The Central Bank of Oman has issued a master circular establishing a standardised framework for licensed banks to issue prepaid card products in Oman, aiming to replace case-by-case regulatory approvals with a single set of requirements aligned with international AML/CFT expectations. The guidelines cover governance, technology and operational controls, including board-approved product policies, EMV-compliant and contactless-enabled cards, pre-launch testing, written customer terms and disclosures, and compliance with the Central Bank’s cyber security and resilience framework. Prepaid cards are treated as e-money and domestic and GCC transactions must be routed through OmanNet and GCC net respectively. Banks must implement FATF-aligned AML/CFT and fraud measures such as risk assessment, customer identification and verification (including where cards are issued to non-customers or distributed via third parties), transaction monitoring, suspicious activity reporting, and two-factor authentication where appropriate. The circular requires risk-based stored-value and transaction limits, including an optional simplified due diligence model for low-risk retail individuals capped at OMR 350 per customer (maximum one card) with restrictions including no cash withdrawals, no cash/credit card/cryptocurrency funding, no third-party transfers, and domestic-use limitations; closed-loop prepaid gift cards are permitted up to OMR 50 with no reloads, no cash withdrawal and no cross-border functionality. Co-branded and authorised-agent distribution models are allowed subject to lower limits and with banks retaining full regulatory responsibility. Banks are expected to comply from 1 February 2026, submit an annual prepaid cards return to the Surveillance Department within 30 calendar days of each year-end, and apply requirements on usage restrictions (including bans on person-to-person transfers and certain merchant categories), treatment of unutilised balances as a bank liability for reserve requirements, record retention, customer support and annual internal assessment.
Central Bank of Oman 2026-01-25
Central Bank of Oman issues prepaid card issuance guidelines for licensed banks effective 1 February 2026
The Central Bank of Oman issued a master circular standardizing prepaid card issuance by licensed banks, replacing case-by-case approvals with a unified framework aligned with international AML/CFT standards. The guidelines cover governance, technology, operational controls, and compliance measures, including risk-based limits and transaction monitoring. Banks must comply by February 2026, with annual reporting to the Surveillance Department.