The Sultanate of
Oman
General
Useful Information
Passport & Visas, Entry
Formalities
- All visitors must
hold a valid passport.
- Prospective visitors
to Oman should obtain a visa issued from the Directorate General of
Immigration (Royal Oman Police) by contacting one of the following
authorities
- The Oman
Embassies & Consulates abroad
- The Dept. of
Immigration and passports at Al Buraimi or the Sultanate’s
commercial office in Dubai for those entering through the Border
crossing at Wajajah, Hafit and Hatta at the UAE border.
- A two week entry
visa will be issued for businessmen without a sponsor, the issuance
of the visa takes one week from the date of submission.
- Transit visas for
twenty four hours are issued at Seeb International Airport.
- The ordinary visit
visas require an Omani sponsor, duration is for three months and it
takes one week to obtain.
- Nationals of the
G.C.C. States may enter the Sultanate of Oman without a visa.
- Books, magazines,
other printed matter, video cassettes and movie films are subject to
censorship at the entry points.
- The following
imports are strictly prohibited:
- Alcohol
- Fresh foods
- Israeli Currency
- Firearms
Time
GMT +4 hours
Official Holidays
- Hijra New Year One
day - 1st Moharrum
- Prophet’s birthday
One day – 12th Rabi-Al-Awai
- Isra and Meiraj One
day 27th Rajab
- Eid Al – Fitr 1st
– 4th Shawal
- Eid Al Adha Three to
Five Days 9th to 13th Al Hijjrah
- National Day Two
days 18th and 19th November
- Friday (&
Thursday for govt. offices)
Office Hours
- Ministries and
Government Establishments
07:30 a.m. to 02:30 p.m. Saturday to Wednesday
Thursday and Friday – Official holidays
- Private Sector
Companies
08:00 am to 01:00 pm
04:00 pm to 07:00 pm
Many private sector companies work non-break shift schedules.
- Markets
08:00 am to 01:00 pm
04:00 pm to 09:00 pm
except Muttrah market which closes at 07:30 pm
- Banks
08:00 am to 12:20 pm
- Museums
08:00 am to 01:00 pm, except Fridays
and Official holidays.
Postal Services
Oman has several post
offices and there is a high frequency airmail system to overseas
destinations. There is also an express mail service for urgent postage
delivery. The Sultanate also has branch offices of most of the top
international courier services.
Media
Two English daily
Newspapers are published in the Sultanate – The Oman Observer and
the Times of Oman. Other magazines published locally and outside the
country are also available. The Arabic newspapers include Al Watan, Al
Shabiba and Oman Daily newspaper.
Currency
The Omani Riyal is
divided into 1,000 Baizas. RO1/- = US$2.58. Currency notes are
available in denominations : RO 50, 20, 10, 5, 1. Currency notes are
also available in 100, 200, quarter and half Riyal denominations.
Coins are available in denominations of 500, 250, 100, 50, 25, 10 and
5 baizas.
Dress
Like all Arab
countries, Arab Islamic culture dominates the style of life in the
Sultanate. However, being an international market, other cultures of
various nationalities are widely visible. Both men and women are
expected to dress conservatively in public places.
Ramadhan
It is a fasting month
for Muslims and starts 10 days earlier each year according to the
Gregorian calendar. During the day time Muslims refrain from eating,
drinking and smoking. Therefore, eating, drinking and smoking in
public is prohibited for all during Ramadhan. Office timings are
slightly changed to shorter working hours and business meetings are
sometimes difficult to arrange.
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Traditional Aflaj Irrigation System
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