Regulating the use of cash in transactions in Qatar

On 3 July 2022, Law No.4 of 2022 concerning the regulation of the use of cash in transactions (the “Cash Transactions Law”) was published in the Official Gazette No. 7 of 2022 which is effective from the date of its publication. In our client alert on this topic issued earlier this month, we had mentioned that the types of transaction expected to be covered under the Cash Transactions Law was to be determined by the Council of Ministers.

The purpose of this client alert is to update our readers that the Council of Ministers has now issued a list of transactions that would fall under the ambit of the Cash Transactions Law.

Prohibited Transactions

The Council of Ministers has issued Decision No. 10 of 2022 (the “Decision”) identifying certain categories of transactions in which use of cash exceeding QAR 50,000 (approximately US$ 13,732.5) is prohibited. These are as follows:

• Sale, purchase and rental of properties of all kinds, and modifying them.
• Sale, purchase and rental of vehicles of all kinds and their distinctive numbers.
• Sale, purchase and rental of maritime transportation.
• Sale, purchase and rental of all precious metals, gemstones and jewellery.
• Sale, purchase and rental of camels, horses, livestock and falcons, whether single or flocks.

Following the issuance of the Decision, the Qatar Central Bank has also issued a formal statement on its official social media platform confirming that it would be prohibited to use cash in transactions that exceed the value of QR50,000 in respect of the abovementioned transaction categories and relevant outlets.

Impact 

As previously mentioned in our client alert, it would not be possible to use cash to pay for or in connection with the abovementioned transactions if the overall value of the transaction exceeds QAR 50,000.  Instead, alternate payment methods such as cheques, bank transfers and bank cards must be used.

As a reminder, the Cash Transactions Law imposes stringent penalties for non-compliance, including financial penalties of up to 60% of the total value paid in cash if the transactions are intentionally split and up to QAR 1,000,000 if the relevant trading outlets fail to maintain record of all receipts and documents supporting the non-cash modes of payment.

Moving Forward

Our recommendation to the relevant business and trading outlets would be to start an awareness campaign to inform their on-ground staff about this prohibition and to implement proper record keeping (if not already in place) for non-cash transactions undertaken at the outlet.   The Cash Transactions Law allows for a period of six (6) months (from 3 July 2022) to ensure compliance with the law.

If you have any questions about this announcement or would like our advice on any implementation steps, please contact us.