The Ministry of Interior is expected to begin issuing sticker-free residency permits (RPs) to expatriate workers and their family members soon.

No stickers will be stamped on the passports of expatriate workers and their dependents staying with them if they are issued RP or their RP is being renewed.

A pilot project launched by the ministry awhile ago on an experimental basis to assess the feasibility of the new system has turned out to be successful.

Following the project, authorities have given their nod for the issuance and renewal of sticker-free RPs to expatriates and their families.

The new RP issuance and renewal system is expected to be implemented “within days”, Al Sharq reported yesterday, quoting sources.

The RP section of the expatriate affairs unit at the Immigration Department issues some 7,500 RPs daily, including an estimated 5,000 renewed ones.

All offices of the department, including its headquarters, branches and units working in the integrated service complexes of the Ministry of Interior, have been readied to provide the new RP issuance and renewal service.

Electronic and regular ID cards being issued will be replaced with new ones. The new ID cards will have a new design and will contain more details about the holder, including his or her address.

These cards could be used by expatriates and their families outside Qatar to show as proof of residence in Qatar as the cards will contain all details.

They could be used at overseas airports while boarding flights to Doha in place of RP stickers or as proof of residence for banking and other works overseas.

While in Qatar, during entry and exit at Hamad International Airport, an RP holder’s passport will suffice as immigration officials could check his or her RP details in their computer systems by keying in the person’s name or passport number.

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