3,500 ‘illegal workers’ leave Qatar as amnesty ends

Over 3,500 undocumented workers have left Qatar under the amnesty scheme set up by the government.

In September, the Ministry of Interior announced that it would give a grace period for undocumented workers of three months to exit the Gulf state without facing any legal action.

Since then, thousands of residents who are deemed “illegal” have applied to leave the country. The Bangladesh Embassy in Doha told Doha News that approximately 2,500 people with Bangladeshi citizenship left over the three month period.

Within the same period, 150 Pakistani nationals have left Qatar, along with 230 Filipino citizens and, by mid-November, more than 500 people Sri Lankans left.

A proportion of the undocumented people are workers who have escaped their workplace after being abused by their employers making them illegal.