Surely you have heard about the foreign investment law in the Sultanate of Oman if you want to start establishing your own business or investment on Omani lands, which we will tell you about in our article on the Fanar Real Estate website, where we will discuss the new investment law for foreigners in detail as well as the reasons that invite you to invest in the Sultanate Oman and the most important advantages that you will get when you invest in this country, in addition to the different types of investments available to you that you can choose from to start your project or investment. At the end of our article, we will not forget to answer the most common questions that are circulated about the foreign investment law in the Sultanate of Oman.

What is the foreign investment law in the Sultanate of Oman?
In order to work to attract investment to the Sultanate of Oman and promote it, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion issued the Foreign Capital Law in 2019 by virtue of a Royal Decree. Specific to investment and the investor, and the incentives, guarantees, penalties and penalties imposed on the foreign investor in the event that he violates the conditions, we will get to know them together.

The first chapter of the law included investment conditions and the Ministry’s facilities for it, as the Ministry takes care of all approvals, licenses, and procedures that precede the start of investment work. The project must also take into account the standards of preserving the environment, public regulations, non-discrimination on religious, social, or political grounds, and be in agreement with the permitted activities and submitted by a company. Approved in this field, and the investor must provide a description of the project and its total value, and adhere to the project schedules.

Incentives for foreign investment in the Sultanate of Oman
The investment law, in its second chapter, provided several incentives to the foreign investor in order to establish investment projects, namely:

Providing competitive prices for the basics needed by the investment or investor
Determining special locations for foreign investment within each governorate in the Sultanate.
Providing public services such as water, electricity and telephone lines for real estate intended for investment.
There are no restrictions on currency exchange, in addition to the stability of exchange rates
Full tax exemptions for some foreign projects for a period of up to five years, subject to renewal
Exemptions on the import of machinery and raw materials for projects for a period of five years also from the start of production.
The foreign investor can import the project materials himself or through an authorized agent.
Opening branches and offices to represent foreign companies in the Sultanate of Oman
Allowing the recruitment of workers from different countries of the world without restriction
Assisting the investor with transaction procedures as quickly as possible through the one-stop service.
Providing facilities for granting high loans, as well as granting currencies disbursed from non-Arab banks
Benefit from the trade agreements signed by the Sultanate with the World Trade Organization, the Greater Arab Free Trade Zone and the Gulf Common Market


Guarantees provided for foreign investment in Oman
The third chapter of the law included the guarantees provided by the state to the foreign investor, which are the most important for him because they guarantee the rights of his business and activity and facilitate his work within the Sultanate of Oman. The guarantees include:

The business and funds of a foreign investment project shall not be confiscated or frozen unless a court ruling is issued to that effect.
The foreign investor has the right to move the capital inside and outside the Sultanate and transfer the proceeds of the project to any place
He also has the right to share his project with any investor, whether Omani or not.
Licenses are not canceled for the foreign investor even if he commits a violation. They are only canceled if a convincing reason is presented to the Ministry and approved by it.
A foreign investor can assign his project to any local or foreign investment entity.
Compensation is provided that satisfies both parties in the event that foreign investment projects are expropriated for the public benefit.
Foreign investment activities have the same guarantees as the national project. Additional incentives are provided for foreign investments that take place in underdeveloped regions.


Administrative penalties applicable to foreign investors
The administrative penalties imposed on the foreign investor were explained in Chapter Four of the Investment Law and included the following:

When a foreign investor violates a law, a warning is sent to him for correction within 30 days.
If he ignores the warning or correction, he will be punished by suspending his activity for about six months
The foreign investor is allowed to submit grievances to a specialized committee in the ministry within 60 days from the date of sending the decision.
Penalties imposed on the foreign investor
The Omani Ministry singled out the last chapter of the investment law for the penalties resulting from violating the laws and their impact on the work of the investor.

In the event of a violation of the foreign investment law, the investor must pay a fine between 20 thousand to 150 thousand Omani riyals
In the event that the investor impedes the employees in the capacity of the judicial police, he is required to pay a fine between 1,000 and 5,000 Omani riyals.
Pay a fine between 5,000 and 50,000 Omani riyals for anyone who discloses a secret of investment and internal trade. He may also be sentenced to imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years.
The rest of the crimes and penalties are accounted for according to the general law in the Sultanate of Oman.