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:

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Scope of Application

The biggest difference between the two instruments is their scope. The policy applies to personal data held by the government while the law applies to everyone else. This is peculiar because government entities are amongst the largest retrievers of personal data (the government collects data for public services such as healthcare and education) and they should be held accountable under the law, which as will be shown below has more obligations and restrictions.

Legal Effect

Although policies in Oman are expected to be followed, they are not legally binding, and merely serve as guidelines. Accordingly, while the Personal Data Protection Law is legally binding, the Personal Data Protection Policy is not. This means that the provisions of the policy serve as recommendations rather than being required to be followed.

Nature of Rights

The personal data protection legislation is usually comprehensive, as it covers the rights of the data subjects, obligations of data controllers, and the means by which data is received and transferred. These areas all covered in the Omani Personal Data Protection Law in great detail, but only vaguely outlined in the Personal Data Protection Policy, which serves to offer practical guidelines for the procedures of implementing the concepts of data protection.

Data Protection Officer

Under the Personal Data Protection Law, it is mandatory to appoint a data protection officer (DPO) as an expert who upholds the integrity of data processing and keeps their respective entity in check. Lacking a DPO is illegal, and could potentially invite heavy fines. No such mandate is found in the Personal Data Protection Policy, which is problematic since government entities are exempt from the law. This weakens accountability, proficiency, and leads to inconsistent data processing methods.

Conclusion

These were four important differences between the Personal Data Protection Law and the Personal Data Protection Policy. It must be noted that entities are expected to comply with both legal instruments by 2026.

It is highly recommended that you review these two important legal instruments down below. You can read these two documents in full in English at the link below:

Prior to this new decision, employees subject to the Labour Law were entitled to a 3% annual increment on their basic wage as long as the performance of the employee is not deemed “poor”.

Under the new decision, the percentage of the annual increment can range between 5% and 2% depending on the performance of the employee, and can be withheld completely if the performance of the employee is deemed “poor”.

This obligation is imposed in relation to Omani employees only. Employers found in violation of this decision are to be fined 50 Rial Omani for each employee against whom a violation is committed.

The decision also provides some grounds for suspending the implementation of the annual increment in general as we all rules for withholding the increment for individual employees.

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

Ownership Structure

LLCs are formed by multiple shareholders, with a minimum of two and a maximum of fifty shareholders. The share capital is divided among these shareholders. Whereas, SPCs are owned entirely and exclusively by one individual or entity. Thats why many people understand SPCs to be essentially LLCs, but with a single shareholder.

Number of Companies a Person Can Establish

LLCs have no specific limitation on the number of companies a person can establish, on the other hand, in regard to SPCs, a natural person may not establish more than one SPC, and a SPC cannot establish another SPC.

Management and Continuity upon Owner’s Death

In terms of management and continuity, LLCs are managed by one or more managers appointed by the shareholders, and the company continues to exist regardless of changes in shareholders. Whilst SPCs are managed by the sole owner, who may also appoint managers, and a SPC ceases to exist upon the death of the owner unless the shares of the heirs are held by one person or the heirs decide to change the SPC to a different legal form.

Operational Formalities

A LLC is required to have a shareholders meeting at least once a year, and it must appoint an external auditor if certain conditions are met (such as having more than seven shareholders or having a capital exceeding fifty thousand Rial Omani). These formalities are not required for SPCs at all.

Conclusion

LLCs and SPCs are very similar, but there are some key differences between them. It is highly recommended for any lawyer working in corporate matters to familiarise themselves with all the provisions of the Commercial Companies Law. You can read the Commercial Companies Law in English in full at the link below:

Written by:

Malaak Al-Lawati

Malaak is a legal intern at Decree. She has previously interned in private practice. She is interested in corporate law and commercial law. She is about to start the final year of her LLB degree at Cardiff University.

1. Annual Leave

The annual leave is the most common type of leave, it entitles an employee to a minimum of 30 days of paid leave, granted they complete six months of employment. It can be taken in parts and can be carried over to the next year, provided that the total balance does not exceed 30 days, unless the leave was not taken due to work requirements.

2. Maternity Leave

Female employees are entitled to 98 days of paid maternity leave. This could be started at most 14 days before the expected date of birth. Something interesting most people don’t know is that this special treatment extends to when she comes back to work, as she is entitled to a one hour paid break per day for childcare for one year.

3. Paternity Leave

New fathers can get 7 days of paid paternity leave within 98 days of the child’s birth. If the mother passes away during childbirth or while on maternity leave, the father is entitled to the remainder of the maternity leave.

4. Sick Leave

If an employee provides a medical certificate from a recognised medical authority, the employee is granted a maximum of 182 days of sick leave per year. The employee is entitled to the full salary for the first 21 days. Should the employee’s illness continue, the pay is gradually reduced: the employee receives 75% of the salary for days 22-35, 50% for days 36-70, and 35% for the remaining time up to the 182-day annual limit.

5. Bereavement Leave

When losing a loved one, the Omani Labour Law grants employees paid leave to grieve. The employee is entitled to 10 days for the death of a spouse or child, 3 days for a parent, grandparent, or sibling, and 2 days for an aunt or uncle.

6. Iddah Leave

Iddah in Sharia law is the period a Muslim woman must observe in her home after the death of her husband. In that case, she is allowed 130 days, as opposed to 14 days for non-Muslim women.

7. Hajj Leave

Hajj is the annual pilgrimage Muslims perform in Mecca. The Labour Law grants Muslim employees 15 days of paid leave once during their service to perform the Hajj.

Conclusion

These were some of the leaves granted to employees under the Labour Law. It is important to note that there are other types of leaves that were not covered, such as marriage, study, and patient accompaniment leave. We highly recommend that all employers and employees make themselves familiar with all the provisions of the Labour Law.

You can read the Labour Law in full in English at the link below:

Written by:

Khalid Al-Ghafry

Khalid is legal intern at Decree. He has previously interned in both Omani and international law firms. He is about to start his final year in Law School at the University of Manchester.

Under the original royal decree the branch of insurance against work injuries and occupational diseases for non-Omani workers was supposed to enter into force in July 2026, today’s royal decree pushed this date to July 2028. Similarly, the branch of insurance of sick leave and extraordinary sick leave was supposed to enter into force in July 2025, it has now been pushed to July 2026. Finally, the savings system was supposed to enter into force in July 2026, and now it will enter into force in July 2027.

You can read Royal Decree 60/2025 in English in full on the link below:

The amendment created a new requirement for authorised signatories to fall under specific categories of individuals who can take this role, such as partners in the company, members of the board of directors, and administrative and finance staff. Notably it appears that it is now not possible to appoint an employee of another company who does not fall under any of the categories specified as authorised signatory.

This amendment of the Commercial Companies Regulation enters into force tomorrow. You can read the full text of this amendment in English on the link below:

The circular does not have a specific entry date, so it is assumed that it is immediately enforceable.

It is worth noting that in the year 2020, Oman issued a decision banning single-use plastic bags, but in 2024 another decision was issued limiting the ban only to single-use plastic bags that have a thickness of less than 50 micrometers. This new circular by MOCIIP appears to further erode the ban of single-use plastic bags by making it mandatory for retail outlets to provide consumers with single-use bags, plastic or otherwise, free of charge. This goes against the international trend towards sustainability and encouraging people to reuse and recycle their bags as part of global environmental efforts.

You can read MOCIIP new decision on single-use bags 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: