The major report commissioned by Qatar into its treatment of migrant workers produced more than 60 suggested reforms – and one telling confirmation: that hundreds of migrants have died, many of them from unexplained sudden illness, over the past two years, at a rate of more than one a day.

The report by the international law firm DLA Piper calls for changes to the much-criticised kafala system that ties workers to their employers. It also contains the Qatari government's own figure on the numbers of migrants who have died on its soil: 964 from Nepal, India and Bangladesh in 2012 and 2013. In all, 246 died from "sudden cardiac death" in 2012, the report said, 35 died in falls and 28 committed suicide. The number of deaths resulting from work-related injuries was low.

But the real purpose of the 135-page report, commissioned in the wake of Guardian revelations about appalling working conditions in Qatar, was to make recommendations for reform. The document was welcomed by human rights campaigners as a major step forward, particularly given early fears that DLA Piper's independence could be compromised by its work for Qatar-owned news network al-Jazeera.

But they also warned that its recommendations must be followed by action to a clear timetable and were disheartened that little reference was made to the report in Wednesday's announcement.

"The verdict from DLA Piper is clear. The sponsorship system is not fit for purpose and the exit permit isn't justifiable," said James Lynch of Amnesty International. "Rather than rejigging and renaming the system, the government should commit now to genuine deep-rooted reform, and a wider programme of measures tackling access to justice, health and holding private sector accountable for abuses against migrant workers."

The report made 62 recommendations across nine key areas:

Recruitment

The report recommends Qatar strengthens and enforces laws preventing recruitment agencies from charging fees. It urges the authorities to go further and prohibit employers from dealing with any foreign recruitment agencies in countries of origin that charge fees. This would attempt to deal with the middlemen that charge large fees and overpromise to impoverished workers, leaving them in debt from the off.

It also calls for a streamlined system of redress for mistreated workers, improved awareness of methods of reporting ill treatment, a review of the licensing of recruitment agencies and for unethical agencies to be blacklisted.

Kafala sponsorship system

At the crux of the debate over how Qatar and its Gulf neighbours treat migrant workers, human rights groups have long called for the kafala system that ties workers to their employers to be abolished. Those calls have met resistance from those who claim it is culturally embedded.

The DLA Piper report calls for a "wide ranging and comprehensive review" of kafala with a view to abolishing or phasing out "certain aspects" of the system and prioritising freedom of movement and the rights of workers.

It recommends that the controversial exit visa system be radically reformed to allow migrant workers to leave the country as of right, unless there is "compelling evidence" to the contrary. Over time, it should be abolished altogether.

Existing laws forbidding the employers from confiscating passports, currently widely ignored, should be much better enforced with offending firms blacklisted.

Contracts

Worker welfare standards, such as those introduced in February by the Qatar 2022 football World Cup organisers, should be made mandatory in all contracts issued by public authorities – a move that would immediately raise the bar on many of the large infrastructure projects.

Crucially, the report recommends that lead contractors should be made responsible for compliance throughout their web of sub-contractors, where mistreatment is rife. It also calls for better monitoring of worker's contracts and translation of those contracts into their home language. Like many of DLA Piper's recommendations, enforcement will come down to will and resource.

Wages

The report calls for consideration to be given to introducing a minimum wage and for employers who fail to pay wages on time to be disqualified from being a sponsor. Qatar recently announced a new system for the automatic payment of wages electronically, another recommendation in the report.

Health and safety

DLA Piper recommends urgent action to demonstrate the importance placed on health and safety by the Qatari authorities amid its dash to build a new nation.

It calls for contractors that breach standards to be blacklisted and for the introduction of stronger criminal sanctions, as well as joint liability for contractors (often major western firms) and their sub-contractors.

In addition to practical measures such as the introduction of electronic ID cards and health and safety education, it recommends a series of steps to establish how many workers die on construction sites.

DLA Piper "strongly recommends" the regular collection and reporting of statistics regarding work related injuries and deaths, to be published anonymously every six months.

In light of the apparently unusually high levels of heart attacks, it calls for an independent study into sudden cardiac arrests over the next three years and for there to be proper investigation into unexpected or sudden deaths.

Accommodation

Recommendations include a mandatory induction for new employees, a worker welfare officer on every site, better monitoring and inspection and better complaints procedures.

Inspections

Qatar has claimed that the number and frequency of inspections has increased but DLA Piper says more needs to be done so that the labour inspections department can perform its task with "sufficient coverage and rigour". It wants better training for inspectors, more powers, more interpreters for worker interviews and more transparency.

Freedom of association

As an "interim measure", the law firm says recently announced standards on worker welfare for the Qatar 2022 supreme committee should apply to all public contracts. It calls for greater transparency and says the ministry of labour should "publish proposals allowing migrant workers the right to freedom of association and representation". Where Qatar sees grounds for limiting those rights, it should say why.

Access to justice

DLA Piper recommends the abolition of fees for complainants, better access to online and physical resources from the labour ministry, interim payments and a fast-track procedure for certain categories of complaint.

• This article was amended on 28 May 2014 to correct the subheading, which gave an incorrect total for the number of migrants who died from cardiac arrests, falls and suicides. A line was added to the article to say that the report found that the number of deaths relating from work-related injuries was low.