Doha: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has reduced licensing fees for home businesses to QR300 and simplified the procedures to bring it under the preview of the law.

“The licensing fees of home-based businesses have been reduced from about QR1,500 to QR300 encouraging entrepreneurs to legalise their micro-businesses,” said Head of Commercial Records and Licensing Department at MoCI, Latifa Al Ali.

Speaking to Qatar TV recently, she said that the Ministry also increased home business activities from 15 to 63 to promote micro-entrepreneurship and local investments.

“We have also simplified the procedures for the issuance of home-based business activities as only the QID address of the applicant should match with home address ‘Onwani’ (my address),” said Al Ali.

As per the licensing condition, she said, the applicants are required to produce the QID of the owner of the home, the QID of the applicant and Onwani.

Al Ali said that each business activity needs a separate license, urging entrepreneurs to obtain licenses for running their businesses legally for their and consumers’ safety.

She said that the license for home-based business activities is being issued in a way that does not affect the local traffic or disturb the neighbours.

Speaking about monitoring home-based business activities, Al Ali said: “Ministry of Commerce and Industry inspects issues related to licensing and Ministry of Public Health about food safety and health.”

To a question about the applications for licensing, she said that the Ministry has seen a spurt in the number of applications seeking licenses after simplifying the procedures.

The license application can be made online through the Single Window portal. If the application is submitted electronically, there is no need to fill out the license services application form.

The activities of a home-based business are roasting and packaging nuts, tailoring and sewing men’s clothing, repairing leather products such as luggage and bags, maintenance of electrical appliances, repairing document copying machines, repairing computers, trading dates and their by-products, trading computers and their accessories, designing and programming custom software, trading clothing of men, women and children, trading shoes, renting travel supplies, translation activities, trading men’s accessories and perfumes, designing jewellery, photography, trading women’s cosmetics and beauty and hair care products, interior decoration activities, among several other new work from home activities.

To recall, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry announced the implementation of Ministerial Decision No. 60, 2024, to reduce fees by more than 90% for some commercial services and business activities, from July 11, 2024. 

This decision comes within the framework of the ministry’s strategy, aimed at enhancing the investment environment by developing the Trade, Industry & Business Development sectors in Qatar, and implementing the objectives of the Third National Development Strategy (2024-2030), which aims to achieve sustainable economic growth and diversification in support of Qatar’s National Vision 2030.

Recently the Ministry of Commerce and Industry announced to reduce fees by more than 90 percent for some services.