Bank Account

You need a residence visa before you can open an account, the visa proves your right to be in Oman. You also require a ‘letter of no objection’ or a ‘no objection certificate’ (NOC) from your employer. The employer should state your salary to show the amount that will regularly be paid into the bank. Some banks will ask to see your tenancy agreement in order to establish your residential address, and most will ask for a photocopy of your passport. You should take copies of all these documents, as well as several passport-size photographs with you when you go to the bank.

A worker’s dependants (e.g. wife and family) can open an account with his permission, as he is considered their de-facto sponsor.

When moving to Oman to live and work, it’s unlikely that you will close your bank account at home, particularly if you still have payments to make to cover financial commitments in your home country. In order to limit your tax liabilities there, however, you should keep these accounts´ activity to a minimum.

Look into opening an offshore bank account to maximize your savings.

Current Accounts

Cash is preferred for everyday transactions in Oman, where people are generally suspicious of cheques. In fact, although utilities companies and other major service providers accept personal cheques for regular payments, local retailers do not. Cheques do not guarantee payment, even though issuing a cheque without the necessary funds in your account is a criminal offence in Oman. Therefore, most current accounts are not cheque accounts, though these are also available.

All the standard banking services are offered by Omani banks, including: cheque clearance, standing orders, direct debits and credit card repayments. A certain number of transactions per year are usually free, after which the bank levies a small fee, usually at the discretion of the bank manager. Charges vary between banks, as they do in other countries, so shop around before opening an account with a particular bank. Cash dispenser cards are issued as a matter of routine, with the standard security measure of personal identification numbers (PIN) to allow access to your money through ATMs. Personal credit and charge cards, most of them underwritten by Visa or Mastercard, might also be issued by a bank, but you must be negotiate their purchase with your banker and they often come with spending restrictions.