Tax
Oman has no personal income tax today. From 1 January 2028, a 5% tax applies to annual income above OMR 42,000 (Royal Decree 56/2025); executive regulations are pending. Corporate tax is 15%, or 3% for qualifying small businesses.
Social Protection Fund (SPF)
The Social Protection Law (RD 52/2023, as amended by RD 60/2025) brought all schemes under the SPF. For Omani employees:
| Branch | Employer | Employee |
|---|---|---|
| Old age, disability and death | 11% | 7.5% |
| Work injury | 1% | – |
| Maternity | 1% | – |
| Sick and other leave (from 19 Jul 2026) | 1% | – |
| Employment security | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| Total | 14.5% | 8% |
Contributions are capped at a wage of OMR 3,000 a month and paid within the first 15 days of the following month.
Expatriates: the work-injury branch extends to non-Omanis on 19 July 2028. Sources differ on whether the maternity and sick-leave branches already cover expats, so check with the SPF for your workforce.
End-of-service gratuity and the 2027 savings scheme
Under Labour Law RD 53/2023, expatriates receive at least one month’s basic wage per year of service, pro rata, with no one-year minimum. It is withheld only on dismissal without notice for one of the Article 40 reasons, and is payable immediately at the end of service, or within 7 days if the worker resigned. Use the Oman gratuity calculator.
A savings system funded by a 9% employer contribution on basic wage will replace gratuity for future service, starting no later than 19 July 2027. Gratuity for earlier service stays owed and is paid at exit or settled into the scheme.
Working time and leave
- Hours: 8 a day, 40 a week under the new law, so overtime starts sooner than elsewhere in the GCC. In Ramadan, 6 a day for Muslim workers.
- Annual leave: 30 days after six months’ service; up to 30 unused days can carry over.
- Maternity leave: 98 days fully paid, through the SPF for insured workers. Paternity leave is 7 days.
- Minimum wage: OMR 325 a month for Omanis in the private sector. There is no minimum for expatriates.
- Salary payment: wages are paid through WPS into an account at a bank licensed by the Central Bank of Oman.
Gotchas for foreign employers
- Plan for the switch from gratuity accrual to monthly 9% savings contributions.
- Omanisation: reserved occupations can’t be filled by expats, sector quotas apply, and an annual plan is due each January.
- Prepare payroll for income tax withholding or reporting for high earners from 2028.
- SPF contributions are calculated on actual wages for days worked, so update rate tables for the 2026 sick-leave branch.