Police Clearance for Qatar

Obtaining a Police Certificate (Criminal Disclosure)

You may need to get a police clearance certificate (Criminal Disclosure in the UK) before arriving in Qatar to start a job. Your employer should tell you if this is necessary.

If you are coming to Qatar from your own country you should obtain your certificate before coming to Qatar. In the UK you can get this certificate from your local constabulary. First download form SA1: Application for Access to Your Personal Data from your local force's website. Then return it to the local constabulary (address is usually specified on the website) with a cheque for the required amount and proof of identity: two official documents which between them provide enough information to prove your name, date of birth, current address and signature.

After you have arrived in Qatar, you will need to take this certificate to your embassy for attestation.

If you are already in Qatar you may be able to get the necessary certificate from your embassy. British citizens can make a statutory declaration at the British Embassy.

After your embassy has finished with the form, you then need to take it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be stamped. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is located off the Corniche on Al Muthaf Street. Turn right at Museum Roundabout, MFA is directly behind Al Seef Hotel. There is a small fee for each document which must be paid with a credit or debit card.

When they have done this, you then need to take your certificate to the Criminal Evidence and Investigations Department.

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To get to this department drive up Salwa Road (away from Ramada junction), past Decoration roundabout, until you get to the fast food restaurants: KFC and Hardies. Turn right (1st exit) at the roundabout immediately after Hardies. Go straight up the road, and take the second exit off the road (which is signposted to the department). This turning is before the Beverley Hills Gardens compound and roughly opposite the Tebah Gardens complex. Drive up the road and you will see the department on a corner to your left.

At the department you will need copies of your qualifications (translated into Arabic), your passport, two passport photos and a no objection letter, written in Arabic, from your sponsor. You will also be fingerprinted. Fee is QR 10 which must be paid for with a credit or debit card. Your police clearance report should take approximately 3 weeks to process.

With thanks to the British Embassy for providing the information in this article.

Also see: Qatar Jobs

Image adapted from a picture by NYCArthur.