Living together in the GCC? Think twice

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Living Together while Unmarried in Qatar

While many unmarried couples do live together in QATAR, this is technically against the law as it is a Muslim country. Men and women are not permitted to share a home unless they are legally married or are related to each other. This applies to friends, house or flat mates as well and not just couples.

Unless you are being investigated for another crime or your neighbours call the police because of your rowdy house party, it is probably unlikely that the police would arrest you for ‘living in sin’ in Qatar.

If your housing is being provided by your employer, they may not look too favourably upon unwed couples living together since as your sponsors, they are legally responsible for your being here in QATAR. You may want to keep this in mind before inviting your boyfriend to live with you.

Be especially careful about co-habiting, whether in a romantic or roommate capacity, with anyone of the opposite gender if they are separated, but not legally divorced. In the eyes of the law, they are still married and they could be charged with adultery which is a much higher offense in QATAR.

Although we enjoy many freedoms in QATAR, we should not lose sight of the fact that we are living in a Muslim country and we should try to respect their culture and laws.

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