Oman Guide: Penalties in VAT Oman

Penalties are penalties and imprisonment imposed on a taxable for violation of the Oman VAT law. Without prejudice to any severer penalty stipulated in any other law.

What is Minimum Punishment under the Law?

Imprisonment penalty of not less than 2 months but not more than 1 year, or a fine of not less than 1,000 Omani riyals but not more than 10,000 Omani riyals, or both shall be imposed in the following cases:

• The Taxable Person deliberately refrains from identifying the Responsible Person
• The Responsible Person deliberately fails to notify the Authority and obtain its consent during the period of his absence for a period of more than ninety 90 days.
• The Taxable Person deliberately fails to notify the Authority of any adjustments on his data by article 65 of the Law.
• The Responsible Person deliberately fails to appear as requested by the Authority.
• The Responsible Person deliberately fails to submit a Tax Return for any Tax Period.
• The Taxable Person deliberately fails to maintain accounting records and books in a regularly by the provisions of this Law.
• Deliberately refraining to maintain Tax Invoices and documents for the required period by the provisions of this Law.
• Deliberately refraining to issue a Tax Invoice when required by the provisions of this Law.
• Deliberately issuing an invoice stating the amount of the Tax due, other than the tax imposed by the provisions of this law.
• Any conduct, act, procedure, or abstention is performed to prevent the Authority’s officers or its delegates from exercising the functions or tasks prescribed by this Law.
• The Taxable Person or any person deliberately refusing to submit any documents, data, records, accounting books, Tax Invoices, or others as determined in article 78 of this Law.
• Deliberately including in a refund application incorrect data or information.

The court, in the case of recurrence, may double the penalty and increase the imprisonment to the maximum of the legal threshold of punishment but not exceeding half this threshold.

What is Maximum Punishment under the Law?

Imprisonment penalty of not less than 1 year but not more than 3 years, or a fine of not less than 5,000 Omani riyals but not more than 20,000 Omani riyals, or both shall be imposed in the following cases:

• Deliberately refraining from registering with the Authority
• Deliberately refraining from including in the Tax Return the actual details as to the taxable amount and tax due thereon.
• Submitting forged Tax Returns, documents, or records to dispose of payment of Tax in part or in full.
• Deliberately destroying, hiding, or dispossessing any documents, records, accounts, lists, or any other requested by the Authority for submission under the provisions of this Law, if the destruction, concealment, or disposal is conducted within 1 year from the Authority’s notification receipt date.
• Deliberately motivating or supporting the Taxable Person in submitting returns or records or other documents that are incorrect related to the obligations of the Taxable Person.

The court, in the case of recurrence, may double the penalty and increase the imprisonment to the maximum of the legal threshold of punishment but not exceeding half this threshold.

What is the Role of the Chairman in Penalties?

The Chairman is solely responsible for instituting public prosecution or procedure in the offenses provided in this Law.

The Chairman may conciliate in respect of the offenses referred to, before the issuance of a final judgment in the case, on the condition of paying not less than double of the minimum limit, and not exceeding double of the maximum limit of the punishment prescribed for the crime. The conciliation entails the expiry of the public proceedings and the cancellation of the consequences of their effects, including the sentence handed down.