How gratuity works in Qatar
Qatar's rule is the simplest in the Gulf, and it fits in one sentence: after one year of continuous service, you are entitled to not less than three weeks of your last basic wage for every year you worked, with part years paid in proportion.
That is the entire statutory formula. Three weeks is 21 days, and your daily rate is your basic monthly wage divided by 30.
There is no step up after five years
This is the most common error in Qatar gratuity content. Many pages and calculators show rising tiers — four weeks after five years, five weeks after ten — presented as current law. Article 54 contains no such tiers. Every year earns the same three weeks.
What is true is that Article 54 sets a floor, not a ceiling. An employer may agree to pay more, and many large employers do exactly that with a tiered scale in the contract. So if your contract promises 30 days a year after five years, you are entitled to it — as a matter of contract, not statute. Enter your contract's rate in the calculator and it will use that instead.
What else you should know
- Entitlement begins at one year of continuous service. Below that, nothing is due unless your contract grants it.
- Service is continuous even across a break of under two months that was not your fault.
- There is no maximum. Unlike the UAE, Qatar caps nothing.
- Resignation carries no penalty. The 2020 labour reforms, which also removed the no-objection certificate requirement for changing jobs, left the gratuity rate untouched whether you resign or are dismissed without cause.
- Dismissal on the Article 61 grounds can forfeit the gratuity entirely. It is the one situation where a long-serving worker can receive nothing.
Questions people ask
Do I get more after five years in Qatar?
Not under the law. Article 54 pays three weeks of basic wage for every year, flat. Some employers pay a rising scale by contract, which is allowed because the law is a minimum. Check your contract and enter that rate if it is higher.
Does resigning reduce my gratuity?
No. Qatar applies no resignation penalty.
Is my housing allowance included?
No. Gratuity uses the last basic wage only.
What if I worked eleven months?
No statutory gratuity is due below one year of continuous service. Above one year, every additional month counts in proportion — three years and seven months is not rounded down to three.
Is there a maximum gratuity in Qatar?
No. There is no statutory ceiling.
Where these rules come from
Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, Articles 54 and 61, as amended, published on the Al Meezan legal portal · Law No. 18 and No. 19 of 2020 (labour mobility and minimum wage reforms) · Ministry of Labour guidance.
Where sources genuinely disagree, this page says so rather than picking a number quietly.