DOHA: The State Cabinet is to soon approve the draft of a law that would allow GCC companies to set up operations in Qatar. The draft that was forwarded to the Advisory Council has already been approved unanimously.
The move follows a decision that was taken by the GCC leaders earlier at their summit to permit regional commercial establishments to have branches across the Gulf in a bid to help set up a common GCC market.
The draft of the proposed legislation, however, imposes some conditions on GCC firms keen to have a presence in Qatar.
First of all, they should be registered and should be operating in the country of their origin for not less than three years, and secondly and most importantly, they should be 100 percent owned by GCC national or nationals.
This, in other words, means that limited liability companies with foreign participation registered in other GCC states would not be allowed to set foot here under the proposed law.
The State Cabinet forwarded a memorandum to the Advisory Council to review the draft of the said law as early as possible and the Council at its ordinary meeting on Monday discussed the draft and approved it. The draft is to be referred back to the State Cabinet for further action.
Media reports suggest that Saudi Arabia and Oman have already put laws in place that permit commercial establishments from other GCC states to have operations in their territories.
GCC companies eligible to have a presence in Qatar are to be treated just as Qatari companies, suggests the draft of the proposed legislation. They are not to be discriminated against in any way.
The draft seeks to empower the Ministry of Business and Trade to take appropriate action against any GCC company which is found to have flouted the conditions being set for their registration in Qatar.
© The Peninsula 2011
