Public hospitals run by the Ministry of Health provide subsidised care mainly for Omani citizens, while expatriate residents are covered through Dhamani, a mandatory private health insurance scheme, rather than the public system. Here is what that actually means for an American or Briton living in Oman: what the public system gives you, what it does not, and where private cover fits.
Can you use the public system?
- Working for a local employer: Yes, from arrival as a legal resident
- Self-employed: Only in limited cases
- Retired or not working: Only in limited cases
Private-sector employers must buy a Dhamani-compliant policy and register it on the e-Dhamani platform before or at the point of hiring, so employed expats get insurance-backed cover immediately. Self-sponsored/freelance workers and non-working retirees have no employer to arrange this and must buy an approved policy themselves. Retirees typically enter via a property-owner or investment residence permit (or the over-60 Golden Visa retiree route, which requires proof of roughly OMR 4,000/month income), and maintaining that permit requires ongoing comprehensive private health insurance as a condition of residency, not access to a public scheme.
If you are retiring here
Retirees have no path into Oman’s public health system at all. Whichever residency route they use (property, investment, or Golden Visa), maintaining it requires self-funded comprehensive private insurance indefinitely, and there is no reciprocal arrangement for US or UK nationals.
What public cover will not give you
- access to subsidised Ministry of Health public facilities (largely reserved for citizens)
- dental and vision often excluded from basic Dhamani tiers
- English-speaking specialists concentrated in Muscat
- annual claim caps on basic plans (around OMR 4,500)
So do you need private health insurance?
Legally required nationwide for all residents, including retirees and investment/property residency holders, not just employees. Proof of health insurance is also a condition of the main residence routes here, so most expats need a policy in place before they apply.
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General information, not insurance, immigration or medical advice. Rules change and individual situations differ; check the official position before you commit. Researched from official sources, July 2026.