Oman to generate OMR310m from expat visa fees

Muscat: Oman expects to generate around OMR300 million as fee on expatriate licenses in 2017, the state budget data released on January 1 reveals.
Detailing the tax and fee revenues in the 2017 state budget, the Ministry of Finance says that OMR310 million is expected to be collected as fee for non-Omani labour licenses.
In 2017 state budget, the aggregate revenues are estimated at OMR8.7 billion, increasing by (18 per cent) as compared to projected actual revenues for 2016.
Also read: Budget 2017 aims to put Oman on right track
These revenues consist of oil and gas revenues of OMR6.11 billion, representing (70 per cent) of total revenues.
Non-oil revenues are estimated around OMR2.59 billion i.e. (30 per cent) of total revenues, such revenues are to be collected.
Last year in November, the Ministry of Manpower had announced that job visa fees for expatriate workers will be increased by 50 per cent.
“Currently for workers in private sector, to obtain a job visa and renewing the same, the sponsor should pay OMR201. Now, it has been increased to OMR301,” officials had said then.
For domestic workers, camel herders and farm workers, the fees have also changed, the ministry official added.
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“For domestic workers, it is different. To recruit up to three workers, for each worker it is OMR141, and to recruit the fourth domestic worker, the sponsor should pay OMR241. Moreover, if the employer is going to keep all four domestic workers and renew all four visas for two more years, then the employer should pay OMR241 for each worker,” the official added.
According to the official, job visas for three expatriate farmers and camel herders under the same employer will be OMR201 for each.
However, for the fourth recruit, it will be OMR301, the official said, adding that if the employer is going to keep all four domestic workers and renew all four visas for two more years, then the employer should pay OMR301 for each worker.
“To update information on the nature of the worker status an OMR5 will be charged as fee and the same as well as for switching sponsors,” the official said, adding that the decisions will come out soon in the gazette.
Oman’s population touched 4,546,830 by the end of November, marking a 0.3 per cent increase over September figures, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
The number of Omanis stood at 2,465,768 who constitute 54.2 per cent of the total population, while the number of expatriates stood at 2,081,062.