Over 7,600 expats register to exit Oman as part of its initiative to waive overstay fines

A total of 7,689 expatriates have registered to exit Oman as the country begins the implementation of an initiative to waive overstay fines for those who leave.

Oman’s Ministry of Labour, which opened up online registration on November 15, confirmed that 7,689 expats had registered within the first five days.

Those registered include 3,765 expats whose work permits are active, 3,263 who are unemployed as well as 408 without work permits. A further 253 expats had cancelled permits, the ministry said.

The initiative runs until the end of the year.

إحصائيات منظومة إدارة فترة تسهيل إجراءات مغادرة القوى العاملة غير العمانية للفترة من 15 نوفمبر وحتى 19 نوفمبر 2020م. pic.twitter.com/mqB963yMCD

— وزارة العمل -سلطنة عُمان (@Labour_OMAN) November 21, 2020

Oman has seen an exodus of expatriates in recent months, with the country’s population estimated to have shrunk in the 12 months to September 2020, local daily Times Of Oman reported, citing data from the National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

Expatriate numbers reduced to 1,706,633 in September 2020, compared to 2,001,003 in September 2019, a drop of over 17 per cent.

More than 40,000 expatriates left in August 2020, the report added.