When do hotels in Oman have to start e-invoicing?

VAT-registered hotels with annual supplies above OMR 5 million start on 1 April 2027. All other VAT-registered hotels, guesthouses, serviced apartments and camps start on 1 October 2027.

Are restaurant and café receipts included?

For the deadlines, yes: simplified tax invoices, such as receipts from a hotel restaurant or café, must be issued within the same timeframes as tax invoices under Decision 189/2026. Some technical details for these consumer invoices are still pending from the Tax Authority.

Do booking deposits fall under the e-invoicing rules?

The decision’s scope includes cases where payment is received wholly or partly before the date of supply. Ask your tax adviser how this applies to your deposits and prepaid bookings, and make sure your system records them.

Our guesthouse is not registered for VAT. Does this apply?

The decision sets dates for VAT-registered businesses. If you are not registered it does not set a date for you, but check with your tax adviser if your revenue is close to the registration threshold.

Will CloudTech Hotel support e-invoicing?

We are developing a connector that will work through a Tax Authority-licensed provider, starting with POS and Business ERP; CloudTech Hotel runs on the same platform and follows them. Timelines are confirmed after a technical assessment.

E-Invoicing for Hotels & Guesthouses in Oman: 2027 Guide

At a glance

VAT-registered hotels, guesthouses and camps must issue tax invoices electronically, through a Tax Authority-licensed provider.
Most properties fall in phase 2, from 1 October 2027; those with annual supplies above OMR 5 million start on 1 April 2027.
Simplified invoices, such as restaurant and café receipts, share the same issuing deadlines; some technical details are still pending.
Payments received before the date of supply are in scope — check how this applies to your booking deposits.

Which date applies to your property

Oman’s Tax Authority Decision No. 189/2026 makes electronic tax invoicing mandatory for VAT-registered businesses in two phases. Properties with annual supplies above OMR 5 million — typically large hotels and hotel groups — start on 1 April 2027. Every other VAT-registered hotel, guesthouse, serviced apartment or camp starts on 1 October 2027.

If your property is not registered for VAT, the decision does not set a date for you. If your revenue is growing towards the registration threshold, ask your tax adviser when that will change.

Every invoice a hotel issues is in scope

Under the amended Article 143, tax invoices must be issued in an approved, secure electronic format, each with a unique number, kept intact and retained. At a hotel that reaches further than the checkout folio:

Guest folios and invoices at checkout, including for guests who are not registered for VAT.
Invoices to companies and travel agencies that book rooms for their staff or clients.
Simplified invoices from your restaurant, café or shop, which share the same issuing timeframes — some technical details for these are still pending.
Payments received before the date of supply, which the decision also covers — relevant to deposits and prepaid bookings.

How deposits and prepaid stays should be invoiced under the new rules is a question for your tax adviser and the Tax Authority’s specifications. What is certain is that your system needs to record them properly.

Bookings in three places, invoices in none

Many smaller properties take bookings from online travel sites, phone calls, WhatsApp and walk-ins, then write invoices by hand or in Excel. Under the new rules, invoices have to come out of an electronic system that meets the Tax Authority’s technical specifications and works with a licensed provider. A booking sheet and a receipt book cannot do that.

The practical fix is one system where every booking — whatever channel it came from — ends in an invoice issued from the same place, with the guest’s details and any company VAT number already on file.

Don’t switch systems in your busy season

For much of Oman the cooler months from October bring the busiest season, while properties in Dhofar are busiest during the khareef over the summer. The 1 October 2027 date sits right where one season ends and the next begins.

Plan the move for a quieter period before your date, so staff learn the new system before the rush rather than during it, and leave time for test invoices. However quick the switch, don’t make it in the middle of a full house.

Security and continuity at the front desk

Article 143 bis 1 requires electronic invoices to be issued securely, through a system protected against breaches and unauthorised access, with procedures for breakdowns and technical malfunctions and a way to recover lost data. At a front desk that means a login for every receptionist, regular backups, and a plan for checking guests out when the internet is down.

A six-step checklist for hotels and guesthouses

Confirm your VAT registration and which 2027 date applies to you.
Bring every booking channel and every outlet — rooms, restaurant, café — into one system that issues invoices.
Keep company and travel-agency guests on file with their VAT numbers.
Ask your tax adviser how deposits and prepaid bookings should be invoiced.
Ask your hotel system vendor which licensed provider it will connect to, and when.
Go live and run test invoices before your busy season, not during it.

Where CloudTech Hotel fits

CloudTech Hotel puts bookings, guests, invoices and WhatsApp confirmations on one Arabic and English screen, for a 20-room guesthouse or a multi-floor hotel. We are developing an e-invoicing connector that will work through a Tax Authority-licensed provider, starting with POS and Business ERP; Hotel runs on the same platform and follows. We move your room list and booking sheets across during onboarding, and confirm the timeline for both after a technical assessment.

For the deadlines in full, read our e-invoicing readiness guide, or the companion article on shops and POS receipts.

Sources: Tax Authority Decision No. 189/2026 (Official Gazette No. 1660, 3 August 2026 — PDF in Arabic); Oman Observer — “Oman sets phased mandatory e-invoicing regime”. Last reviewed 15 October 2026. This article is a plain-language summary, not tax advice; check the technical specifications on the Tax Authority portal.

E-invoicing for hotels and guesthouses in Oman: a 2027 guide