Oman

Research notes

Oman — family-office tax dossier

Last reviewed: 2026-10-15 Tax year: 2026 Reviewer: research agent (Claude), unreviewed by a tax adviser

Summary

In tax year 2026 Oman has no personal income tax, no capital gains, dividend, inheritance, gift or wealth tax for individuals. But a Personal Income Tax Law has been ENACTED (Royal Decree 56/2025) and takes effect 1 January 2028: 5% on worldwide income (including foreign dividends and gains on shares and real estate) above OMR 42,000 for residents, with exemptions for Muscat-listed shares, the main residence, and inheritances/gifts between spouses and first-degree relatives. Corporate tax 15%; dividend/interest WHT suspended; VAT 5%.

Residence and eligibility

No personal income tax in 2026. Under the PIT law from 2028: Omani citizens and expatriates present 183+ days in Oman are tax resident (PwC); residents taxed on worldwide income.

• Investor residency (long-term) (EU, US, OTHER): Long-term (5/10-year) investor residence cards exist for property and business investors; thresholds not verified in this pass.

Capital gains

2026: no capital gains tax for individuals. From 1 January 2028 the enacted PIT will tax gains on shares, bonds and real estate at 5% above OMR 42,000 of total taxable income (Muscat-listed shares and main residence exempt).

• Rate basis: Law in force for 2026: no personal income tax (PIT effective 1 Jan 2028 per PwC). Rates 0 for 2026; from 2028 the effective top rate on foreign gains will approach 5%.
• Professional trader: Not relevant in 2026. Business income of individuals will fall under PIT from 2028 (15% deduction or actual expenses for self-employment).
• Foreign assets: 2026: not taxed. From 2028 residents are taxed on worldwide income.
• Important exceptions: ENACTED, NOT YET IN FORCE: Royal Decree 56/2025 (issued 22 June 2025, gazetted 30 June 2025) promulgates a Personal Income Tax Law effective 1 January 2028: 5% on taxable income above OMR 42,000 a year, on worldwide income of tax residents (Omani citizens and expatriates present 183+ days). Taxable categories include returns from stocks, shares and bonds and from their disposal, interest, and gains on real estate. Exemptions include income and disposal proceeds of shares listed on the Muscat Stock Exchange and government bonds, main residence (conditions), one secondary residence once in a lifetime, and inheritances, grants and donations between spouses and first-degree relatives. Executive Regulations are still awaited. From 2028 a wealthy resident would pay up to 5% on foreign dividends and gains above OMR 42,000.
• Confidence: high (partially_verified), verified 2026-10-15.
• JSON numbers: headline 0.0; listed domestic 0.0, listed foreign 0.0, private business 0.0, local real estate 0.0, foreign real estate 0.0.

Royal Decree 56/2025, read 2026-10-15 (qanoon.om reproduction, Official Gazette No. 1602 of 30 June 2025): Art. 4 sets the start date at 1 January 2028; Art. 8 sets the rate at 5%; Art. 1 defines net income as gross income above OMR 42,000 and a resident as someone present more than 183 days in the tax year; Art. 16 makes dividends and gains on shares taxable; Art. 25(8) exempts gains on a notified main residence held more than two years after notice; Art. 25(14) exempts inheritances and gifts between spouses and first-degree relatives. The reading of Art. 25 found exemptions for Omani government sukuk, bonds and bills but no general exemption for Muscat-listed shares, which PwC reports; to be checked against the Official Gazette and the Executive Regulations. Deloitte Oman Highlights 2026 confirms the 5% tax above OMR 42,000 from 1 January 2028. The 2026 score remains 0%.

Dividends

2026: dividends are not taxed. From 2028 returns from stocks, shares and bonds become taxable at 5% above OMR 42,000 (Muscat-listed shares exempt).

• Rate basis: No PIT in force in 2026; enacted PIT from 1 Jan 2028.
• Outbound WHT: WHT on dividends and interest paid to non-residents is suspended (0%) per PwC.
• Treaty network: 43 treaty partners listed by PwC (as of 2018; more signed); no treaty with the United States.
• Important exceptions: ENACTED, NOT YET IN FORCE: Royal Decree 56/2025 (issued 22 June 2025, gazetted 30 June 2025) promulgates a Personal Income Tax Law effective 1 January 2028: 5% on taxable income above OMR 42,000 a year, on worldwide income of tax residents (Omani citizens and expatriates present 183+ days). Taxable categories include returns from stocks, shares and bonds and from their disposal, interest, and gains on real estate. Exemptions include income and disposal proceeds of shares listed on the Muscat Stock Exchange and government bonds, main residence (conditions), one secondary residence once in a lifetime, and inheritances, grants and donations between spouses and first-degree relatives. Executive Regulations are still awaited. From 2028 a wealthy resident would pay up to 5% on foreign dividends and gains above OMR 42,000.
• Confidence: high (partially_verified), verified 2026-10-15.
• JSON numbers: domestic 0.0, foreign gross 0.0, credit method not_applicable.

Inheritance and gifts to children

No inheritance, estate or gift tax. The 2028 PIT exempts inheritances, grants and donations between spouses and first-degree relatives.

• Gift tax: None in 2026. From 2028 gifts from parents to children remain exempt under the PIT; gifts from others may be taxable income.
• Foreign assets: No tax on any asset.
• Domicile rules: Not relevant for tax.
• Thresholds: No tax, so no thresholds.
• Important exceptions: Succession, not tax, is the issue: personal status (family) law based on Sharia governs inheritance of Muslims, with fixed shares (a son typically takes twice a daughter's share) and at most one third freely disposable by will to non-heirs. How estates of non-Muslim foreigners are handled (home-country law, own religious rules, or Sharia by default) was not verified for this country; non-Muslim families should take local legal advice and hold portfolio assets outside the country or through a structure with a clear governing law. Under the 2028 PIT, 'grants and donations' from persons other than spouses and first-degree relatives are listed as taxable income.
• Confidence: high (partially_verified), verified 2026-10-15.
• JSON numbers: basis none, children fully_exempt, exemption 0, brackets none, other transfer cost 0.0.

Wealth tax

No net wealth tax.

• Property taxes: PwC: no other taxes on individuals. Property registration fees on transfers not verified.
• Confidence: high (partially_verified), verified 2026-10-15.
• JSON: type none.

Special regimes

None. Every resident is taxed the same way; no special regime is needed because the standard position is already nil (see Open questions for announced changes).

Company taxation (kept separate from personal tax)

15% corporate income tax; 3% for qualifying Omani SMEs; 55% petroleum income. Income Inclusion Rule (Pillar Two) effective 1 January 2025; no DMTT indicated. WHT on dividends and interest suspended. VAT 5%.

Cost of living notes

City: Muscat.

• prime_rent_monthly: 1,400 OMR (2026). Median monthly guide rent of the 6 four- and five-bedroom villas in Savills Oman's first results page of Muscat rentals on 2026-10-15 (Azaiba 5-bed 750, Azaiba 4-bed 650, Muscat townhouse 4-bed 900, Muscat Hills 5-bed 1,900, Al Mouj 5-bed 2,200, Al Khuwair 5-bed 2,500; OMR 650-2,500): OMR 1,400, the midpoint of 900 and 1,900. Replaces the Al Mouj waterfront 5-bedroom figure (OMR 2,200). Thin sample of one page; unfurnished/furnished not stated. Source: Properties for rent in Oman.
• intl_school_annual_fee: 10,666 OMR (2026). British School Muscat, Key Stage 5 (Years 12-13) annual tuition 2026-27 (KS4: OMR 9,503); plus an infrastructure fee of OMR 300 a term for the first 9 terms. TAISM (American) high school: OMR 11,560 plus OMR 4,500 capital levy. Source: British School Muscat - Fees 2026-2027.
• Purchase prices, health insurance and housekeeper costs not sourced.

US citizens: US citizens remain fully US-taxed; no Oman-US income tax treaty. From 2028 Omani PIT could become creditable against US tax.

Open questions

• PROMINENT: Oman's Personal Income Tax Law (Royal Decree 56/2025, Art. 4) takes effect 1 January 2028: 5% (Art. 8) on worldwide gross income above OMR 42,000 for residents present more than 183 days, including dividends and gains on shares (Art. 16). This file scores 2026 law (0%); a family planning beyond 2027 should expect up to 5% on foreign dividends and gains.
• Investor residency thresholds unverified.
• Executive Regulations for the PIT law not yet issued; how foreign capital gains are computed and timed is unclear.
• Muscat-listed share exemption: PwC reports an exemption for MSX-listed shares, but a reading of the decree text (qanoon.om reproduction) found Art. 25 exempting only Omani government sukuk/bonds/bills; to be checked against the Official Gazette and the Executive Regulations.
• Whether foreign tax credits will be available under the 2028 PIT not verified.
• Treatment of non-Muslim foreigners' estates under Oman's Personal Status Law not verified.

Sources

• Oman - Individual - Taxes on personal income (last reviewed 7 Jul 2026)
• Oman - Individual - Significant developments (Royal Decree 56/2025)
• Oman - Individual - Income determination (PIT from 2028)
• Oman - Individual - Deductions and exemptions (PIT from 2028)
• Oman - Corporate - Withholding taxes
• Oman - Individual - Other taxes
• Oman - Individual - Residence
• Personal Income Tax (Tax Authority portal)
• Oman - Corporate - Taxes on corporate income (last reviewed 7 Jul 2026)
• Royal Decree 56/2025 issuing the Personal Income Tax Law (unofficial reproduction; Official Gazette No. 1602, 30 June 2025) (Qanoon.om, other): https://qanoon.om/p/2025/rd2025056/
• Oman Highlights 2026 (updated January 2026) (Deloitte International Tax, professional): https://www.deloitte.com/content/dam/assets-shared/docs/services/tax/2026/dttl-tax-omanhighlights-2026.pdf
• Properties for rent in Oman (Savills Oman, professional): https://search.savills.com/oma/en/list/property-to-rent/oman
• British School Muscat - Fees 2026-2027 (British School Muscat, other): https://britishschoolmuscat.com/admissions/bsm-fees/

Change log

• 2026-10-15: initial research.
• 2026-10-15: data-quality pass: added prime rent (Savills Oman, Al Mouj 5-bed villa) and school fee (British School Muscat 2026-27); 2028 personal income tax moved to the top of open questions; decree text read via qanoon.om (Art. 4, 8, 16, 25) and Deloitte 2026 added; flagged a possible discrepancy on the Muscat-listed share exemption.
• 2026-10-15: family rent re-checked against the upper-middle-class standard: changed from 2,200 OMR to 1,400 OMR (Muscat 4-5 bed villas, median of 6).