On December 18, Oman signed a historic Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India. While this is India’s second CEPA in the Gulf region—after the 2022 India–UAE CEPA—it is Oman’s first bilateral trade agreement since its 2006 deal with the United States.
A key highlight of the agreement is the enhanced mobility framework for Indian professionals. Indian companies can now enjoy 100% foreign direct investment in key services sectors in Oman through commercial presence, allowing them to set up operations, hire Indian talent, and scale without local ownership restrictions. To facilitate this, Oman has opened 127 service sub-sectors—including IT and computer-related services, business and professional services, and R&D—unlocking market access for Indian IT firms and professionals.
With more liberal entry and stay conditions for skilled roles such as IT experts and engineers, the framework could be a game-changer for Indian tech companies targeting Gulf and African markets, using Oman as a gateway. More importantly, Indian companies and professionals are uniquely positioned to benefit from what is being described as an emerging “Omani AI gold rush.”
Oman’s sovereign wealth fund, the Oman Investment Authority (OIA), is actively investing across the global AI supply chain as part of its broader strategy to diversify into future-facing technologies and advance Oman Vision 2040 through technology transfer and economic diversification. OIA has stakes in multiple funds and companies focused on AI, including vertical AI applications and related technologies. It is also an early investor in Elon Musk’s xAI. In September 2025, OIA invested in a UK-based company specialising in photonic computing chips for AI acceleration. Oman is also investing in firms such as Crusoe Energy, which builds clean energy–powered data centres—an essential resource for the energy-intensive AI industry.
Oman is further leveraging its strategic location and relatively neutral geopolitical stance to attract foreign AI investment. In early 2025, it signed a major agreement with the World Economic Forum to establish a Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) centre in Muscat, focused on AI governance and energy transitions. Alongside this, the country is investing heavily in digital infrastructure to create a “landing pad” for global AI companies. It has also established dedicated AI Startup Zones and “AI Studios” that offer sandbox environments for foreign startups to test and scale technologies in the Omani market.
Under the CEPA, Indian firms can establish a commercial presence with 100% ownership—critical for AI companies seeking to protect intellectual property while developing localised solutions, such as large language models tailored to Arabic dialects, without requiring a local majority partner. Indian companies can now transfer up to 50% of their workforce in Omani offices as intra-corporate transferees from India, up from the earlier 20% cap, making it easier to deploy key personnel to manage operations. Contractual tech specialists can also stay for up to two years, compared with the earlier 90-day limit, with an option to extend for another two years—providing continuity for long-term projects.
Beyond IT and computer-related services, the enhanced mobility framework is expected to boost sectors such as healthcare and medical services, education, research and development, and domains including AYUSH, accountancy, taxation, and architecture.
With 100 per cent FDI now allowed and raw materials and components able to move from India to Oman duty-free, some Indian companies may see Oman as a neutral gateway to the US market, thanks to its 2006 free trade agreement with Washington, allowing them to bypass India-specific trade barriers imposed by the US.