Another shocker for Gulf expats as Oman bans visa for ‘outsiders’ in ten sectors

Muscat: The Minister of Manpower, Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Bakri, issued a ministerial decision banning temporarily the licences for recruitment of expatriate manpower in ten professions, reported Times of Oman.

The decision shall take effect from the day of its publication in the Official Gazette.

As a result of the ban, recruitment of expatriate manpower by the private sector in ten sectors will not be allowed for six months. However, the licences issued prior to the date of effect of the decision will remain valid until the expiry of their respective terms, the daily added. .

The decision does not apply to establishments owned by employers wholly devoted to management of their establishments which are registered with the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Development and insured with the Public Authority for Social Insurance (PASI).

The professions banned fall under the sectors of information systems, sales, marketing, administration, human resources, insurance, media, airports, engineering and technical professions.

Business sources see the decision as Oman government's way of making employers look for Omani professionals, as sometimes companies do not do enough for such search, and instead go for the easier way of hiring foreigners whom they generally prefer. Thus, six months is seen as the period for searching for and hiring Omanis for such positions and after this period the government can assess the effect of the ruling. Thereby the government aims at correcting the mismatch between need and availability in job categories.

There is also a hope that if the economy picks up with current oil price rise, there may not be any need for this law, with enough job openings for both Omanis and expatriates. However, expatriate employers and employees well recognize the existence of the long-term goal of Omanisation, a government policy by which the need for expatriate professionals is targeted to be ended.