Wps Frequently Asked Questions
WPS is a collaborative electronic system between the Ministry of Labour and the Central Bank of Oman. Its purpose is to oversee the adherence of private sector establishments to transferring workers' wages to their accounts in one of the local financial institutions or banks authorized by the Central Bank of Oman.
The purpose of establishing a WPS is to monitor the extent to which private sector establishments comply with transferring workers' wages in accordance with labour laws and the agreed-upon employment contracts. The system also enables direct identification of cases involving delayed or non-payment of wages, allowing for immediate intervention by the Ministry in such instances before a labour dispute arises between the worker and the employer.
The Wage Protection System functions by comparing the salary stated in the employment contract with the amount transferred by the establishment to the employee's bank account. It assesses the level of conformity or any deviations in the payment of wages to the employee within the designated timeframe outlined by the labor law.
Private sector establishments are obliged to implement WPS in accordance with Ministerial Decision 299/2023, issued on 21 June 2023. Circular No. 7/2023 also indicated the necessity for private sector establishments to regularise their conditions for the application of WPS, according to the following schedule:
|
Size of Establishment |
Start Date for Regularisation |
Deadline for (50%) Compliance |
Deadline for (100%) Compliance |
|
Large |
10 July 2023 (6 months) |
9 November 2023 |
9 January 2024 |
|
Medium |
10 July 2023 (6 months) |
9 November 2023 |
9 January 2024 |
|
Small |
10 July 2023 (8 months) |
9 January 2024 |
9 March 2024 |
|
Micro |
10 July 2023 (8 months) |
9 January 2024 |
9 March 2024 |
• A precise electronic system that tracks, in real-time, the compliance of private sector establishments with wage payments to their respective employees.
• A standardised file format specifically for the wage information of workers across all private sector establishments.
• Electronic linkage that obviates the employer's need to carry or attach paper wage slips.
WPS monitors the wages of all employees in the private sector, encompassing both Omani nationals and non- Omanis alike.
Yes, WPS is programmed to automatically track annual pay rises through updated electronic contracts, and it is also integrated with the Public Authority for Social Insurance.
Yes, the compliance of establishments with the disbursement of periodic allowances will be scrutinised. A decision will be issued by the Minister detailing these allowances and the methods for their disbursement, in accordance with Article 89 of the Labour Law.
No, individual employers are not presently obliged to implement WPS. However, there is a future plan in place to address this.
Firstly, register with WPS via the banks or financial institutions where the establishment has accounts.
Secondly, disburse employees' wages through the Salary Information File (SIF) for WPS.
Thirdly, update contract information whenever there are changes.
No, a one-time registration in WPS is sufficient. However, if the establishment has accounts with multiple banks through which it disburses employees' wages, it must register with each of those banks.
It is the file that the establishment completes with all the requisite information for the disbursement of wages to employees in the private sector. This file contains the information mandated by the Ministry.
CSV is the standardised format agreed upon between the Ministry of Labour and the Central Bank of Oman. This format facilitates data exchange between financial and banking institutions and the Central Bank of Oman.
The name of the SIF comprises the following elements:
- 'SIF' stands for Salary Information File. This is a fixed three-letter acronym used to identify the salary information file and it appears at the start of the name.
- The employer's commercial registration number, which should consist of no more than 17 alphanumeric characters.
- The abbreviated name of the bank, consisting of a maximum of four letters. Establishments can obtain these abbreviations from the bank itself or from the ministry's website.
- The date of file preparation, written in an eight-digit format: four digits for the year, two for the month, and two for the day.
- The serial number of the file, consisting of three digits. These numbers start from 001 and can go up to 999. This helps to identify the specific file relating to the same employer, especially when there are multiple files for the same bank and salary month.
- The file extension, which is 'CSV'.
Each section is separated by an underscore (_).
Example: SIF_1212635_BMCT_20230821_001.csv
No, it is not possible to do so.
Yes, the employee number may be registered instead of the reference number, provided that the same number is not duplicated within a single file. It is worth noting that the reference number is optional and can be left blank.
Is it obligatory to include all registered employees in the establishment in the wage file if the payment type is designated as 'wages,' even for those who have not received payment?
Yes, when the type of payment is categorised as "wages," the file must include all employees registered with the establishment, even those who have not received payment. The rationale for not transferring wages to these individuals should be specified in the 'Notes' field.
Yes, when the type of payment is categorised as "wages," the file must include all employees registered with the establishment, even those who have not received payment. The rationale for not transferring wages to these individuals should be specified in the 'Notes' field.
The establishment will be furnished with SIF and all the requisite data needed by the Ministry through the bank they are affiliated with.
The establishment will initially fill out the file, incorporating the names of all its employees along with the requisite information demanded by the SIF, while verifying the accuracy of the included data. In subsequent months, the establishment will make modifications to the same file whenever there are alterations to employee wages, or when adding or removing an employee's name.
The Ministry prioritizes the confidentiality of wage data for private sector employees. The ministry has taken meticulous measures to ensure that this information remains strictly confidential and inaccessible. The system reflects the degree of alignment between the wages recorded in employment contracts and the actual payments made to employees' bank accounts, safeguarding their confidentiality.
Article 90 of the Labour Law states that establishments are obliged to transfer the wages of their employees within no more than three days from the date they are due. Therefore, establishments must comply with the stipulations of the referenced article.
Yes, the system accommodates transfers in any currency, in addition to the Omani Rial, as long as there is an agreement between the worker and the employer. This is in accordance with Article 85 of the Labour Law.
• The organisation can transfer an employee's salary for more than one month in a single file, indicating this in the 'Comments' field.
• The organisation also has the option to make salary transfers in multiple files for multiple months; there would be no need to justify the advanced payment in such cases.
- When paying salaries spanning more than one month, a separate file must be generated for each month.
- When there is a variation in the type of payment.
- If the organisation disburses overtime wages at a different time than the standard salaries, a separate file should be created, designating the payment type as 'Overtime Wages'.
Article 87 of the Labour Law mandates that employers transfer an employee's salary to their account in a bank or financial institution that is licensed by the Central Bank of Oman. The Minister will issue regulations governing the circumstances under which employers may transfer salaries, as well as any exceptions to these rules. Therefore, if employees are coming from parent companies to work in the Sultanate of Oman for a limited period — on secondment, for example — the company within Oman is required to provide the Ministry of Labour with a list of these employees and the reasons for needing to transfer their salaries outside the Sultanate of Oman, on an exceptional basis.
Yes, overtime and all allowances specific to the employee are recorded in the system as stipulated in the employment contract. These are then added in accordance with their particular classifications within the fields of the unified salary information file.
All wage-related transactions for employees are captured in the Unified Salary Information File. If an organisation pays an employee amounts outside the purview of their regular salary, these can be directly transferred to the employee's account without the need to record them in the Salary Information File.
Yes, this information is included in the field labelled "Social Insurance Subscription Deductions." Organisations transfer the wages of their employees after deducting the applicable social insurance contributions.
Yes, such updates are automatically reflected in the ministry's systems.
An organisation can transfer an employee's salary to multiple bank accounts, whether these accounts are with the same bank or various banks, as long as these accounts are with financial institutions accredited by the Central Bank of Oman.
According to Article Six of Decision 299/2023, the Ministry will undertake a series of administrative penalties for private sector organisations that violate the stipulated timeline for wage transfers as set out in the Labour Law. The administrative penalties are as follows:
- Issuing a warning to the organisation.
- Suspension of electronic transactions for preliminary work permits (authorisations).
- Imposition of an administrative fine of 50 Omani Rials, which may double in the case of repeated violations.
The Ministry may also refer non-compliant organisations to judicial authorities for further legal action in accordance with the Labour Law.
• An administrative fine of 50 Omani Rials, which doubles in the event of a repeated violation.
• A financial penalty ranging from a minimum of 100 Omani Rials to a maximum of 300 Omani Rials per employee; this amount also doubles for repeat offences.
• If the violation is referred to judicial authorities, the penalties are assessed as per the following articles:
- Article 147 of the Labour Law imposes a financial penalty ranging from a minimum of 500 Omani Rials to a maximum of 1000 Omani Rials per employee for establishments that fail to transfer wages to the employee's bank account in accordance with Article 87 of the Labour Law. This penalty doubles in the event of a repeat offence.
- Article 148 imposes a financial penalty of no less than 100 Omani Rials and no more than 300 Omani Rials per employee for establishments that delay the transfer of wages beyond three days from the due date.
• An administrative fine of 50 Omani Rials is also levied, and this fine doubles in cases of repeated violations.
According to Article 90 of the Labour Law, establishments are obligated to pay their employees within a maximum of three days from the date when the wages become due. Consequently, an establishment would be considered to be in breach of the law if it exceeds this specified time limit.
In situations where employees are on unpaid leave, how does the establishment handle wage transfers?
The establishment ought to input a zero in the field allocated for net monthly salary for those months when the employee is not lawfully entitled to a wage. Furthermore, the establishment is required to elucidate the reason for the employee's ineligibility for a wage in that specific month, using the designated field within the Employee Salary Information File.
If the type of payment is categorised as 'wages,' then the basic wage field must be greater than zero. However, if the type of payment is defined as 'bonuses,' 'overtime pay,' 'allowances,' or 'end-of-service benefits,' then it is permissible for the basic wage field to be zero. Nonetheless, the net wage field may be set to zero when the sum of the basic wage and any allowances, minus deductions, equates to zero.
The company is obliged to justify any wage deductions made from its employees by providing a reason in the 'Notes' field of the Employee Salary Information File. Articles 95 and 96 of the Labour Law outline the mechanisms by which an employer can legally deduct from an employee's wages.
The system has been developed and programmed to automatically identify differences between the wages recorded in the employment contract and the wages deposited into the employee's account by the establishment. Consequently, the Ministry will directly communicate with these cases, and if there are any instances requiring the employee to report to the Ministry, they can do so through the labour complaints or reporting service.
According to Article 5 of Ministerial Decision 299/2023, employers are exempt from the obligation of transferring wages to their employees' bank accounts in the following cases:
1. The presence of an ongoing legal dispute between the employer and the employee resulting in the latter ceasing work.
2. The unexplained abandonment of work by the employee.
3. Newly-hired employees who have not yet completed 30 days from their starting date.
4. Employees on unpaid leave either within or outside the Sultanate of Oman, provided this is duly verified.