The new decision sets employer and employee obligations in the remote work environment. Employer obligations including matters such as providing the equipment required for remote work and bearing the costs for their installation and maintenance as a default position unless agreed otherwise with the worker. The new decision also prohibits employers from violating the privacy of their workers when employers monitor the performance of remote workers. Workers also have obligations under this new decision such as an obligation to carry out the work assigned to them during the agreed working hours.

One of the most interesting aspects of this MOL decision is that it only recognises remote work conducted within the Sultanate of Oman and prohibits employers from hiring workers working remotely outside the Sultanate. This, of course, has no restrictions on the ability of an employer in the Sultanate of Oman to hire independent contractors working remotely outside the country, the law merely does not recognise this as employment under the Labour Law.

The Ministry of Labour Decision 523/2025 Regarding the Governance of Remote Work has already entered into force. You can read it in full in English on the link below along with our compliance toolkit:

This regulation allows closed joint stock companies (SAOCs), referred to as rising companies in the regulation, to be listed on the Rising Companies Market. The regulation provides that rising companies can be listed in the market either through direct listing or indirect listing if the rising company meets the requirements for the method it wishes to be listed through.

This new regulation paves the way for SAOCs to increase their capital and opportunities of investments from serious and qualified investors, and it can be seen as a way of encouraging LLCs to become SAOCs and be listed on the Rising Companies Market.

This decision comes into force as of tomorrow. To learn more about the Regulation Governing the Rising Companies Market, you can read it in full in English on the link below:

Under the new Advocacy and Legal Consultancy Law, a lawyer would have to register as a trainee advocate and complete several formalities before qualifying as an advocate permitted to appear before primary courts. These formalities require registering a trainee advocate in an advocacy law firm for a period of two years, undertake a formal training programme organised by the MJLA, and complete an exam. At the time of writing, the MJLA has only published the details of a transitional training programme and exam that trainee advocates that have registered before the entry into force of the law and who complete a period of two years before 3 October 2025 must perform.

For trainee advocates that fall under this category, the MJLA has detailed in its newly published guide that the mandatory training programme will be an online self-study programme delivered through a series of pre-recorded videos. The programme will cover topics such as court procedure, litigation skills, statement writing skills, administrative law, labour law, penal law, analytics skills, commercial law, personal status law, and advocacy ethics.

In addition to the requirement to complete the online course, trainee advocates who complete their training period before 3 October 2025 would also be required to complete an exam. This will be a single 3-hour paper exam taken in person in the Arabic language. This exam will have three parts: legal knowledge questions, an exercise for analysing a hypothetical case file, and an exercise for writing a legal opinion or a section of a contract.

Trainee advocates are required to score 70% or more to pass the exam. There will also be a fee of 50 Rial Omani to enter the exam.

The actual date for the exam has not been specified yet, and is expected to be announced by the MJLA on social media in the upcoming months.

You can view the Arabic language guide for the transitional qualification requirements for trainee advocates on the link below:

The system sets the overall framework for the training programme and specifies that the MJLA might conduct this training programme online or offline. The training programme must be completed within a period that does not exceed six months, and the overall score is based on attendance (10%), active participation in the sessions (20%), and exam results (70%). Trainees are required to achieve an overall score of 70% to pass the programme.

The actual specifics of the content of the programme or the nature of the exams are not mentioned in the system.

It is also worth noting that this system only relates to the training of trainee advocates and government officers doing litigation work and does not cover the continuous education requirements for advocates in the upper rolls.

This training system has already entered into force. You can read it in full in English on the link below:

Oman had its first Electronic Transactions Law in 2008, which was based on model laws developed by the UNCITRAL for e-signature and e-commerce. As a result, the Omani Electronic Transactions Law of 2008 gave electronic transactions the same power as paper transactions, and created the legal framework for electronic signatures, authentication, intermediary liability, and even data protection in connection with electronic transactions.

The new Electronic Transactions Law of 2025 does not make any groundbreaking changes to the existing comprehensive framework set by the Electronic Transactions Law of 2008. Instead, it carefully adjusts its scope, modernises the technical concepts used by the law, and imposes higher punishments for violating the law.

In terms of scope, the new law explicitly states that it does not prejudice regulations set by the CBO in all matters relating to the regulation of banks and financial institutions, which suggests that CBO now has the power to override certain provisions of this law. The previous law also excluded personal status matters, court procedures, and transactions that require attestation by the Public Notary from its scope. All these exclusions have been removed from the new law.

The new law also replaces the concept of “certification services” with the much wider concept of “trust services”, which is defined in article 24 of the law to cover issuance of electronic authentication certificates, qualified electronic signatures, electronic seals, verification of electronic identity, and electronic delivery services.

Furthermore, the law now makes a distinction between simple electronic signatures, advanced electronic signatures, and qualified electronic signatures; sets new rules for recognising such signatures as reliable evidence; and specifies which of these types are considered trust services.

Finally, the law increases the punishments that may be imposed for violating the law from a maximum of 5,000 Rial Omani under the old law to 50,000 Rial Omani under the new law.

The new Electronic Transactions Law has already entered into force. You can read it in full in English on the link below:

This guideline is based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals and prescribes a number of actions under different headings that postal companies can adopt to reduce their carbon emissions. For example, under the heading Vehicles and Means of Transport, it is suggested that postal companies should ensure that an annual percentage is set for converting their delivery vehicles to modern and environmentally friendly vehicles.

Even though this guideline is not legally binding, it is highly recommended that postal companies consider them, especially as the guideline states that the TRA will issue—in cooperation with other government entities—directives with implementation targets and timelines.

You can read this guideline in full in English on the link below:

According to the new regulation, a person wishing to establish a day care centre for the elderly must obtain a licence from the MOSD. Applicants for this licence can be natural persons, companies, or civil associations. Applicants are required to provide a bank guarantee of 3,000 Rial Omani when submitting their applications except for civil associations.

The regulation sets the obligations of the licensee to include preparing internal regulations of the day care centre and appointing a Omani person as the manager of the centre.

You can read this regulation in full in English on the link below:

Article 12 of the regulation sets out that a financial guarantee must be provided to the authority when applying for an environmental permit for specific projects. As per the amendment, a financial guarantee of 250,000 Rial Omani must now be provided for oil and gas production projects per site.

Article 21 of the regulation sets out certain obligations of the project owner. As per the amendment, project owners are now required to submit an environmental audit study for specific projects. These projects include oil refineries, heavy industries, and oil and gas production, among others.

You can read this amendment in full in English on the link below:

You can also read the consolidated version of the Regulation Governing Environmental Permits on the link below:

This week’s issue of the Official Gazette included a decision by SPF on this matter, and it stipulates that the maternity leave insurance branch applies compulsorily to non-Omanis working in the government as well as those working in private sector establishments to whom the Labour Law applies.

You can read the text in full in English at the link below: 

The newly issued decision provides a more realistic and specific approach to the ban of plastic bags by setting the thickness of banned single-use plastic shopping bags to be less than 50 micrometres. The decision also introduces a time plan for limiting the use of plastic shopping bags across different commercial activities after which the single-use of plastic shopping bags is formally banned. The implementation of this time plan commences on 1 July 2024 for activities such as pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals. The plan aims to achieve an environmentally friendly shopping experience that is free of plastic bags by 1 July 2025.

An administrative fine between 50 Rial Omani and 1,000 Rial Omani will be imposed against those who violate the new decision.

You can read the decision in full in English on the link below:

Written by:

Aram Al-Bahri

Aram Al-Bahri is a Legal Associate at Decree. She holds an LLB Law Degree from the University of Leeds. She works in the area of labour and corporate law and has expertise in the field of policymaking.