By Waleed Al Abri, Real Estate Advisor

For foreign buyers looking at property in Oman, the question I am asked most often is not about price, location or expected returns. It is about residency: when does it become available, and how much of the property value must be paid before a buyer can apply?

In many off-plan purchases, the answer is not entirely straightforward. When a foreign buyer purchases a unit in an Integrated Tourism Complex (ITC) before completion, the initial entitlement is typically a visa rather than residency. This visa generally runs for between six months and one year and can be renewed.

Residency usually follows later, once the completed property has been registered in the buyer’s name. For projects still under development, this can mean waiting until 2027 or 2028 before that stage is reached.

Sultan Haitham City, however, operates differently – and this is something many foreign buyers are still unaware of. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning has established a separate mechanism covering future cities and the Surouh Neighbourhoods*. Under this framework, a foreign buyer can become eligible to apply for residency once 30 per cent of the property purchase price has been paid, rather than having to wait until handover and final registration.

For buyers on a typical payment plan, that threshold can be reached relatively quickly. A purchaser who pays 20 per cent upfront, for example, may need only one additional instalment to cross the 30 per cent mark.

In practical terms, this means a buyer can potentially enter the residency application process within months of booking a property, even if the unit itself remains several years away from completion.

The OMR 50,000 Threshold Matters

There is another important consideration: the value of the property determines who the residency can cover. For a property priced at OMR 50,000 or below, the residency applies only to the buyer. Where the property value exceeds OMR 50,000, the residency can extend to first-degree relatives, including a spouse and children.

For buyers whose primary objective is family residency, this distinction can be more important than the size, floor plan or even location of the unit. A property priced at OMR 49,000, for instance, would cover only the buyer. Crossing the OMR 50,000 threshold changes the residency coverage available to the purchaser.

This is also not merely a policy that exists on paper; residencies have already been issued under this mechanism since the middle of this year for buyers in projects including Wadi Zaha, Sarooj Oasis, Hay Al Wafaa and January Residences, with the Ministry’s approval.

The Important Point: Residency Is Renewable, But Not Permanent

One of the most important details, however, is also one of the least understood and something a lot of sales brochures miss. The residency issued under this mechanism is valid for two years and is renewable.

It should not be confused with the owner residency associated with a completed and registered property, nor should it be interpreted as permanent residency. It is a temporary, renewable residency with a defined two-year term.

Equally important, reaching the 30 per cent payment threshold does not automatically grant residency – it only makes the buyer eligible to apply.

The application is submitted by the developer to the Real Estate Registry at the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning. From there, it is referred for a separate security approval and a residency card is issued only once that approval has been granted.

This means the purchase of the property and the granting of residency remain two separate processes. Paying for and owning an eligible property does not remove the requirement for the residency application itself to be approved.

I have seen buyers choose a particular property largely because of the residency benefit, complete the required payments and only afterwards begin asking who is responsible for submitting the application, how the process works and what happens if approval is not granted.

Those questions should be asked before a deposit is paid, not after the buyer has already committed substantial capital.

Three Questions Buyers Should Ask Before Paying

Before purchasing, foreign buyers should establish three points clearly. First, confirm whether the project falls under the Ministry’s residency mechanism. This should not be assumed simply because a development is located within Sultan Haitham City or marketed to foreign buyers.

Second, ask the developer in writing when the payment schedule takes the buyer beyond the 30 per cent threshold and who will be responsible for submitting the residency application. Buyers should seek a clear process and timeline rather than relying solely on a verbal assurance.

Third, decide at the outset whether family residency is required. If it is, the property must be valued above OMR 50,000. A unit priced at OMR 49,000 will provide eligibility only for the buyer.

Waleed Al Abri is a real estate advisor in Muscat who works with foreign and GCC buyers. He publishes Oman property data and buyer guides at waleedproperty.com.

* The Surouh Integrated Residential Neighbourhoods Initiative by Oman’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning develops modern, fully serviced communities for eligible citizens.