Saturday 19 / July / 2025
In a significant move to enhance Oman’s business regulatory environment, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Investment Promotion (MOCIIP) has enacted Ministerial Decision 245/2025, amending pivotal provisions within the existing Commercial Companies Regulation (Ministerial Decision 146/2021). These amendments, effective from 11 July 2025, target specific operational and administrative requirements for companies operating within the Sultanate, aiming to reduce bureaucratic hurdles and clarify governance structures.
Speaking exclusively to the Times of Oman, a representative of Mohammed Ibrahim Law Firm, a leading law office in Oman, explained that “the first major amendment overhauls the procedure for appointing external company managers in Limited Liability Companies (LLCs). Previously, Article 92 mandated that applications to appoint a non-partner manager, particularly if the manager was non-Omani, required not only the manager’s written approval but also written consent from their current employer. The written consent requirement from the Employer has been eliminated entirely.”
The revised Article 92 now states that “the appointment may be registered through the Ministry’s electronic system based solely on the written approval of the appointed manager.” In practice, this reflects a shift in procedure: since the employer is the one initiating the appointment, separate employer consent is now deemed inherent and no longer needs to be uploaded as a standalone document. “This procedural refinement removes redundant documentation and enables LLCs to appoint managerial talent—both Omani and expatriate—with greater efficiency, while still preserving necessary employer oversight through the system itself,” said Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim Al Zadjali, the Founding Partner of Mohammed Ibrahim Law Firm.
He further added that a completely new provision, Article 13bis, has been introduced to explicitly define the scope of individuals authorised to legally represent a company as its “authorised signatory.” This crucial addition clarifies that valid signatories must fall into one of four defined categories: partners collectively or individually; the owner of the company’s capital; any member of its board of directors; or its manager or any of its financial and administrative workers.
“This definition provides much needed certainty regarding corporate representation, reducing ambiguity in contractual and legal dealings. It ensures that only individuals with a demonstrable stake or formal role within the company structure possess the inherent authority to bind the company, thereby enhancing transactional security and mitigating risks associated with unauthorised representations.”
Companies subject to the Commercial Companies Regulation are granted a six-month transitional period to align their internal structures and documentation particularly manager appointment records and authorised signatory designations with these updated requirements. Failure to comply after this deadline could expose companies to administrative penalties or challenges regarding the validity of managerial appointments or contractual signatures. These changes underscore Oman’s proactive approach to improving its regulatory framework to support business growth and investment, the expert said.
(Mohammed Ibrahim Law Firm ([email protected]), (+968 244 87 600) was established 18 years ago and is serving clients through its offices in Muscat and Sohar, as well as operating on a request basis in other areas. It offers legal representation across a wide range of practice areas that include Labour Law, Corporate, Commercial, Contracts, Banking and Finance, International Trade, Foreign Investment, Insurance, Maritime Law, Construction and Engineering Contracts, International Arbitration, Intellectual Property and more).
