Oman's Wage Protection System (WPS) is an electronic salary transfer system overseen by the Ministry of Labour (MoL) and regulated by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO). WPS implementation is guided by the Labour Law (Royal Decree No. 53/2023) and Ministry circulars issued in 2024–2025.
Implementation Timeline
Phase 1
September 2025 payroll (paid in October): At least 75% of workforce covered under WPS
Phase 2
November 2025 payroll (paid in December): At least 90% of workforce
covered under WPS
Full Implementation
2026 onwards 100% coverage of private-sector employees
Guide to WPS
Step 1
Register with the Ministry of Labour’s WPS through an authorised financial institution once-off.
Step 2
Ensure each employee has a valid Omani bank account registered in the WPS database. This should take place during the hiring process.
Step 3
Prepare a monthly Salary Information File (SIF) per MoL/CBO specification.
Step 4
Submit the SIF via your bank or authorised payment provider. This should happen monthly, within 3 days post pay period.
Step 5
Once the bank validates and transfers salaries, the file is transmitted to the MoL central WPS system.
Step 6
Companies should monitor their compliance status and resolve any payment rejections or missing records.
Step 7
Companies should continue to maintain payroll records and payment proofs for inspection.
The WPS Salary Information File (SIF)
The following information should be prepared for the SIF fields:
- Employer CR Number: Company Commercial Registration number.
- Employer MoL ID: Registered establishment ID with the Ministry of Labour.
- Employee Civil ID: Employee’s national identification number.
- Employee Name: As per contract and MoL registration.
- Employee Bank Account (IBAN): Local Omani bank account number.
- Salary Month: Format YYYY-MM (e.g., 2025-10).
- Basic Salary: Contractual basic pay.
- Allowance: Housing, transport, overtime, and other fixed allowances.
- Deductions: GOSI, loans, or unpaid leave deductions.
- Net Salary: Total amount transferred to employee’s account.
- Payment Date: Actual date of salary transfer.
Employer Obligations
- Pay all salaries via WPS-compliant banks or payment providers authorised by the CBO.
- Ensure payments are made within three days after the end of the wage period.
- Maintain payroll, contracts, and WPS confirmation records for a minimum of 5 years.
- Correct any rejected WPS transactions immediately.
- Update MoL if an employee is on unpaid leave, terminated, or absent (to avoid false non-payment flags).
- Designate a payroll/WPS compliance officer to manage submissions and reconciliations.
Employee Rights under WPS
- Timely payment: Salary must be paid within 3 days after the due date.
- Full & accurate payment: Payment must match the employment contract terms.
- Traceability: Wages must go to the employee’s Omani bank account.
- Transparency: Employees can verify payments through bank statements.
- Complaint process: Employees can lodge complaints with MoL for delays or discrepancies.
Penalties and Enforcement
- Delay beyond 3 days: employer warning and compliance follow-up.
- Repeated delays: suspension of new work permits or company services.
- Persistent violations: fines of OMR 50 per affected worker, doubled for repeat offences.
- Continuous non-compliance: potential licence suspension or blacklisting.
This article is for informational and compliance reference purposes only. It is not legal advice. Employers should confirm technical and procedural requirements with the Ministry of Labour (MoL), the Central Bank of Oman (CBO), or their payroll provider.
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