Qatar has approved legislation that will allow foreign workers to leave the country without having to obtain approval from their employers for an exit visa.
On Tuesday, Qatar’s head of state Tanim bin Hamad Al Thani issued Law No 13 of 2018, The Peninsula reported. The new law amends provisions of Law No 21 of 2015 and Law No 1 of 2017 that regulate the entry and exit of foreign workers.
Labor Minister Issa Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi said the new law was a step toward providing a good environment for migrant workers in Qatar and would ensure their protection.
There are some 2 million foreign workers in Qatar. Many are employed in vast infrastructure projects for the soccer World Cup tournament that will take place in 2022.
As of 2017, there were around 260,000 Filipinos working in Qatar, mostly engineers, domestic workers, health workers and travel-industry employees. Filipinos make up the fourth-largest group of foreign workers in the country, after Indians, Nepalis and Bangladeshis.