MUSCAT : Individuals, employers, and workers are urged to take full advantage of the exemption and waiver package currently available, as no applications will be accepted after the deadline.

“The Ministry of Labour wishes to remind all individuals, employers, and workers that the grace period for rectifying legal status will end on 31 July 2025. Therefore, all concerned parties are urged to take advantage of the available exemptions before the stated deadline. No applications submitted after this date will be considered,” stated the alert.

This reminder follows an earlier statement issued in January of this year, which announced a significant package of waivers and financial settlements totalling over RO 60 million. This initiative, approved by the Honourable Council of Ministers, is part of the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to streamline workforce conditions, safeguard the rights of both individuals and employers, and positively contribute to the regulation of Oman’s labour market.

The package of waivers and financial settlements are outlined below:

1. Cancellation of all fines and financial dues owed to the Ministry for expired labour cards that have remained inactive for over seven calendar years. Individuals and employers will also be exempted from paying financial obligations recorded (cost of a worker’s repatriation ticket) for the year 2017 and earlier.
   
2. Cancellation of labour cards that have remained unused for a period exceeding ten years, provided their holders have not requested any related services. These cards may, however, be reactivated under specific conditions (e.g., renewal requests, departure, service transfer, or the registration of a work abandonment report).
   
3. Waiver of financial obligations recorded against liquidated companies, provided that workers are either repatriated or their services are transferred.
   
4. A grace period is announced (six months, starting from 1 February 2025) to regularise the status of workers and employers. During this period, fines associated with labour cards will be waived, if certain conditions are met, such as renewing labour card and payment of renewal fees for the next two years, cancellation of work abandonment reports, transfer of worker’s services, and payment of the repatriation ticket cost by the employer or worker in cases of the worker’s final departure.
   
   The Ministry also informed that applications related to this statement will be accepted from February 1, 2025 to July 31, 2025 via the Ministry’s official website and various service delivery channels.

For all the latest news from Oman and GCC, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our YouTube page, which is updated daily.