Category: Law Updates

In this week’s issue of the Official Gazette, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Water Resources published Ministerial Decision 137/2024 Amending Some Provisions of the Executive Regulation of the Agricultural Quarantine Law.

The amendment introduces a brand new article 9bis that imposes new potential requirements prior to issuing an agricultural licence by giving the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Water Resources the power to verify, before issuing the licence and at the cost of the importer, the agricultural practices, phytosanitary management systems, and risk analysis applied in farms, nurseries, or production sites, and evaluate them in the country of export or the country of origin.

The new amendment enters into force tomorrow. You can read it in full in English on the link below:

In accordance with article 127 of the Social Protection Law, the branch of maternity leave insurance applies compulsorily to all Omanis working in Oman, but this article left determining the extent to which it applies to non-Omanis to a decision by the Board of Directors of the Social Protection Fund. Beneficiaries of this insurance branch are entitled to 98 days of paid maternity leave.

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: 

ROP published in this week’s issue of the Official Gazette Decision 88/2024 Issuing the Controls for Providing Vehicle Technical Inspection Service which creates a framework for outsourcing Traffic Law related inspection to private sector establishments.

By virtue of this new decision, a private sector establishment wishing to apply for a licence to offer vehicle inspection services must be wholly owned by Omanis, must equip its garages with approved tools, must maintain an electronic database linked to the Directorate General of Traffic, and must employ qualified technicians who adhere to safety standards during inspections.

The controls impose a number of obligations on establishments licensed to offer this service, such as the prohibition against inspection of vehicles involved in accidents or the sale or installation of spare parts to bypass inspection.

Penalties for violating the new controls include warnings, fines of up to 100 Rial Omani (double upon repetition), as well as licence suspension or cancellation.

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

This week’s issue of the Official Gazette included the full text of Royal Decree 28/2024 Establishing the Omani Waqf Establishment and Promulgating Its System, which is a brand new government entity responsible for managing and investing waqf as well as the treasury, known as Bait Al-Mal, of the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs.

Articles 22 and 23 of the Social Protection Law provide for the creation of a medical committee and a number of medical grievance committees. The medical committee is responsible for licensing health establishments to issue reports for disability assessment, while the grievance committees are responsible for reviewing challenges made to the reports issued by these health establishments.

The Ministry of Interior issued in today’s Official Gazette a brand new Regulation Governing Cemeteries. This is Oman’s first ever legal instrument that governs the cemeteries and it outlines the management, establishment, and operational standards for cemeteries along with the requirements for burial practices, cemetery maintenance, and public health compliance.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) issued in today’s Official Gazette a new Decision E/25/2024 Issuing the Governance Regulation for the Account for the Treatment of Visitors in Emergencies. Under this new regulation, visitors to Oman will be able to request a subsidy of up to 5,000 Rial Omani from the government to cover their medical emergencies if they exhaust the limit of their existing health insurance, have an expired health insurance policy, or do not have any health insurance at all.

ROP issued in today’s issue of the Official Gazette a decision amending the Executive Regulation of the Traffic Law, adding a new chapter numbered threebis to the regulation that outlines the requirements for establishing bike riding schools. The addition of these amendments to the Executive Regulation of the Traffic Law puts in place for the first time a formal framework that applies to bike riding training in Oman.

The most recent issue of the Official Gazette published three royal decrees issued by His Majesty establishing three nature reserves: The Buraimi Oasis Natural Reserve, the Dhahirah Natural Reserve, and the Al-Jabal Al-Gharbi Natural Reserve. Some of you might be wondering, what is the purpose of these royal decrees and what are nature reserves? This blog will attempt to provide a very quick overview of this interesting area of law.

The Ministry of Technology, Communications, and Information Technology (MTCIT) issued at the beginning of this week a brand new data protection policy for government entities that sets the rules for the processing of personal data by government entities. The policy mandates that all government entities must commit to protecting personal data and must implement security measures against unauthorised access or breaches.