Selling to government and contracts in Oman

01How government buys

Government bodies buy under the Tender Law (Royal Decree 36/2008). It covers ministries, public authorities and fully state-owned bodies.

• The implementing regulations are Ministerial Decision 29/2010.
• Defence and security bodies and entities with their own approved procurement rules are outside the Tender Law.
• The PPP Law (Royal Decree 52/2019) covers infrastructure projects.
• The Secretariat-General of the Tender Board became the Authority for Projects, Tenders and Local Content under Royal Decree 57/2025.
• Ministries need Ministry of Finance approval before tendering.
• Vendors register with the Tender Board in one of four categories: contractors, consultancies, supply companies or training institutes. Grades depend on capital and staffing.

02Thresholds, bonds and preferences

Public tender is required above OMR 10,000. Ministry tender boards award up to OMR 1 million.

• Larger projects go to the Tender Board.
• Tenders above OMR 500,000 also appear in the Official Gazette.
• Local SMEs have a bidding preference within a 10% price margin.
• Bid bond: at least 1% of contract price, valid at least 90 days.
• Performance bond: 5% of contract price, within 10 days for local bidders and 20 days for foreign bidders.

03Local presence of foreign bidders

A foreign bidder that wins an international award registers in Oman through one of three routes. Winners join the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI).

• The first route is registration in Oman within 30 working days of notice of the award.
• The second route is registration of a temporary branch for the contract term.
• The third route is an agency agreement registered with MOCIIP.
• Unregistered foreign bidders are monitored after award.
• Under the PPP Law a successful foreign bidder sets up an Omani project company. The project company can be wholly foreign-owned.
• Before award, government entities check a bidder's Omanisation compliance through the Isnad system.

04Local content

In-country value (ICV) applies across government tenders. It means investing at least 10% of contract value in Oman.

• Contracts above OMR 3 million need a local content plan approved by the National Office for Local Content. The authority can also review requirements for contracts from OMR 500,000.
• Bidders submit a plan with their bid and carry it into subcontracts. The plan sets out Omani workforce, local fixed assets and purchases from SMEs.
• Goods hold a national product identity from MOCIIP.
• Tender Board Circular 2025/2 tells government bodies not to contract with companies that miss their Omanisation rates.

05Commercial agents and distributors

The Commercial Agencies Law covers agents, representatives, distributors and other intermediaries. Commercial agency is an exception to 100% foreign ownership, so the agent is an Omani person or an Omani-owned company.

• The Commercial Agencies Law is Royal Decree 26/1977, amended by Royal Decree 34/2014, in force from 22 July 2014.
• Agency arrangements with a foreign principal are registered with MOCIIP. Commercial agents hold a MOCIIP licence.
• The 2014 amendment removed the ban on appointing more than one local agent for the same goods. Exclusivity is a matter for the contract.
• It removed the agent's statutory claim for commission on sales by another local agent, and the automatic renewal provisions.
• It deleted Article 10, which gave agents a statutory compensation claim on termination or non-renewal.
• It removed the Minister's power to ban a principal's goods from import.
• Competition rules allow authorities to limit the number of agencies one business holds where there are signs of monopoly.

06Contract law, language and currency

The Civil Transactions Law (Royal Decree 29/2013) governs contracts. The parties' agreement governs unless the law says otherwise.

• Laws are in Arabic.
• Arbitration seated in Oman defaults to Arabic unless the parties agree otherwise.
• Court filings need certified Arabic translation.

Currency

• The currency is the Omani rial (OMR). It is pegged to the US dollar at about OMR 1 = USD 2.6, or about 0.385 rial per dollar.
• One rial divides into 1,000 baisa.
• Credit ratings are BBB- (S&P), Baa3 (Moody's) and BBB- (Fitch), all stable.

07Courts

Primary Courts, Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court sit under the Basic Law (Royal Decree 6/2021). The Investment and Commerce Court has operated since 1 October 2025.

• Royal Decree 35/2025 (23 March 2025) created the Investment and Commerce Court. It has ten primary circuits and four appeal circuits outside Muscat.
• It hears commercial asset disputes, foreign capital investment, insolvency, public-private partnership contracts, arbitration applications, shareholder disputes, intellectual property, competition, banking, securities, insurance and maritime sales.
• It excludes administrative, labour and rental matters.
• IFC Oman has its own common-law courts of first instance and appeal.

08Arbitration and enforcement

The Arbitration Law (Royal Decree 47/1997) governs arbitration. Oman acceded to the New York Convention by Royal Decree 36/1998 and it applies from 1999.

• The Arbitration Law was last substantively amended by Royal Decree 3/2007.
• The Oman Commercial Arbitration Centre (Royal Decree 26/2018) issued revised rules in June 2026.
• The ICC is the institution most chosen for international disputes.
• Enforcement of foreign awards: a petition to the primary court with the award, the arbitration agreement and a certified Arabic translation. The court checks form and public policy and does not review the merits (Civil and Commercial Procedures Law, Royal Decree 29/2002, articles 352 and 353).
• Annulment: within 90 days of notification.
• Challenge to an arbitrator: within 15 days.