Maternity leave in Qatar is 50 days on full pay for a woman who has completed a full year with her employer, and at least 35 of those days must fall after the birth (Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, Article 96). After it she gets one paid nursing hour a day for a year (Article 97). Sick leave starts after three months' service: two weeks on full pay, then four weeks on half pay, then unpaid (Article 82). The private-sector law gives no paternity, bereavement or marriage leave at all.
Those are the headline rules, and most guides stop there, sometimes with the wrong article number. The details below decide what you are actually paid: what happens when the baby comes later than the doctor's date, how the sick-pay ladder works across several short illnesses in one year, and the two articles that stop an employer ending your contract while you are on leave. Both kinds of leave interact with your annual leave, which has its own annual leave law under Articles 79 to 81, so the calculator below counts that balance as you read.
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Maternity leave in Qatar: what Article 96 gives you
Article 96 opens: «للعاملة التي أمضت في خدمة صاحب العمل سنة كاملة، الحق في الحصول على إجازة وضع، بأجر كامل مدتها خمسون يوماً». In plain English: a female worker who has completed a full year in the employer's service is entitled to maternity leave of fifty days on full pay. The rest of the article sets five conditions.
| Rule | What Article 96 says |
|---|---|
| Who qualifies | A worker with a full year of service with the same employer |
| Length | 50 days on full pay, covering time before and after the birth |
| After the birth | At least 35 of the 50 days |
| Evidence | A certificate from a licensed doctor stating the likely date of birth |
| A late birth | If fewer than 30 days remain after the birth, a top-up may come from annual leave; otherwise it is unpaid |
| Health after the birth | Unpaid leave of up to 60 days, continuous or broken up, with a medical certificate |
| Other leave | Taking maternity leave does not reduce any of her other leave |
Article 96 says "full pay" (بأجر كامل) and does not define the base. Article 72, which puts annual and sick leave on the basic wage, does not mention maternity leave, so check what your contract says about allowances during it.
Worked example: the top-up when the baby is late
The 50 days are planned around the doctor's estimated date, so a late birth eats into the time after it. Take a worker who starts her leave 30 days before the date on her medical certificate, and whose baby arrives five days late.
| Step | Days |
|---|---|
| Used before the birth | 35 |
| Left of the 50 days after the birth | 15 |
| Minimum after the birth (Article 96) | 35 |
| Shortfall | 20 |
| Covered from her annual leave balance | 20, if the employer grants it |
| Otherwise | 20 days of unpaid leave |
Because only 15 days remain, fewer than 30, Article 96 lets the employer grant the missing time from her annual leave. If it does not, those days are unpaid. The article does not say how long the top-up is; the 35-day minimum after the birth is the natural target, which gives 20 days here. Taking the top-up from annual leave keeps her on full pay, but her annual balance falls by 20 days, so count your annual leave before you agree. Planning the start date with a margin, or agreeing the top-up in writing in advance, avoids the argument.
Under a year of service
Article 96 applies only after a full year. Below that, the private-sector law gives no paid maternity leave. The options are annual leave you have already accrued, which Article 79 earns in proportion to the time worked, or unpaid leave by agreement. The protection against dismissal in Article 98 still covers marriage, whatever your length of service.
The nursing hour: Article 97
Once maternity leave ends, a nursing mother is entitled to one nursing hour every working day for a year, on top of the normal rest breaks in Article 73. She chooses when to take it. Article 97 counts the hour as working time and says it «لا يترتب عليها أي تخفيض في الأجر»: no deduction from pay. An employer that docks pay for it, or insists on a fixed slot, is not applying the article.
Protection from dismissal: Articles 98 and 85
Two articles stop an employer using leave as a moment to end the contract.
- Article 98 bars an employer from ending a woman's contract because she married or took maternity leave, and from serving notice during maternity leave or a notice that runs out during it.
- Article 85 applies to every leave in the law, annual, sick, Hajj and maternity: the employer may not end the contract or serve notice while you are on leave, nor serve a notice whose period ends during the leave.
Article 84 is the other side of the bargain. You may not work for another employer during any of your leave. If you do, the employer may withhold your pay for the leave period and recover what it already paid.
Sick leave under Qatar labour law: Article 82
Sick leave is paid on a ladder that resets each year of service. It is available once three months have passed since you first joined, and your illness must be proved by a certificate from a doctor the employer approves.
| Weeks of sick leave in a year of service | Pay |
|---|---|
| Weeks 1 and 2 | Full wage |
| Weeks 3 to 6 | Half wage |
| Week 7 onwards | Unpaid |
| End of week 12 | The employer may end the contract, with a specialist's report that you cannot return |
Article 72 calculates pay during sick leave on the basic wage. On a QAR 6,000 basic wage, the daily rate is QAR 200, so six weeks off in one year pay:
- Weeks 1 and 2: 14 days × QAR 200 = QAR 2,800
- Weeks 3 to 6: 28 days × QAR 100 = QAR 2,800
- Total sick pay: QAR 5,600, and nothing after that
The ladder counts days across the year, not per illness. A worker on the same wage who is off for 5 days in March, 12 in June and 20 in October has 37 sick days in the year: the first 14 at full pay (QAR 2,800) and the next 23 at half pay (QAR 2,300), QAR 5,100 in all. A contract or company policy can pay more; it cannot pay less.
Article 82 protects three more things that matter at the end of a long illness:
- If you resign because of illness, with the specialist doctor's approval, before the six paid weeks are used up, the employer must pay you the rest of them. The same applies if a worker dies of the illness before the six weeks end.
- None of it affects your end-of-service gratuity. An employer ending the contract after week 12 still owes the full Article 54 end-of-service gratuity, worked out on your whole service.
- Twelve weeks of sick leave do not break your continuous service.
Hajj leave: Article 83
A Muslim worker is entitled once during their service to unpaid leave of up to 20 days to perform Hajj. The employer decides how many workers may take it each year, giving priority to the longest continuous service. It is the only religious leave in the law, and it is unpaid.
Leave the law does not give you
The private-sector law grants annual leave (Articles 79 to 81), the ten public-holiday days (Article 78), sick leave (Article 82), Hajj leave (Article 83), maternity leave (Article 96) and the nursing hour (Article 97), and nothing else. Every other kind of leave depends on your contract or company policy. Government staff are under a different law, the Civil Human Resources Law (Law No. 15 of 2016), whose Article 61 lists many more types of leave.
| Leave | Private sector (Law No. 14 of 2004) | Government staff (Law No. 15 of 2016, Art. 61) |
|---|---|---|
| Paternity leave | None | Not on the Article 61 list |
| Bereavement (condolence) leave | None | Yes, condolence leave |
| Marriage leave | None (Article 98 protects against dismissal) | Yes |
| Exam or study leave | None | Yes |
| Casual or emergency leave | None | Yes |
| Hajj leave | Up to 20 days unpaid, once (Article 83) | Yes |
If your employer offers paternity or bereavement leave, it is a contractual benefit, so get it in writing. The law will not enforce a promise that exists only in a conversation.
Government employees: a different maternity rule
Women in government jobs are not under Article 96. Article 73 of the Civil Human Resources Law, as amended in force from 7 October 2025, gives them three months' maternity leave on full pay, six months for twins or a child with a disability, starting from the eighth month of pregnancy if they choose. A Qatari employee may extend it by up to three more months on basic salary plus the social and housing allowances. News reports that quote "two months" for government staff describe the law before that amendment.
Common mistakes
- Citing the wrong article. Maternity leave is Article 96 and sick leave is Article 82. Guides that cite Article 90 for maternity, or Article 83 for sick leave, are pointing at the wrong provisions (Article 83 is Hajj leave).
- Inventing a longer maternity scheme. Private-sector maternity leave is 50 days. A "seven weeks at full pay, seven at half" split, which appears in at least one international payroll guide, is not in Qatari law.
- Expecting paid paternity leave. The private-sector law has none.
- Assuming sick pay resets with each illness. The two full and four half weeks cover the whole year of service.
- Accepting notice during leave. Article 85 voids the timing: notice cannot be served during leave, or so that it ends during leave.
- Working a second job during leave. Article 84 lets the employer claw back the leave pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is maternity leave in Qatar?
Fifty days on full pay for a private-sector worker who has completed a full year with her employer, with at least 35 of them after the birth (Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, Article 96). If her health prevents her return, she may take up to 60 more days unpaid with a medical certificate. Government employees get three months on full pay under Article 73 of the Civil Human Resources Law, as amended from 7 October 2025.
Is maternity leave paid in Qatar?
Yes, the 50 days are on full pay once you have a year of service. A top-up after a late birth is paid only if the employer takes it from your annual leave; otherwise those days are unpaid, as are the up to 60 extra days for health reasons.
Is there paternity leave in Qatar?
Not in the private-sector Labour Law. Article 96 is the only parental leave, and it is for the mother. Some employers offer paternity leave by contract or policy, so check yours and get it in writing.
How many sick leave days do you get in Qatar?
After three months' service, two weeks on full pay and four weeks on half pay in each year of service, then unpaid leave. The employer may end the contract at the end of the twelfth week if a specialist's report shows you cannot return (Article 82). Pay is calculated on the basic wage (Article 72).
Can my employer terminate me during sick leave or maternity leave in Qatar?
No. Article 85 bars ending the contract or serving notice during any leave in the law, and any notice that would end during the leave. Article 98 adds that a woman cannot be dismissed because she married or took maternity leave. The one exception for sick leave is the end of week 12, with a specialist's report.
Is there bereavement leave in Qatar?
Not for private-sector workers: Labour Law No. 14 of 2004 grants no bereavement or compassionate leave. Government staff have condolence leave under the Civil Human Resources Law. In the private sector, any bereavement leave comes from your contract or company policy.
Does maternity leave reduce my annual leave in Qatar?
No. Article 96 says taking maternity leave does not reduce any of your other leave. The only overlap is the top-up after a late birth, which the employer may take from your annual leave balance instead of leaving the days unpaid.
Where to go next
Maternity and sick leave are paid; your annual leave is the third piece. Its leave salary prices any unused balance when you leave, on the basic wage. If a long illness ends your job, the Qatar final settlement calculator adds your gratuity, unused leave and unpaid salary into one figure, and the Qatar notice period guide covers the notice rules.
Sources: Qatar Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, Al Meezan legal portal, official Arabic text: Articles 72, 73, 78, 79, 82, 83, 84, 85, 96, 97 and 98; Civil Human Resources Law No. 15 of 2016, Articles 61 and 73 (as amended). This guide is general information, not legal advice. Confirm your position with your employer, the Ministry of Labour, or a qualified lawyer before acting.