How to bid for government tenders in Qatar.

Qatar at a glance

Who buys, and where

• Who. The law covers ministries, government bodies, public authorities and public institutions. Each has a Tenders and Auctions Committee, and an observer from the Ministry of Finance and a State Audit Bureau representative must attend its meetings.
• Outside the law:
  • QatarEnergy, which runs its own supplier portal;
  • the Qatar Investment Authority;
  • secret contracts of the armed forces, police and National Cyber Security Agency;
  • bodies excluded by Cabinet decision;
  • PPP projects, which follow a separate law.
• Monaqasat is the Ministry of Finance’s Unified Website of State Procurement. It handles company profiles and classification, tender search, document purchase, electronic bids, award notices and disputes. Final decisions are posted there within 2 working days.
• The pipeline. The 2026 procurement plan lists over 4,400 tenders worth more than QAR 70 billion.

Procurement methods

• Public tender is the default. The alternatives need a reasoned recommendation from the committee:
  • two-stage tender when specifications can’t be detailed;
  • limited tender to prequalified firms;
  • practice, a negotiated procedure for urgent cases with at least 3 suppliers;
  • competition for designs;
  • direct agreement for emergencies or special items.
• Small purchases. Each body can use practice or direct agreement without its committee up to a ceiling set per body by the Prime Minister. These were last updated in July 2025, and we couldn’t see the figures.
• Bidding time. At least 21 days under the 2019 regulation. A 2022 amendment is reported to set 15 working days; check each notice.
• Bid validity is at least 90 days.
• Small firms. Tenders under QAR 5 million can be limited to classified small and medium enterprises.

Who can bid

• Foreign companies can bid. Monaqasat profiles are open to “all local and foreign companies”, and classified companies are listed as local, foreign or free-zone. A local agent is optional; if appointed, the agent must be Qatari.

• Classification is mandatory:

  • Suppliers and service providers: QAR 200 per activity, with audited accounts.
  • Contractors: QAR 1,000 per specialisation, with a registered engineer, valid residencies and an equipment form.

  The Ministry decides within 15 working days of a complete file. Fee exemptions ended in April 2025.

• Signing and performing.

  • Temporary branch: a foreign company with a government contract can register a temporary branch with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. It needs no local partner and is limited to that contract.
  • Subsidiary: up to 100% foreign ownership is possible in most sectors with approval.
  • Free zones and the QFC: firms in the free zones or the Qatar Financial Centre can also take part.

• Consortia bid through an authenticated alliance document; no separate company is needed.

• Language. Bids are in Arabic, unless the committee accepts another language with an Arabic summary. English is common where the documents allow it.

• Documents. Foreign bidders typically need a home-country commercial register extract and articles of association, notarised and attested by a Qatari embassy.

• Treaties. Qatar isn’t in the WTO GPA, so access depends on Qatar’s own law.

Every document, step by step. Who issues each certificate, who can get it for you, what it costs and how long it stays valid: Every step to bid in Qatar.

In-Country Value and local content

In-Country Value (ICV) measures how much a company spends in Qatar: goods and services, workforce training, supplier development and fixed assets. It doesn’t depend on Qatari ownership.

1. The margin cut. Bids more than 10% above the lowest price are excluded, or 5% for tenders of QAR 200 million or more.
2. The ICV formula. The remaining bids are compared on bid × (1 − ICV%). The lowest result wins.
3. Certificate or plan. Tenders under QAR 500 million use your ICV certificate. Larger ones use a tender-specific ICV plan, backed by an ICV guarantee if you win without being cheapest.
4. No certificate. Without a certificate your ICV is 0%, but you aren’t excluded. From the start of 2027, the certificate becomes a mandatory condition to take part.

Get an ICV certificate through icv.qa: an accredited auditor certifies it in about 2–3 weeks, at your cost, and it lasts a year.

The 30% local-sourcing rule. A non-Qatari company contracted for works or services performed in Qatar, other than consultancy, must source at least 30% of the total contract value locally. That covers materials, transport, security, catering and similar. You show invoices before payment, and small firms get priority.

Other preferences. Discounts of 10% for Qatari-content goods and 5% for GCC goods are reported by trade sources. We didn’t find them in the law or regulation text, and it’s unclear how they interact with ICV. In June 2026 the Cabinet also approved a national local-content strategy for procurement.

Bidding, step by step

1. Check the buyer is covered by Law 24/2015 and posts on Monaqasat.
2. Watch Monaqasat for future, open and awarded tenders.
3. Choose your vehicle: bid directly, through a Qatari subsidiary or a free-zone or QFC entity. Plan a temporary branch for delivery.
4. Open a National Authentication account. Login uses a one-time code sent to a registered mobile, and the profile must be created by your authorised signatory.
5. Create your company profile (free), and wait for Ministry approval.
6. Apply for classification in your activities or specialisations.
7. Get an ICV certificate, which will be mandatory from 2027.
8. Buy the tender documents on Monaqasat, and send questions to the issuing body.
9. Prepare two envelopes.
   • Technical: the bid bond, a copy of your classification, and the manufacturer and country of origin.
   • Financial: the price, plus the ICV plan if required.
10. Submit electronically. The Ministry advises uploading at least 48 hours early.
11. Watch the award notice. You have 5 working days to challenge.
12. If you win, lodge the final guarantee within 15 working days (extendable by 5), then sign. Don’t start work before signing, and meet the 30% local-sourcing rule.

Bonds and payment

• Bid bond. Up to 5% of the estimated value, as a certified cheque or irrevocable guarantee. Bids without it are excluded. It can be waived for tenders under QAR 500,000 and for consultancy and similar services, and doesn’t apply to direct agreements.
• Performance guarantee. At least 10% of the contract value, held through the warranty period. It can be waived under QAR 500,000.
• Banks. Guarantees must come from a local or accredited bank. A foreign bank’s guarantee must be endorsed by one that pays on first demand.
• Small firms. SMEs can be exempted from bonds on a Qatar Development Bank pledge, and micro-enterprises are exempt in tenders under QAR 5 million.
• Advance payments are capped at 20%, against a matching guarantee.
• Penalties. Delay penalties are capped at 10%.
• Payment. US Commerce reports that payment delays are common and earn no interest.

How bids are evaluated

• Lowest price, adjusted. In principle the lowest compliant price wins, adjusted for ICV as above.
• Committee discretion. By unanimous vote, the committee can choose a higher price if the lowest bids are unrealistic, or if quality outweighs a small price gap.
• Negotiation after opening is allowed only in set cases, such as bringing the best bid down to the estimate or reflecting a market price drop.
• Re-tendering. A tender can be cancelled and re-run if only one bid remains or the best bid exceeds the estimate.

Challenging a decision

• Where and when. Any bidder can file with the Ministry of Finance’s Disputes Settlement Committee within 5 working days from the day after the award is announced on Monaqasat. You file online, with a bank receipt for the fee.
• Standstill. The award can’t be completed until the 5 days pass without a challenge, or the Committee confirms it.
• Decision. The Committee is chaired by a judge and decides within 5 working days. It can suspend the tender, and its decisions are enforceable.
• Court. You can appeal to the administrative circuit of the Court of Appeal. Appealing doesn’t suspend the decision unless the court orders it.
• Other grievances.
  • Classification decisions: grieve to the Minister within 7 working days.
  • Penalties for withdrawing a bid: grieve to the head of the buying body.

What changed in 2024–2026

• 2024: Law 17/2024 introduced the 5-day challenge and standstill, the 2-day publication rule and negotiation on market price drops.
• 2025:
  • April: classification-fee exemptions ended.
  • May: new prices for tender documents and certificates were set.
  • July: each buying body’s ceilings for small purchases were updated.
  • October: the Cabinet approved changes to small-business exemptions.
• June 2026: a national local-content strategy for procurement was approved.
• September 2026: the Cabinet approved amendments to the Executive Regulation. We haven’t seen the published text.
• Coming in 2027: the ICV certificate becomes mandatory to take part.

Live Qatari tenders

See also which countries can bid on which government tenders.

Questions

Sources

• Law No. 24 of 2015 on Tenders and Auctions (Al Meezan, consolidated)
• Executive Regulation, Cabinet Decision 16/2019 (Monaqasat)
• Monaqasat: Unified Website of State Procurement
• Monaqasat: In-Country Value in government tenders
• Monaqasat: FAQ
• WTO: parties and observers to the GPA

This guide explains the rules in plain English; it isn’t legal advice. Procurement rules change, and each tender document sets its own conditions — it always prevails.