registration the Office shall provide a certificate for the same. The extracted copies may not include the following: 1) Judgements declaring bankruptcy if judgment for restitution was issued. 2) Judgements and resolutions for placing an interdiction if judgment for raising the interdiction was issued. |
Article 16 - BIS
The Ministry of Economy and Commerce shall issue a gazette called the “Trading Names Gazette.” The Registries Division in the Ministry shall be responsible for preparing and supervising the same. The Minister of Economy and Commerce shall determine by means of a resolution the details that will be publicized in the gazette and the dates of issuance. |
Article 17
(As Amended by Law No. 5 of 1987 published in the Official Gazette Issue 2 of 1987): Any violation of the provisions of this Law shall be punishable by a fine of not less than one thousand riyals and not more than three thousand riyals. In the case of repetition, the minimum and maximum limit of the fine shall be doubled. |
Article 18
As Amended by Law No. 5 of 1987 published in the Official Gazette Issue 2 of 1987): Without prejudice to the application of any more severe sanction provided for by another law, a sanction of a fine of not less than one thousand riyals and not more than three thousand riyals shall be imposed on any person who deliberately submits incorrect details whether these are related to registration, notation in the registry or deletion and any person who places on the front of his business a trading name or registration number that is not his. The same sanction shall be imposed on any person who mentions in correspondence and publication relating to his business anything that signifies registration in the Commercial Registry despite this not having occurred, and any person who mentions a registration number that is not his. If it is proven that the trader is carrying out his activity without being registered in the Registry or is carrying out one or more activities not listed in the original entry, the court shall, in addition to the judgment of the fine, order the closure of the business for a period not less than one week. The business may only be re-opened with a license from the relevant division of the Ministry after verification of the removal of the causes of the violation on account of which the order for closure of the business was issued. |
Article 19
The Minister of Economy and Commerce shall be responsible to issue the executive bylaw for this Law provided that it shall contain, in particular, regulation of the following: 1) The form in which the Commercial Registry shall be and the manner of registration, notation and deletion. 2) The indexes that hold the names of the traders and companies listed in the Registry. 3) Forms for applications for license, registration, notation, deletion, extracts and copies. 4) Fees for license, registration, notation, deletion, extracts, copies and access. |
Article 19 - BIS
The employees of the Commercial office who are delegated by the Minister of Economy and Commerce, by means of a resolution, shall have the capacity of law enforcement officers in implementing this Law and establishing the occurrence of crimes committed in violation of its provisions or the resolutions that give effect to it. |
Article 20
All competent authorities, each within their jurisdiction, shall enforce this Law one month from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette. |
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