7. No sick people

If you want to live here, you have to be healthy. Expats applying for residency in Qatar must first pass a medical test that screens for tuberculosis, hepatitis, and HIV.

You’d think that, in a country where around 80% of the residents are expats, they’d have streamlined this process, but no. The day I went for my medical tests involved being herded into a crowded room, standing in a queue for 3 hours without instruction, and getting yelled at in Arabic. Not the funniest day out.

8. No flipping the bird

Forbidden in Qatar. The most obvious place where this is a problem is on the road, because traffic in Doha is absolutely horrendous. Throw the finger, and you’ll get arrested.

Actually, I’d say no hand signs in general while driving. Most expats have a strict ‘hands on the wheel at all times’ policy, because if you so much as wave a thank you to someone it could be misconstrued as a gesture of disrespect.

9. No complaining

My personal addition. Despite the initial inconveniences of the above rules, once you get used to them they have very little impact on daily life. And life here is good - the weather’s nice, we don’t pay taxes, and the culture seems to have mastered the work/life balance.

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