OMAN Oman, waive the state ‘permission’ requirement to marry foreigners

The reform is a rare example of openness in a nation that remains conservative. The sultan’s decree, which has yet to be published, archives the 1993 law that assigned control and authorization tasks to the Interior Ministry. A significant percentage of workers from other countries in the Middle East, the Philippines, India and Pakistan live in the country.

Muscat () – Omani will no longer have to ask the state for permission to marry a foreign citizen. The “revolution”, a rare example of openness in social dynamics in a more conservative Gulf nation, was introduced in recent days following a royal decree issued by the Sultanate’s leadership. A change that is in keeping with the openness aspired to by leader Haitham bin Tariq al-Said, who, since assuming power in 2020 after 50 years of rule by Qaboos, his late predecessor, has undertaken long-delayed reforms to improve the fiscal stability and attract foreign investment.

According to the country’s media, under strict government control in a situation where the government tends to suppress dissent, Omani citizens previously had to meet certain conditions to marry a foreigner, including a minimum age. In the past, unauthorized marriages were punishable by fines and annulments. Decree 23/2023 signed by the Sultan repeals the previous 1993 law that gave the Ministry of the Interior the task and authority to “approve” marriages with immigrants or people without citizenship.

In an interview with Reuters and the omani daily Shabiba, lawyer and civil affairs expert Salah al-Maqbali noted that “the facts and circumstances of life have changed”, as has “the economic situation” since the 1993 law was introduced. The new decree specifies that Marriages must not violate sharia, Islamic law, public order or other provisions that restrict the marriage of foreigners with holders of certain functions or tasks in the government. For the rest, the lawyer concluded, “marriages considered illegal in the past can now be legalized”, although all the points of the reform will be clarified once the full text of the decree is published.

The Sultanate of Oman is located in the southeast of the region and is divided into 11 governorates and 61 provinces. It has a population of about 3.8 million (slightly more than half are citizens), mostly Arabs and a significant percentage of foreign workers from other Middle Eastern countries, the Philippines, India and Pakistan. Like many nations in the area, it has an economy based on hydrocarbons, especially natural gas, combined with the tourism sector. The reforms recently introduced, with the reduction of the debt to 40% of GDP last year (it was 60% in 2021), led the rating agency S&P to revise the outlook “from stable to positive”.

Islam is the state religion and sharia is the main source of law, but the principle of religious freedom and the prohibition of denominational discrimination are also affirmed. 86% of Omanis are Muslims, and Christians represent 6.5% of the population, that is, about 300,000 people. About 70% are Catholic, 13% Orthodox, and 6% Protestant; the remaining 11% are independent groups or small communities. The faithful are almost exclusively economic migrants from other Asian countries, especially the Philippines and India, and live in large urban centers, from the capital Muscat to Sohar and Salalah.