Saturday 20 / April / 2024
Muscat: The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MoCIIP) has launched an automatic license approval service. A statement issued online by Oman News Agency (ONA), said: "The launch of the automatic licenses approval service is a major and important initiative that falls within the axis of improved incentives for the business environment and investment in the economic stimulus plan, with the aim of allowing local and foreign investors to practice economic activities by obtaining an automatic license that allows them to engage in commercial activity. "
His Excellency the Minister of Commerce , Industry and Investment Promotion said that the approval of more than 1500 economic activities, which constitutes about 88 per cent of the total economic activities, will have automatic licenses issued through the Invest Easy portal. The portal issues one economic license for activity that includes all the licenses and approvals of the concerned authorities. Activities included are agriculture, fishing, manufacturing, repair and installation of machinery, equipment and apparatus, transportation and storage, electrical and water supplies, construction and building, vehicle maintenance and repair, wholesale and retail sale.
His Excellency the Minister added in his speech during the inauguration ceremony that the automatic licenses approval service comes in order to create a business environment that promotes growth and economic diversification and supports and enables the private sector as a key partner in development and leads the Omani economy to competitiveness and enhancing the Sultanate's international indicators regarding ease of practicing business, in accordance with the directions of Oman Vision 2040.
“Facilitating procedures related to investment in the Sultanate is at the top of the list of businessmen and business owners' demands, including small and medium enterprises and the launch of the automatic licensing approval service will reduce the cost of investment and will speed of completing transactions." He indicated that the total volume of foreign investment in the Sultanate until the end of 2020 amounted to about OMR 15 billion.
The new service links between 10 government institutions related to giving approvals in addition with MoCIIP which are ministry of Heritage and Tourism, Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning, ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, Environment Authority, Public Authority of Civil Defence and Ambulance, Ministry of Transportation, Communication and IT, eCommunication Regulatory Authority, Dhofar Municipality, Muscat Municipality and Interior ministry.
Later in the day, His Excellency the Undersecretary for Trade and Industry at the Ministry said at a press conference that over 80 licenses were granted by afternoon once the automatic approvals process began. “Since the launch of the automatic licensing approval service this morning, 84 businesses have received automatic approval."
