How do people in Oman pay online?
Online payments are growing fast. Central Bank of Oman figures reported by Oman Observer show that transactions through local electronic payment gateways rose from 67 million in 2024 to more than 168 million in 2025, worth about RO 3.2 billion, up 76.3%. Card payments at the point of sale passed RO 7.5 billion in the same year.
Debit cards dominate. The Central Bank’s annual report, as reported by Oman Observer, counted 4,963,116 cards in 2024. Of the active cards, 4.6 million (93%) were debit, 239,300 credit and 93,000 prepaid. Domestic debit cards run on OmanNet, the national switch the Central Bank operates. Checkout.com describes OmanNet as a debit card gateway provided by the Central Bank, with processing and settlement in OMR and access through a local acquirer. The Central Bank also developed Maal, a national debit card on OmanNet that works for online payments within Oman.
Wallets arrived recently. After the Central Bank issued card tokenisation guidelines in 2023, Samsung Pay launched at the end of April 2024 and Apple Pay in September 2024. Gulf News listed Bank Muscat, Sohar International, Bank Dhofar, NBO and others among the first banks. In 2024 tokenised card payments reached about 51.89 million transactions, and Apple Pay accounted for 93% of them.
Instant transfers are mostly between people. The Mobile Payment Clearing and Switching System lets users pay by mobile number, alias or QR code. Person-to-person payments rose to 169.36 million in 2024, while person-to-business payments were 190,900, so it is not yet a common checkout option. Visa and Mastercard cover credit cards and cards issued abroad.
What rules shape online payments in Oman?
VAT is 5%. Oman introduced VAT on 16 April 2021. Resident businesses register once annual supplies pass OMR 38,500. Deloitte notes that there is no minimum threshold for a non-resident making taxable supplies to customers in Oman who are not registered for VAT, so a foreign seller of services to consumers registers from the first sale. Goods from outside the GCC generally pay customs duty of 5% of the cost, insurance and freight value.
E-commerce needs a licence. Ministerial Decision 499/2023 of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion requires anyone practising e-commerce in Oman to apply for a licence electronically. Further regulations issued in 2024 under the Consumer Protection Law, Royal Decree 66/2014, apply to providers based in Oman or with a representative there. They must display products accurately, state the place, date and method of delivery, and publish a clear exchange and return policy.
Personal data needs explicit consent. The Personal Data Protection Law, Royal Decree 6/2022, became fully enforceable on 5 February 2026, when the transition period under its Executive Regulation (Ministerial Decision 34/2024) ended. Processing needs explicit, informed consent unless an exemption applies, and transfers outside Oman need the data subject’s explicit consent and a destination with equivalent protection.
How would Omno route payments in Oman?
A merchant would connect once and set routing rules per method, currency and customer group. In Oman:
- OmanNet pay-ins would go to a provider that connects to OmanNet through a local acquiring bank, with the hosted checkout handling the card step and the final status confirmed by webhook.
- Apple Pay would be offered in the hosted checkout where the provider supports it, with rules that send Omani wallet payments to providers that accept tokenised Omani cards.
- International cards can be routed by BIN, so credit cards and cards issued abroad go to an acquirer for Visa or Mastercard, with cascading to the next provider in the rule if one is unavailable or rejects the request.
Webhooks would report the final status of every payment, and the routing-decision log would show which provider handled each payment and why.
What should merchants plan for?
Plan for OmanNet first. Most Omani cards are domestic debit cards, so a checkout that only takes international cards misses most shoppers. OmanNet acceptance needs a local acquirer.
Plan for three-decimal amounts. The Omani rial has three decimal places under ISO 4217, so amounts sent in minor units are multiplied by 1,000, and a formatting error charges the wrong amount.
Plan for Apple Pay. Wallet payments grew quickly after launch, and Apple Pay held 93% of tokenised card transactions in 2024.
Plan for VAT, licensing and consent. Foreign sellers of services register for VAT from the first sale, local sellers need an e-commerce licence, and checkout forms need explicit consent for any personal data processed or sent abroad.