What Happens to Your Gratuity if You Are Terminated in Qatar?

The gratuity is an end-of-service benefit for an employee working in Qatar. The employer is required to pay gratuity to the employee at the end of employment service by resignation, termination or end of contract.

Some employees believe that they will lose gratuity if the employer terminates them. I have talked to many people working in private sector in Qatar, they had one question “What happens to my gratuity if I am terminated in Qatar?” I am here to answer this question.

Understanding Gratuity and Its Entitlement in Qatar

As per Qatar Labour, the Gratuity is a lump sum cash benefit given by the employer to the employee when the employment ends. The employment can be ended by resignation by employee, termination by employer, end of employment contract period and employer-employee mutually decide to end the employment.

Irrespective of the reason for end of employment service, the employee is entitled to receive end-of-service gratuity if they have completed minimum one year of service at the same employer.

What Happens to Your Gratuity if You Are Terminated in Qatar?

If you are terminated in Qatar, your right to gratuity remains as it is. The termination from job does not affect your entitlement for gratuity if you meet the eligibility conditions for end-of-service gratuity as per Qatar Labour Law.

Gratuity Eligibility Conditions

• The employee must have completed minimum one year of continuous service with the same employer.
• The employee must have served the notice period as mentioned in the employment contract or in the Labour Law Qatar.
• If the employee and the employer mutually agrees to dismiss the notice period then the employee doesn’t need to serve the notice period but they are still eligible to receive gratuity as per rules.

How Is Your Gratuity Calculated in Qatar?

The Gratuity is calculated as per the standard formula stated in the Qatar Labour Law. The formula uses last basic salary of the employee to calculate the end-of-service gratuity for all completed years of service.

Gratuity = Last Basic Salary x 21 Days/30 Days x Completed Years of Service

As per labour law rules, the employee is entitled to receive 21 days basic salary each completed year as gratuity benefit at the end of employment service. You can use our gratuity calculator to get the exact amount you get.

Article 61: Exceptional Cases Where Gratuity is Not Payable After Termination

The Article 61 of the Qatar Labour Law allows the employer to terminate the employee without prior notice and without paying gratuity under exceptional circumstances given below.

• The employee holds a false identity with fake/fraud documents.
• The employee has conducted a serious mistake that caused severe damage and/or high financial loss to the employer.
• The employee violates work safety rules multiple times even after the employer has given written instructions.
• The employee fails to perform their essential duties more than once at the workplace as mentioned in the employment contract and given in writing by the employer.
• The employer finds out that the employee has disclosed the trade secrets of the company to an outsider.
• The employer find out the employee is in a clear state of drunk (alcohol) or under the influence of drugs at the workplace.
• The employee assaults the employer or the manager or their supervisor during the working hours or after working hours for the reason of conflict during working hours.
• The employee assaults one or more colleagues repeatedly even after the employer has warned them in writing.
• The employee remains absent at workplace without a valid reason for 7 consecutive days or 15 interrupted days in one year.
• The employee is convicted by a conclusive judgment in a crime of dishonour or dishonesty.

If the employer terminates an employee for one or more of above mentioned reasons, the employee is not entitled for gratuity and the employer is not liable to pay any of the end-of-service benefits to such an employee.

Final Verdict:

The end-of-service gratuity is the right of the employee working in the State of Qatar. If you get terminated by the employer, you are still eligible for gratuity and the employer must pay it on termination.

If the employer terminates you (the employee) for a gross misconduct under Article 61 of the Qatar Labour Law, you are not eligible for gratuity.

Above I have explained everything about gratuity eligibility conditions and the exceptions for gratuity entitlement on termination of employment by the employer.

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