Qatari Rial (QAR)

Basic Concepts of Qatar Riyal

The Qatari Riyal is the official currency of the State of Qatar, with the ISO code QAR, and is issued and managed by the Qatar Central Bank. The currency symbol is usually written as "ر. ق" or simply QR, and is pegged to the U.S. dollar using a fixed exchange rate system.

Countries of use

The Qatari Riyal is only used in Qatar. As an important economy in the Middle East, the currency has regional influence in international energy trade and financial transactions, but is not legal tender in other countries or regions.

Units and Denominations

The Qatari Riyal is based on the decimal system, with 1 Riyal equaling 100 Dirhams. Currently circulating banknotes are in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 50, 100 and 500 Riyal, while coins are available in various denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 Dirhams, all of which are labeled with information in Arabic and English.

Historical background

The Qatari Riyal was first issued in 1966, replacing the Gulf Rupee, which had been in use, and began issuing currency independently in 1973 with the establishment of the Qatar Monetary Authority, which was reorganized as the Qatar Central Bank in 2013. The currency has historically been pegged to foreign currencies, initially to the British pound sterling, and then fixed to the US dollar since 1996 and continues to be so today.