Oman to provide work visas for expats online

Oman has decided to grant or renew visas online for expatriate workers entering its shores within two years, said a statement of the Oman’s Ministry of Manpower (MoM).

It was announced by the ministry after it awarded a contract to an Estonian company to transfer all work visa applications online. Hereafter, employers and recruiters will not need to physically visit the various ministries and government departments to obtain clearances before they hire employees.

A ministry official said that the transition to online will entail six phases and should be ready within two years. A spokeswoman, meanwhile, said the visas of housemaids have been already made available online.

Employers and expatriates working in Oman are said to have lauded this move.

An official from the MoM was quoted by the Times of Oman as saying that they were currently transitioning their services online. Included in these services is the work permit system, which will meet the national manpower recruitment’s requirements. The official said that with this project, they can apply for a permit electronically without needing to visit the ministry. If companies meet the requirements, they will be able to obtain permits, the official added.

The official said that this project also seeks to increase indicator levels of Oman’s performance in the labour market’s efficiency and the manpower management at the international and regional levels in line with the laws in place in the country.

MoM said that with the help of the AMMS (Advanced Manpower Management System), a model has been developed to handle the expatriate workforce more effectively so that development needs at the national level can be supported.

A development agreement had been inked by the MoM and the Information Technology Authority with an Estonian company prior to this development in 2017 to complete the project within two years.

The official said that the project would take two years, as it involves six levels. To migrate to an electronic service, the project needs to pass through various levels, including classification of information, data collection, trial period and the general launch. The official added that they hoped this project would regulate the procedures, enhance service efficiency and improve transparency, besides also helping attain the objectives of recruitment and cutting down the number of job seekers and improving through the training programs skill level of the national workforce.

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