Saturday 10 / October / 2026
Oman’s Prisons Law, promulgated by Royal Decree 48/98, as consolidated up to Royal Decree 2/2019, establishes the legal framework governing inmates and detainees, including their admission, health and social care, and visits and correspondence, as well as the education and employment of inmates.
Speaking to Times of Oman, Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim Al Zadjali, Chairman of Mohammed Ibrahim Law Firm, said “an inmate is every person imprisoned in execution of a judicial judgment issued by the competent court, while a detainee is every person provisionally detained in execution of an order issued by the competent authority. It is not permitted to place any person in a prison or a place of provisional detention except by a written order issued by the competent authority and signed by the person who has the legal authority to issue it. In all cases, inmates and detainees under the age of eighteen must be isolated from other inmates and detainees.”
He stated that “inmates and detainees enjoy free health and social care and must be provided with clothing and covers appropriate for personal use. Inmates must also be provided with meals appropriate to their age and health conditions.”
He added that “inmates have the right to receive visitors, with the authorisation to visit vested in the Director General of Prisons or whoever he authorises in accordance with the regulation, while any visitor may be searched for reasons relating to public security or health, as provided by law. Education is compulsory for illiterate inmates, and the Directorate General of Prisons provides other inmates with education and vocational training, considering their age, readiness, and sentence length.”
“Employment of inmates is compulsory unless prevented by health conditions. Detainees and inmates sentenced for a period not exceeding two months are prohibited from being employed in work other than that relating to cleaning their accommodation. An inmate who reaches the age of sixty years is exempt from work unless he wishes to work and the prison doctor’s report confirms his ability. An inmate is granted a wage in exchange for his work, with its amount and the conditions for entitlement specified by the regulation,” he said.
“An inmate whose period of imprisonment exceeds four years must undergo a transitional period before release, aimed at facilitating his integration into society after release, with that period counted as part of his sentence,” he concluded.
* (Mohammed Ibrahim Law Firm ([email protected]), (+968 244 87 600) was established on 14th December 2006 and is serving clients through its offices in Muscat and Sohar, as well as operating on a request basis in other areas. It offers legal representation across a wide range of practice areas that include Labour Law, Corporate, Commercial, Contracts, Banking and Finance, International Trade, Foreign Investment, Maritime Law, Construction and Engineering Contracts, International Arbitration, Intellectual Property and more).
