If you take one thing from this guide, take this: for a non-Omani, non-GCC buyer, freehold ownership in Oman is essentially confined to Integrated Tourism Complexes — usually shortened to ITCs. Everything else is prohibited, restricted, or available only as a lease.
The legal basis
Three instruments do most of the work:
- Royal Decree 12/2006 established the system allowing non-Omanis, individuals and companies, to own built units or undeveloped plots inside licensed ITCs. Its executive regulation is Ministerial Decision 191/2007, amended by Ministerial Decision 109/2022.
- Royal Decree 29/2018 prohibits non-Omani ownership of land and real estate in specified places, with ITCs carved out as the exception. Ministerial Decision 292/2020 implements it.
- Royal Decree 21/2004 governs GCC nationals' property rights under the GCC economic agreement, which are broader than those of other foreign buyers.
Freehold, usufruct and leasehold
| Type | Where available | Duration | Who |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freehold | Inside licensed ITCs (most) | Indefinite, transferable, inheritable | Non-Omani individuals and companies |
| Usufruct in Musandam ITCs | ITC sites in Musandam governorate | Up to 99 years | Non-Omanis — freehold not available there |
| Usufruct outside ITCs | Where ownership is otherwise prohibited | Maximum 10 years | Non-Omanis, ministerial approval required |
| Leasehold | Outside ITCs | Minimum 1 year | Non-Omanis, ministerial approval required |
The Musandam exception is worth noting because it is rarely mentioned. Even inside an ITC in that governorate, what you get is a long usufruct rather than freehold title.
Ministerial Decision 357/2020 created a separate route allowing non-Omanis to buy residential units on a usufruct basis in multi-storey buildings in Muscat Governorate — outside the ITC system entirely. Reported terms: an initial period of up to 50 years extendable to a maximum of 99, with rights that pass to heirs and can be sold.
The conditions are tight. The building must be multi-storey and recently completed, units must meet a minimum size, no more than 40% of a building may go to non-Omanis with no single nationality taking more than 20% of that allocation, the buyer must be at least 23 with two years of Omani residency, only one unit per person, a minimum price around OMR 45,000, and a lock-in period before you may lease or sell.
We could not verify these terms against the primary text — the decision is paywalled — so treat the figures as indicative and confirm with the Ministry of Housing before relying on them. But if you have been told ITC freehold is your only option, that is not the whole picture.
The Integrated Tourism Complexes
Ministry of Heritage and Tourism figures indicate 19 licensed ITCs across Muscat, Dhofar, South A'Sharqiyah, South Al Batinah and Musandam. There is, however, no single public government register listing them all by name — which is why every list you find online, including this one, is assembled from developer and press sources.
| Complex | Location | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Al Mouj Muscat | Muscat, near the airport | Mature, active resale and rental market |
| Muscat Hills | Muscat | Largely completed, some phases off-plan |
| Muscat Bay (formerly Saraya Bandar Jissah) | Bandar Jissah / Qantab | Under construction, ongoing sales |
| Jebel Sifah | About 45 minutes south-east of Muscat | Completed, ongoing sales |
| Hawana Salalah | Salalah, Dhofar | Completed, ongoing sales |
| AIDA | Yiti, Muscat coast | Off-plan, handovers from 2026 |
| The Sustainable City — Yiti | Yiti, Muscat coast | Off-plan, early construction |
Barr Al Jissah appears on many published ITC lists. On the evidence we found it is a hotel resort complex rather than a freehold residential development, and appears to be commonly confused with the adjacent Muscat Bay project. Verify directly with the developer before treating it as a buying opportunity.
Two further complexes — Al Qurm ITC and Al Bustan ITC — have been reported as announced in 2026, but we could not confirm either against an official or news-tier source.
Where you cannot buy
Royal Decree 29/2018 and its implementing decision put substantial parts of Oman off limits to non-Omani ownership:
- The governorates of Musandam, Al Buraimi, Ad Dhahirah and Al Wusta, and Dhofar outside Salalah
- The wilayats of Liwa, Shinas and Musairah
- Jebel Al Akhdar, Jebel Shams and other strategic mountains
- All Omani islands
- Within 1,000 metres of royal palaces and 500 metres of military or security installations
- Archaeological sites
- Agricultural land anywhere in the country
Foreigners who already held property in newly prohibited areas were given until 10 November 2020 to sell to Omani buyers. Non-compliance allows the ministry to force a sale, with proceeds returned to the former owner.
Duqm and the free zones: a separate track
Royal Decree 38/2025, the new Special Economic Zones and Free Zones Law issued in April 2025, allows developers to sell units in SEZ real estate projects to non-Omanis as freehold under Article 42(2). It also permits 100% foreign capital ownership in those zones.
This is a legally distinct regime from the ITC system, and it explains how Duqm developments market freehold to foreigners even though Al Wusta governorate appears on the general prohibition list. Marketing material often blurs the two; the legal protections and the applicable rules are not identical, so establish which framework applies before you commit.
What it costs — and an unresolved fee question
We have to be direct here, because this is the number that most affects your budget and the sources genuinely conflict.
| Source | Transfer / registration fee |
|---|---|
| Ministerial Decision 13/2016, as reported by legal commentary | 5% of property value |
| Ministry of Housing fee reform announced 27 January 2025 | Reduced to 1% for Omani individuals and companies; 0.5% for Islamic bank transactions; mortgage registration capped at 0.5% |
| Property portals, 2026 | 3% for foreign buyers, 1% for Omanis |
The January 2025 reform is a real, reported ministry announcement, but its published description addresses Omani-national rates and does not clearly state the rate for foreign buyers. Get the current figure from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning, or from your lawyer at the point of transaction, before budgeting.
Other costs to plan for: legal and conveyancing fees of roughly 1–2% of value, agent commission of 2–3% (usually paid by the seller), ITC service charges commonly in the range of OMR 500–1,500 a year, and a 3% municipal tax on gross rental income if you let the property. Oman has no annual property tax, no capital gains tax and no inheritance tax.
Does buying property give you residency?
It can, through the investor residency programme, but the relationship is more specific than the marketing suggests.
Under the ITC framework, owners of completed units receive renewable residency for themselves and first-degree relatives. Owners of undeveloped plots receive a renewable multi-entry investor visa instead — a different and lesser product.
The investment threshold that qualifies for the golden residency is disputed between official and press sources, with figures of OMR 200,000, OMR 250,000 and OMR 500,000 all in circulation for the same programme. We cover that disagreement in detail in our guide to residency routes. Do not buy property on the assumption of a threshold you read in an article.
Obligations that come with ownership
The construction obligation. If you buy an undeveloped plot inside an ITC, you must begin construction within four years of title registration, extendable by up to two more years with justification. Failure risks the land reverting to the state. This is the single most commonly overlooked condition in ITC land purchases.
Site-level discretion. The ministerial committee overseeing tourism complexes may restrict ownership to Omanis at specific sites within an ITC where it considers this in the public interest. An ITC being licensed does not guarantee every plot within it is open to foreign buyers — check the specific unit, not just the complex.
Resale, letting and inheritance. We found no ITC-specific restriction on reselling or letting once title is registered, and foreign heirs can inherit registered ITC property subject to succession certificates and Omani court approval. No minimum holding period appears to apply.
What is changing right now
Royal Decree 79/2025, the new Law Regulating Real Estate, was published in the Official Gazette on 14 September 2025 and came into force roughly 180 days later, in mid-March 2026. It repeals three older laws outright: the Real Estate Brokerage Law of 1986, the Apartments and Floors Ownership System of 1989, and the Real Estate Development Escrow Account System of 2018.
Its executive regulations were due within one year of publication — around September 2026, which is imminent as you read this. Those regulations will set out how escrow protection, brokerage licensing and apartment ownership mechanics work in practice.
Can a foreigner buy property in Oman?
Can I buy an apartment in Muscat outside an ITC?
What is the property transfer fee in Oman for a foreign buyer?
Does buying property in Oman give you residency?
Do I have to build on a plot I buy inside an ITC?
Is there property tax in Oman?
The escrow system that protects off-plan buyers' deposits was created by the law that Royal Decree 79/2025 repeals. Until the new executive regulations are published, the detailed protections applying to your deposit are in a transitional state.
If you are buying off-plan in 2026, ask your lawyer specifically how your payments are protected under the current framework. This is not a reason to avoid buying — it is a reason to ask the question.