Oman is launching a Golden Visa scheme in a bid to attract investment and boost the sultanate’s economic diversification away from oil, as well as its digital strategy. Set to come into action from 31 August 2025, the program will allow long-term residency, as well as the right to work and study, with no need for a local sponsor.
Mubarak bin Mohammed Al Douhani, planning director at the Commerce, Industry and Investment Ministry, said the golden visa, alongside initiatives to support high-performing Omani firms, and a new “Oman Business” platform, will give investors stability and growth, and provide Omani firms with expansion opportunities through an online trade environment.
Under the plans, which are in line with Oman’s Vision 2040 plan to mitigate oil revenue reduction, would-be foreign investors will be able to apply for renewable residency permits for themselves, their partners, children under 25, and their dependent parents. Successful applicants will gain the right to own businesses and freehold property, as well as receive tax benefits, and enjoy access to education and healthcare.
There will be two main tiers of Golden Visa residency, which are renewable, under the condition that applicants still meet the criteria at the time of re-applying for the visa.
For a 10-year Golden Visa, costing 551 Omani rials (€1230), applicants must make a minimum investment of 500,000 Omani rials (€1.1 million) in government bonds, or a limited liability or stock-exchange-listed company, or property. Setting up a business that employs at least 50 Omanis is another possibility.
A five-year option is available too, in return for a company investment or property purchase worth 250,000 rials (€550,000). The five-year permit, costing 326 rials (around €728), is also open to people currently working in the country who wish to retire there, who can apply Extended Residence as long as they can demonstrate a fixed income of at least 4,000 rials (nearly €9,000) per month.
Oman is one of six Gulf nations cooperating on the development of a Schengen-style visa designed to facilitate travel across the region. It has seen huge year-on-year growth in its tourism sector recently, according to a report by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), whose 2024 Economic Impact Research (EIR) revealed that travel and tourism’s GDP contribution in the sultanate went up 35% between 2023 and 2024, with a remarkable 69% increase in international visitor spending – a trend that council has said will continue amid an “historic revival.”
The sultanate has promoted itself to visitors with the phrase “Beauty has an address,” in adverts targeting young female consumers, like those from fellow Gulf Cooperation Council member Saudi Arabia in 2024. Unlike the Saudi campaign that focused on a young independent woman, Oman’s protagonist appears to be a young mother, travelling with her family.
