Alberto Contador's Saxo Bank team will retain its licence after a request by the International Cycling Union to the licensing committee for it to be rescinded was turned down on Monday.
The team faced being thrown out of the UCI's World Tour after Contador was given a retrospective two-year doping ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in February.
"UCI followed the correct procedure in accordance with the rules. The licence commission carried out its work and took its decision in an entirely independent manner..." UCI President Pat McQuaid said in a statement.
Contador was also stripped of his 2010 Tour de France title for failing a dope test during the race and all his victories last season, including in the Giro d'Italia, were nullified.
The UCI said they filed the request because the points collected by Contador represented about 68 percent of the team's total and without them Saxo Bank would not have fulfilled the sporting criterion required for the World Tour.
Only the top 15 teams are taken automatically with another three given licences at the discretion of the UCI licensing committee.
Saxo Bank's licence expires on Dec. 31, 2012 and the team will be required to satisfy all the criteria taken into account by the regulations should it wish to compete again as a ProTeam in 2013, the UCI statement said.
Spain's Contador, who also won the Tour in 2007 and 2009 tested positive for the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol, while competing in the race for Astana in 2010.
He is excluded from cycling until 5 August.
