After two years of suspense, the Gulf state of Oman could pull the trigger next year.

“Income tax is still on track,” a source at the sultanate's National Program for Fiscal Balance told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. "We just finished the drafting of the law and we are doing some operational readiness. We expect the personal income tax to go live in 2023 [probably first half], provided that it receives all approvals including the royal decree." Two additional sources at the program confirmed the statement.

Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings also estimated that Oman will likely introduce a personal income tax on high wage earners in 2023. As yet, the details are scarce.

“Oman is more likely to bring personal income tax in the range of 5-9%,” said Anurag Chaturvedi, chief executive of tax consultancy firm Andersen in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He told Al-Monitor that industrial groups and agencies close to the government expect foreign nationals would be subject to a personal income tax rate between 5-9%, likely on Oman-sourced income above a threshold of $100,000, and Omanis would be subject to 5% tax on their net global income above $1,000,000.