Is it difficult to marry a Qatari?

What do you need to know ?

Yes, a non Qatari can marry a Qatari. If you are Christian , then you do not have to convert to Islam. However, if a Qatari wants to marry a non-Qatari then he or she needs the Ministry of Interior’s permission to do so.

Are there any updates on this matter???

I am a non-qatari and on a relationship with a Qatari Man. We would like to get married soon. Most probably, he will be meeting my parents next year. Please enlighten me. THANK U.

This kind of relation will work only in dreams. Sometimes in reality Dreams comes true. If love will is strong for both partners. Everything is possible. But it comes with a huge test.

If any non Qatari Muslim wants to marry a Qatari lady what are the Government laws regarding this, can some shadow some light on.

isnt dating haram in Islam?

"Is it very difficult to get the persmission for a marriage between non-Qatari woman and Qatari man?"

It depends who you are? where you come from? Basically your full background.

You will not be obligated to convert.. God says: “Let there be no compulsion in religion” [Surah al-Baqarah: 256] and you can easily win the family of this Qatari man by being respectful and uderstanding to his culture and religion.

Wearing the abaya or your lifestyle in general,having children,your career..or whatever life issues i guess this should be discussed prior to getting married whether your guy is Qatari or not.

"I would like also to know the opinion of Qatari nationals regarding this topic and that of foreigners married to Qataris."

Yeh...YOU NEED TO STEP OFF OUR MEN!!!

Hello I am new to asking questions online like this but I'm hoping I can find some answers.

I am an American Muslim. I am dating a Qatari woman. She is visiting her family this month and was going to ask their permission for us to Marry. Does anyone have any suggestions on how she should approach the question? Her father is gone from this life so it is her Grandmother who will have the ultimate say in everything. From reading all of the comments it also looks like we will have to ask the Government for permission also. Please if anyone has any recommendations on what we should do please share. Hopefully everything will work out. Insha'Allah.

كأمثال الؤلؤء المكنون

هذه الاية فقط للمرأة القطرية

لكن ما علم المرء القطرية في بيان الصورة المرأة القطرية

لهذا هو طلّق امرأة محسنة التي هي قائمة و ساكنة في دار الاولاد لانه اراد اخر بالشهوة

هذا حرام في الشريعة الاسلامية

now enough time for every body to accept true love there no separation

every true husband for every true wife

قال الله سبحانه و تعلى

الخبيثات للخبيثين و الخبيثون للخبيثات

I have a succesful career, and never relied on a man for fincance, thank God and not intending too. Otherwise , i would have married a rich man without even having to worry about posting it.

dancing12,

I don't think she's a money-grabber.

if you seek to marry a Qatari for his money then no pain no gain sweaty.

sarim, the older model is much nicer.

Do you have the latest model Land Cruiser?

QL comment should have more authentic and reliable in the topic like this.I agree most of us write superficially from the impression we made our own.

As Islamic State Qataris enjoy the previlage which

it gets from its law.We need to respect law of Land

then imposing our ethnocentric view.

Why would you marry a Qatari?

very well said TGM...

now we've got lots of informations...not just a myth :)

thanks guys for sharing w/ us

MyHotComments +

And again, a lot of the people comments clearly show that most of people don’t have a clue of what they are talking about! And most likely one of those weird stories that never happened

1. Yes there is a permit required and can be issued, and a Qat man or lady can marry a non-Qat man or lady. But after issuing this permit.

2. YES there is a low for that and I have many friends who did it.J

3. For women the man have to be a Muslim and before a lot of arrogant people start commenting this is our religion and region and we are proud of it.

4. For non-Muslims, why go do it when you know that in Islam kids will follow dad and if you guys divorce you will want the kids (legal or illegal ways) start all that fight while before you marry you know about this and agreed too? Save it and marry who suits you.

As jlainqatar not only this topic but also 90% of the QL topics full of wrong information about Islam and the culture and the people and why do you think? Each can answer for him/her self:)

That was really helpful, thanks to all of you. It is by no means that agreements, regardless of the culture , should take place beforehand. I know that his mother , for a fact, is a wonderful non-judgemental person. The house is calm where there's a lot of love. Contrary to other single qataris I met, where the mother follows every step, She leaves him on his own and wants his happiness above all. Her only condition, as it is for the whole family, is the abaya. They're very relegious. but his sisters work if they want to, that's very important for me.

Hope,

The rules in the marriage contract will work if your husband respects islam and honors his contracts.

If he doesn't you will have to go to a respected family member, a religious figure and maybe ultimately court if he doesn't abide by what is in the contract and you can't live with it. Raising a legal complaint or charges against him would most likely cause big problems in the marraige and could result in divorce. It is considered a big insult to most people for a wife to complain to the court about her husband.

Most of the times it doesn't result in that. Most of the times the men respect the conditions. Some of my sister in laws who are Qataris married to Qataris have conditions: right to separate accommodation (not with family), right to work etc and in all cases they have been honored their rights.

I would say the four most important points to discuss and agree on are:

1. if you will convert (shouldn't do this unless you are convinced)

2. what you will be expected to wear

3. your freedom of movement: where you can go and where you can't

4. working/money: Islam puts the financial responsibility of providing the basic necessities for the family on the man. Any property or money that a woman owns is hers, to do with as she pleases. She may spend on her household/children if she likes and it is considered sadaqa (charity)from her. She should cover the expense of things related to working that would not be incurred otherwise: ex: different/nicer clothing/abaya/shoes for work, transportation to work.

From the family, the person who is most likely to make things either great or miserable is the mother in law. Make it clear that you will respect her and treat her well, and that she should do the same for you. MIL is usually the key to the rest of the family. See how she treats the other brothers' wives. If they are happy with her, you will most likely be too (unless they are all near relatives of hers).

If you work hard and are diplomatic, you can have and offer your children the best of both worlds.

Good luck!!

Um Ali

i say its best to listen to amoud, hope12..

this is a really nice topic:) thanks a lot , especially ummjake, jlain, tgm7000.....

Wow. I can't imagine marrying someone if it seems "scary". jlain's post was very informative and helped clear up a lot of misinformation, but I think the most valuable thing she said was "this should be discussed before marriage".

Doesn't that apply to the issues facing ANY 2 people who are considering marriage, regardless of either's culture, religion, race, family, etc.?

Get all your questions answered, make your expectations known, and get to know the person BEFORE you get married.

''You can't put the same shoe on every foot''('',)...

After all the comments, the positive and negative ones...it seems a bit scary. But it seems to comfort me a bit, as jlainqatar said that I can put my rules on the wedding contract but does this really work?

May I ask why Qatari Women are not allowed to marry non Qatari men?? a lot of them unfortunately exceeding the marriage age and a lot are divorced. and those deserve another chance to be happy.

in Islam, the groom requirment is that he should be a muslem and with good morals. there's no limits for nationality or race.

No, not necessarily...there are hundreds if not thousands of young couples (Qatari man/non-Qatari women). Don't forget, wasta is everything sometimes.

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Um Ali,

So I was right when I said "Be aware that the government rarely approves marriages to non-Qataris when the Groom is a Qatari under 40 and the Bride is not a relative".

Of course wasta is always an exception.

I agreed to TGM, jlainqatar have points...I was married to a Qatari for 18 years, 18 years under his and my inlaws rule, i was divorced finally for four years now, and i'm living happily, freely from the shadow of my inlaws, me and my ex are friends...

Venice, there was one Qatari lady married to a Jordanian, and they lived in Dubai for morethan 15 years,eversince she left and return back for a visit only

after that long, the man was not allowed to come to Qatar even for a visit,five years more after go and come visiting her(QATARI LADY) family here, then they allow her to stay back to the country, He come to visit only because the Qatari lady decided to reside here in Qatar with the 5 children, the man still can not stay here in Qatar, they are still waiting for the mercy of the law

"There's nothing we can do to change the past, if it teaches  you a lesson profit from it then, forget it."

TO MARIAM.

SHE CAN MARRIED ANY NATIONAL BUT SHE THE HUSBAND WILL NOT BECOME QATARI NATIONAL EVEN HER CHILD BUT SHE STILL A QATARI AND SHE CAN COME TO QATAR ANY TIME

Um Ali...thanks... that was really informative..:)

I am married to a Qatari. I've been here almost 20 years and know about 50 other westerners married to Qataris. Then I lost count. This thread is full of wrong information...I really don't know where to begin.

Any Qatari man who is not married, divorced or over 40 will have a tough time getting approval to marry a foreigner (unless he ofcourse has 'wasta'). This is done for several reasons: number of unmarried Qatari females is high, limits population growth/ #s of Qataris, preserves the culture.

If the marriage is approved, you can get 'Qatari by marraige' citizenship after 5 years (used to be after 2 years). This can be taken away if you are divorced and the man requests it - if you don't have children. This could lead to you having to leave the country.

Family acceptance varies, depending on the family. They can make things wonderful or make them hell. In most cases, YOU will be the one who has to please the family, not them adjusting to please you. ie: join the crowd.

What the woman wears varies, depending on the husband and family, and whether she converts to islam or not.

Some of the ladies I know wear anything (almost) they want, others cover from head to toe. You should know what your husband expects and be able to live with it. Agree on it before marraige.

How much the man controls his wife's movement/social life varies. Some women live as if they were living in the west and have full freedom, others are very restricted. This should be discussed before marriage. If the man is very controlling and suspicious, you might not be happy.

The kids will be 'his' which means any assets of the children's will be in his control (even if it's money you gave them) and he will be the guardian over them (you can leave the country without his permission if you are over 30, but cannot take your kids out of the country without his permission). Need his permission for entering them into school, medical treatment (operation) etc...

You will need his permission to do any operation/procedure which prevents pregnancy (tubal ligation) if you are under 40. (Unless it is done abroad)

The right of divorce is the man's. If things don't work out and he doesn't want to divorce you, things can get messy. A khula divorce can be granted in which you beg the court to divorce you from him and you give up all of your rights and may have to return any thing he gave you or give him something in order for him to agree to the divorce. I know a few women who have been hanging on waiting for divorce for 2-10 years.... (extreme cases)

Islamic divorce is not like western divorce. In most cases you will not get alimony, only limited support for the kids IF you get custody of them. I suggest you brush up on rules of divorce (you WILL NOT get half) and inheritance (you will get 1/8th if you are the only wife).

You may put stipulations in the wedding contract: ie: your right to travel, your right to work, but you cannot put anything in the marriage contract which is against his legal rights/islamic rights. For example, you cannot put in the contract that he cannot marry another wife, while you can put something like: if he does take another wife, you have the right to divorce. Be specific as you can, ex: he might agree for you to work but only in an all female environment. He might let you travel but only with him...

Consider the points above carefully. I know people who are very happy and others who are miserable. I'm not trying to discourage you, but it's best to make an informed decision, not one based on emotions.

Best wishes

Um Ali

tgm...sensible reply!

tgm7000...i like the way you explain things:) gives me a wider view on this matter!

Forget those people who have no experience in this. Marrying a Qatari is possible. Where there's a will, there's a way. I am a Qatari, and know a few Qataris who are happily married to western women. My dad is one of them.

Of course, like in any country there are a##holes who cheat, beat, and look down on women. I grew up in the States, so no need to debate with me on this issue.

The most important thing is to see what sort of lifestyle your potential future husband is living. We don't need to talk about love, as people fall in and out of love all over the world.

If you are marrying someone who has a similar lifestyle to yours, has a fairly open minded family, is a man who does not fear others' opinions, and does not expect you to be someone you are not, then go for it.

The problem arises, when he expects you to live a lifestyle that you are not comfortable with, is easily manipulated by others opinions, and has a family who would never accept you. If that is what you are faced with, then forget it, as it will just create a lot of tension in the long run.

Ultimately, take your time, and really pay attention to these things, and then make your decision.

married to locals. Some with kids, some without. Almost universally they have converted. Again, it's not a requirement (Muslims men can marry Jewish and Christian women), but many chose to do it, and even if the woman wasn't sure at the time, she knew it wouldn't be acceptable to his family if she did not.

Almost universally they cover here in Qatar (shayla and abaya, one wears niqab). When back home in US, they almost universally remove it. One friend here absolutely loathes covering here. She does so not out of a feeling that Islamically she should but out of respect for her husband (knowing he would be ridiculed and catch a lot of sh*t if she didn't).

Their marriages are like any other marriage -- both good times and bad. My friends say they love the close sense of family here, being around people to celebrate Ramadans and Eids with, how people here LOVE children. They admire the loyalty and feeling of commitment that people have for family.

But I think they do struggle with more issues just from the sheer fact of it being an intercultural relationship. Problem areas I have witnessed included: they're living with his family; using her income to pay for his relatives; he doesn't want his daughters to go to a mixed school (that's better quality); he goes out all night with the boys but she's restricted from doing the same with the girls; she's worried he'll take a secret second wife (because his family keeps harping on why they don't have a baby yet); he told her to remove all her artwork (that she'd had prior to marriage) from the house because it depicted human forms; he won't let her go to friend's houses when there will be men there (other people's husbands, even western men) that he doesn't know; he refuses to allow her to celebrate secular American holidays like Thanksgiving; she doesn't have his permission go to the souk AT ALL.

One couple married in the States when they met at university, and then it took almost a decade (and one child later) before he could get the marriage approved/recognized here so that he could bring his wife and child back to Qatar with him.

"Most plain girls are virtuous because of the scarcity of opportunity to be otherwise."

-- Maya Angelou

From what I know Bleu this is the case, also helps sometimes as to who he is, and if he has some sort of disabiity etc. Each couple I know had something different. A few of them married military guys without permission which landed the guy up in jail and he got demoted but they got approval in the end. One American lady who married a Qatari had to live in Bahrain for a few years before he could get approval whereas another got approval because his uncle pulled a few strings.

I am not sure if having your family behind you on this would make any difference or not.

____________________________________________________

"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"

I would guess that it gets approved if he tries hard enough, and insists on it.

Actually The Jam there is a law that says Qatari men are not allowed to marry non-Qatari women with the exception of GCC Nationals due to tribal and family ties etc. but it can be done as they can apply for the permission to do so. It isnt always easy but it can and is done. ____________________________________________________

"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"

I've met several very happily married Western/Qatari couples. Some choose to wear Abaya and even niqab, others only wear it for special occasions or not at all, some have converted, some haven't. It really depends on the guy and his family.

I met a Philipino gal during a training...all covered up...she is married to a Young Qatari guy... she introduced him to me..when he was there to pick her up... Both of them work for govt firms... that guy wont be more than 30 for sure.. and I know many Qatari men in late 40's married to Non Qatari ladies..

So it is possible... But HOW? I dont know..lol

Actually I forgot I know Qataris married to American, canadian, and british women too. No problems, some gopt married here even

qatari men are allowed to maary who they want.I know loads of Qataris men with Philipino, egyptian, syrain, Iranian wives.

It is different the other way round though they are more conservative about who they marry their daughters to

I'd like to thank our Qatari QLers for coming on here and dispelling some of the myths related to this subject.

You should gather all the Qatari QLers together and come up with a big list of rumours you've heard about Qatar and Qataris, and post them all along with what the real truth is.

HOPE12, not the govt. maybe the military.

It isnt Hope, a lot of the things you hear are gossip because frankly a lot of Qataris do not want to step out of the family obligations they have by marrying other nationalities. The things you hear are usually a lot of the excuses that ladies get when they think they are going to marry these guys. It is not the case always but 9 times out of 10.

_____________________________________________________

"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"

i know a young qatari woman who just got an approval for marrying a lebanese man without a wasta. I do not need to convert since i am a muslim already. but I am interested to learn more from non-qatari women married to qataris and qataris married to foreigners. it seems to be a game of chance. why is it impossible for men working in the government to marry non-qataris?

This is an eye opener for me, I never knew that.

Thanks for the info.

diamond is bang on, I know ladies who married Qataries over 20 years ago, never converted and they have since gotten Qatari passports (western ladies at that). In total I can say I know at least 25 western women married to Qataris, some who have converted, some not, some cover, some not. All of them married in their early 20's, and the weddings took place between 1982 to date.

Heck, some of them you will find in mini skirts and t-shirts in the mall.

You cant really ball everyone up into a neat little package, it varies from case to case. _____________________________________________________

"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"

But diamond, you don't look a day over 21 ;p

90% of the couples I know (Qataris married to non Qatari women) are in my age bracket...late 20s, early 30s.

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That's nice to know, I know a few guys who weren't able to do it, maybe they were lying to me too. All the guys I know who are married to non-Qatari ladies are over 50, so I assumed over 40.

I still don't recommend getting married in a third country. Just make it all legal.

There was one Qat lady who wish to marry a lebanese guy, she(Qat Lady) is 40 years old, no more relatives, and she brought her case in Human Rights, still awaiting for approval, the law doesnt permit her to marry the man, these was two years ago, i dont know what happened now maybe the lady if she is desperate, then she might go to Lebanon and marry there, but if that happens, the lady would never come back to Qatar.

"There's nothing we can do to change the past, if it teaches  you a lesson profit from it then, forget it."

Got two who just married recently, both oldies he he.. and the family of the men agreed so there would be someone to take care of ...

"There's nothing we can do to change the past, if it teaches  you a lesson profit from it then, forget it."

mariam-mar - that's not true. Where do people hear these things!

beseeh has a doom and gloom take on anything Qatari related. Plus she gets a lot of facts wrong.

Qataries these days are no longer allowed to marry non-Qatari ladies except when the Qat man is over 60-65 i'm not so sure of the age, but most probably above 60 years old and he can marry anyone...

But don't think of it, drop your plan if....he he(sarcastically laughing) you will cross the seven mountain....but in some cases if the family of the man agreed, then you seem like to go in heaven...

"There's nothing we can do to change the past, if it teaches  you a lesson profit from it then, forget it."

It's not true that the woman will have to convert.

.

.

a romanian lady - friend of mine - she's married with a qatari.

They have 2 lovely kids...:)

Where's Love ...nothing it's impossible!

.

.

That's a rather doom and gloom take on it. There are plenty such happy marriages.

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If he's a government employee no chance. It's gotta be approved, takes at least 4-6 months. His family has to approve it - most probably they'll hate you and will make your life to hell. For the same reason you'll have to convert. You'll never be a full member of the family, your children will be his and his family's children but no way yours.

If you marry in a third country according to Qatari law if ,I remember well, he's committed a crime and your marriage is not valid.

Before making such a mistake better think twice, I know an Irish lady married to a Qatari who's now stuck here with their daughter and no way does she seem to be happy - where she married such a modern, open minded Qatari...

I know quite a few non-Qatari women married to Qatari men.

HOPE12, the attitudes and expectations vary from family to family.

Most of the Western women I know who are married to Qataris don't wear abaya.

fairly that is because... for economic and political reasons... Qatari's i guess is not too far with the rules that has in Saudi...

Any man can marry any nationalities outside their own country but never a woman can marry any non-believer and excepts only of their own nationality.

in Saudi, there had been a case of a distant-relative princess who had marry an outside Saudi national, and had only been allowed as issued by a special law granted only for such case...

>

I've readily admitted on previous threads to not having got to know the local population in Qatar (ask Diamond - she regularly lambastes me for it ;), but even I know two Qataris who are married to non-Qatari ladies!

1. I guess I must know more people than you in the situation!

2. naughty men and their false promises :/

diamond,

1- I know it's possible, but it's rare.

I also think some would lie by saying they applied and it was refused by the government, so it's not their fault.

2- What mandi said. :)

I mean a promise of marriage isn't necessarily a real intent. Some people lie.

So, Bleu, you're saying that single Qatari guys are just like single guys all over the world!

Mandi

But they do approve them Bleu. It is possible.

Can you expand on your last paragraph please?

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Stone Cold, It doesn't work that way. The family will consider this a betrayal of the family, and it's all her fault.

+ They need government approval for their marriage to be valid here.

HOPE12,

Good luck with that, Be aware that the government rarely approves marriages to non-Qataris when the Groom is a Qatari under 40 and the Bride is not a relative.

You also need to know that many Qataris feel the need to promise marriage to a woman to make her feel well, and give them all her love, while they don't really want to marry her.

It is possible for a Qatari man to marry a non-Qatari woman. It helps if you have some wasta.

Wearing of the abaya is traditional and cultural but not obligatory.

Regarding interaction between the bride and the local family it depends on both their attitudes I guess.

I know plenty of non-Qatari women married to Qatari men and it seems to work well for them.

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Stone Cold, It doesn't work that way. Their son would have betrayed them.

Plus, he would need approval from the government for the marriage to be valid.

Save enough money, run away and get married in a third country. Come back later on when you have a child which is a darling to most grand parents.

Yes..

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"Admit your mistakes...before someone exaggerates the story."

or they try to run away.

marry qatari?