Muscat: For the benefit of the owners of online stores or even to have a business account on social media to sell your products or offer services such as (Instagram, Snapchat, etc,) the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MoCIIP) has simplified the process of applying for a license via the Oman Business platform.
Expatriates can also engage in e-commerce according to the provisions of the Foreign Capital Investment Law while individuals or companies must obtain approval from relevant authorities if the nature of the activity requires so.
The Consumer Protection Authority (CPA) has urged online customers to avoid shopping from untrusted accounts and e-commerce sites.
According to CPA, consumers should exercise caution during online shopping because transactions with fake websites and platforms could lead to financial fraud and theft of card information.
Consumers need to make sure that the merchants are licensed and provide full details of the transactions, such as the approximate delivery time, replacement and refund policies, in addition to the full receipt of the purchases and the details of the shipment.
These statements are significant as e-commerce market in Oman is estimated to reach $1.1 billion by 2028, growing at 13.5 per cent during the forecast period according to a report quoting an intelligence research agency.
To obtain an e-commerce license, in the first and second steps, the applicants must log in to the Oman Business Platform, select Manage Business, Go to licenses, update commercial registry data and add the activity that they want to practice as e-commerce. In the third step, the applicant should go to the license section, select the registry and submit the license request.
The following steps include 'Choose Yes to license the activity as e-commerce (step 4),' Select the activity you want to license (step 5) and click on 'Choose places of activity,' for companies, choose the address type Default (step 6). Step seven includes adding the address of the location, including the address link to the online store), submit a license application and fill out the application form, attachments, and fees to obtain the license automatically.
The conditions include that the individual applicants must have a commercial register (self-employment) or must not have another commercial register.
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