Decree BlogHis Majesty issued earlier this week a royal decree promulgating a new Media Law that overhauls the legal framework for the dissemination of media through all mediums including newspapers, radio and TV channels, cinemas, and physical artwork and medium, setting unified rules for all forms of media irrespective of the platform.
The Ministry of Social Development published in this week’s issue of the Official Gazette a new Governance Regulation for Elderly Day Care Centres which provides the legal framework for establishing and operating a day care centre for the elderly.
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:
His Majesty issued yesterday a new law called the National Records Law that requires all government entities, government-owned companies, and certain private companies to directly integrate with Royal Oman Police to store the data that ROP deems required to maintain a newly created national records database. If an entity is not able to directly integrate with ROP to electronically provide the data that ROP requests, the entity is required to provide the data to ROP using traditional means. In both cases, it is not permitted to require ROP to pay any fees for the cost of integration or transfer of the requested data.
Earlier this month, the new Law Regulating Wildlife Trade was promulgated by His Majesty. This is a brand new law that complements other laws for protecting wildlife, such as the Nature Reserves and Wildlife Conservation Law of 2003 and the Nature Reserves and Wildlife Conservation Law of 2003.
Earlier this week, the Ministry of Labour issued in the Official Gazette Ministerial Decision 617/2024 regarding the System of Complaints and Grievances, which is a brand new system under the Labour Law in Oman that applies to any company in Oman that has 50 employees or more. The system requires the company to have a system in place for allowing employees to challenge any decision made against them by submitting a complaint to their line manager, who must respond to this complaint within 2 working days. If the employee does not receive a response from his line manager, or if the response he receives is a rejection of this complaint, the employee has the right to submit a complaint to the actual employer, who must respond to this complaint within 5 working days.
The Environment Authority (EA) issued in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 187/2024 Amending Some Provisions of the Regulation Governing Environmental Permits, which amends articles 12 and 21 of the regulation.
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:
The Ministry of Labour published in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 451/2024 Determining the Rules for Settlement and Abandonment of the Lawsuit for Crimes Punishable under the Labour Law, which repeals Decision 561/2009 and creates a new framework for settling violations of the Labour Law.
Under the 2009 decision, it was required to pay half the maximum fine prescribed for a violation in order for it to be settled. The new decision reduces this amount by requiring the payment of a quarter of the maximum fine for the crime only. The old decision also had a restriction where it was not allowed to settle a violation that involved more than 10 workers or if the same violation is reported more than twice, however, the new decision removes this requirement and introduces a new requirement to pay a 1,000 Rial Omani fine in regard to violations involving multiple employees pursuant to article 143(1) of the Labour Law.
The new decision also provides a more comprehensive framework for submitting applications for settlement and provides additional details for the cases in which a non-Omani worker has to be deported.
You can read this ministerial decision in full in English on the link below:
The Ministry of Labour published in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 450/2024, repealing Decision 90/2013 and issuing a new framework for dealing with private sector establishments that violate the Labour Law. The decision of 2013 provided a very simple set of provisions for dealing with violations, whereas the new decision provides a more comprehensive framework.
The new decision clarifies the process for policing violations and stipulates that reports can only be issued by employees with judicial enforcement status. It also clarifies that employees must have an identity card stating their identity, which they are required to disclose if asked.
The main provision of the 2013 and 2024 decisions is the MOL’s power to suspend the services of companies that violate Labour Law. The 2024 decision changes these services by removing old provisions and adding new ones, and they include services such as issuing work permits to non-Omanis and transferring the services of the violating workers.
You can read the full decision in English on the link below:
The Environment Authority published in this week’s Official Gazzete Decision 150/2024 Issuing the Regulation Governing the Possession of Domesticated Wild Animals.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) published in this week’s Official Gazette Decision 1152/2/19/2024-12 Issuing the Regulation on the Governance and Approval of Telecommunications Devices, repealing the Regulation of Dealing in Telecommunications Devices of 2015.