Stop Press: New Commercial Companies Law In Qatar

His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani issued the new Commercial Companies Law No. 11 of 2015 (New Companies Law) on 16 June 2015. The New Companies Law was published in the Official Gazette on 7 July 2015 and took effect on 6 August 2015. The New Companies Law repeals Law No. 5 of 2002 (Old Companies Law) including any decisions made by the Minister of Economy and Commerce (Minister) to implement it. However, until the Minister issues the new decisions, the current decisions will remain in effect to the extent that they do not contradict the provisions of the New Companies Law. In this article we discuss some of the material amendments introduced by the New Companies Law and consider the effect they may have on the entities currently registered with the Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEC) and those to be registered in the future.

General Comments

There has been a general 'tightening' of the timelines to complete the various registration processes. Existing time periods have been reduced, materially in some instances, and some new time periods have been introduced, e.g. an application to register a limited liability company (LLC) must be considered and a response issued by the MEC within 15 days from the date of submission. References to the Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA), its rules and regulations and its supervisory obligations to public shareholding companies listed on the Qatar Exchange, appear in the New Companies Law. The New Companies Law requires publications to be made in 2 local newspapers one of which must be published in Arabic. In addition entities are directed under the New Companies Law to make publications available on their websites if they have them, such as the publication of the memorandum and articles of association of public shareholding companies. Compliance with the New Companies Law

Entities/individuals subject to the New Companies Law must comply with its provisions within 6 months of the law taking effect. The Minister has discretion to extend this initial 6 months for one or more similar periods.

Registration Process

The New Companies Law states that the Minister shall issue new decisions to regulate the registration process, including the introduction of a "one stop shop" system. Until the new decisions have been issued the impact on the process and the time frame for registering companies and other entities cannot be quantified.

Limited Liability Companies

An LLC can now be established by a...