The Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRA) on Sunday issued a decision 109/2022 on Omanisation in maintenance and installation of IT devices, systems, or networks.
As per article 3 of the decision, expatriates will be not allowed in jobs like connecting wires or optical fibres at the last mile of the licensee’s networks; supervising the laying of communication cables; installing, setting up, connecting, or maintaining communication devices and systems in exchanges, distribution points, or stations, installation; and setting up of communications and information technology networks or devices in homes.
Some provisions of these decisions will be applied to small and medium-sized enterprises holding an entrepreneurship card 18 eighteen months from the date of enforcement of this regulation.
The decision will come into force from the day following the date of its publication in the official gazette and the stakeholders must reconcile their status within three months from the date of its enforcement.
“It is not permissible to carry out the services in the stipulated field of telecommunications mentioned above without obtaining a permit to that effect from the authority. The application for obtaining a permit must be submitted to TRA in a specific form, accompanied by all the required data and documents and a receipt for payment of the permit fee. The Licensing and Compliance Department at the authority will study the application and decide within 30 days from the date of its submission. No response from the authority during this period will be considered as a rejection of the application.”
The licensees must abide by the following terms that include not assigning the implementation of services in the field of telecommunications to an unauthorised person, obtaining the authority’s prior approval in case of contracting with companies or establishments that are not registered in the Sultanate of Oman. They must submit data every six months on the contracts assigned to the authorised person according to the form prepared by the authority.
The licensees must follow the Omanisation percentages in the professions of specialists and permits will not be renewed if the rate falls below 70 per cent. The Omanisation rate after 12 months from the issuance of the permit will be 30 per cent, 40 per cent after 24 months, 50 per cent after 36 months, 60 per cent after 48 months, 70 per cent after 60 months for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that hold an entrepreneurship card.
For SMEs registered with Riyada, Omanisation rate is 55 per cent after 12 months, 60 per cent after 24 months, 60 per cent after 36 months, 70 per cent after 48 months and 70 per cent after 60 months.
For the rest of the companies and institutions, it will be 60 per cent after 12 months and subsequently, they have to maintain the Omanisation rate of 70 per cent.
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