India-Oman trade deal comes into effect today
What's the story
India's Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Oman will come into effect today at 2pm IST. The agreement was signed by India's Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Oman's Minister of Commerce, Industry & Investment Promotion Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef on December 18, 2025. The CEPA is expected to boost India's exports to Oman by nearly 50% in the next three years.
Sectoral impact
The CEPA will benefit India's labor-intensive sectors
The CEPA is expected to benefit India's labor-intensive sectors such as textiles, leather, footwear, gems and jewelry, engineering products, plastics, furniture, agricultural products, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and automobiles. The bilateral trade between India and Oman currently stands at over $10 billion with a lot of potential for growth under the CEPA framework.
Tariff concessions
Oman has offered zero-duty access on 98% of tariff lines
Oman has offered zero-duty access on 98.08% of its tariff lines, covering 99.38% of India's exports to Oman. All major labor-intensive sectors have been given full tariff elimination under the CEPA. India is also offering tariff liberalization on 77.79% of its total tariff lines, which covers 94.81% of India's imports from Oman by value.
Employment prospects
Significant job opportunities for Indian service providers
The CEPA is expected to create significant job opportunities for Indian service providers in sectors such as computer related services, business and professional services, audio-visual services, research and development, as well as education and health Services. Oman has also offered commitments such as increasing the quota for Intra-Corporate Transferees from 20% to 50%, extending the duration of stay for Contractual Service Suppliers from 90 days to two years with a possible extension of another two years.
Investment opportunities
First bilateral agreement by Oman with any country since 2006
The CEPA also allows 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by Indian companies in key service sectors in Oman through commercial presence. Both sides have agreed to hold future talks on social security coordination once Oman's contributory social security system is implemented to facilitate labor mobility and worker protection. This is the first bilateral agreement that Oman has signed with any country since the United States of America in 2006.