We, Qaboos bin Said, the Sultan of Oman
after perusal of the Basic Statute of the State promulgated by Royal Decree 101/96,
and the Agreement between the Government of the Sultanate of Oman and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany on Mutual Exemption from Visa Requirements for Holders of Biometric Official Passports Which Comply with the International Standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization signed in the city of Muscat on 8 March 2016,
and in pursuance of public interest,
have decreed as follows
Article I
The aforementioned agreement is hereby ratified in the form attached.
Article II
This decree shall be published in the Official Gazette, and comes into force on the date of its issuance.
Issued on: 2 Rajab 1437
Corresponding to: 10 April 2016
Qaboos bin Said
Sultan of Oman
Published in Official Gazette 1143 issued on 17 April 2016.
Agreement between the Government of the Sultanate of Oman and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany on Mutual Exemption from Visa Requirements for Holders of Biometric Official Passports which comply with the International Standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
The Government of the Sultanate of Oman and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, hereinafter referred to as “the Parties”;
Desiring to promote their bilateral relations;
Considering their interest in strengthening their existing friendly relations and facilitating the travel procedures of their nationals;
Have agreed as follows:
Article (1)
The provisions of this Agreement shall apply to holders of any of the following machine-readable electronically enabled passports with biometric identification capability (e-Passport) which comply with the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO):
1. Valid diplomatic, special, or service passports of the Government of the Sultanate of Oman,
2. Valid diplomatic or service passports of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Provided these passports are valid for at least six (6) months following the date of entry into the territory of the State of the other Party.
Article (2)
1. Nationals of the states of the Parties holding any of the passports mentioned in Article (1) shall be exempt from the visa requirement to enter, transit through, stay in, or leave the territory of the state of the other Party for up to ninety (90) days in any one hundred and eighty (180) day period, beginning from the date of arrival (or the day of first entry into the Schengen Area for nationals of the Sultanate of Oman), whereby the one hundred and eighty (180) day period, preceding any given day of the stay will be taken into account . The exercise of paid activities, which require a work permit under the national legislation of the Parties, is not permitted.
2. Nationals of the states of the Parties referred to in Article (1), who intend to stay longer than the period specified in paragraph (1) of this Article in the territory of the state of the other Party, whereby the one hundred and eighty (180) day period, preceding any given day of the stay will be taken into account, must be in possession of a visa issued by the competent authorities of the other Party.
Article (3)
1. This Agreement does not release members of diplomatic missions, consular posts or representatives of international organizations located in the territory of the state of the other Party, as well as their family members, from the requirements to obtain a visa for accreditation by the receiving state prior to their arrival, even if they are holders of any of the passports referred to in Article (1).
2. The persons specified in paragraph (1) of this Article may, following accreditation, enter, transit through, stay in or leave the territory of the receiving state without a visa during the entire period of their assignment.
Article (4)
Nationals of the state of either Party, holding any of the passports specified in Article (1), may enter, transit through, or leave the territory of the state of the other Party at all border-crossing points open to international passenger traffic.
Article (5)
This Agreement shall not affect the obligation of the nationals of the state of either Party, holding any of the passports specified in Article (1), to comply with the laws and regulations in force in the territory of the state of the other Party.
Article (6)
1. This Agreement shall not affect the right of the competent authorities of either Party to refuse entry of the persons mentioned in Article (1) who have been declared undesirable or who fail to meet the conditions for entry and stay under national, supranational and international law, or to demand their departure within a set period or to prohibit them from staying.
2. Should a national of the state of the other Party be affected by the measures referred to in paragraph (1) of this Article, the Party responsible for the measures shall notify the other Party through diplomatic channels in writing without delay.
Article (7)
1. Each Party reserves the right to suspend the application of this Agreement, entirely or partially, on grounds of national security, public order or public health, or if it is evident that there has been abuse of the rights in this Agreement.
2. The Party who wishes to suspend the application of this Agreement shall notify the other Party accordingly through diplomatic channels, no later than forty eight (48) hours before the start of this suspension, specifying the reasons for the suspension. It shall also notify the other Party of the end of the suspension at least forty eight (48) hours in advance.
3. The suspension of this Agreement shall not affect the legal status of the nationals of the state of either Party already in the territory of the state of the other Party holding any of the passports specified in Article (1).
Article (8)
1. The Parties shall exchange specimens of the passports referred to in Article (1), through diplomatic channels, no later than thirty (30) days before the entry into force of this Agreement.
2. Should a new specimen for the passports referred to in Article (1) be introduced by one Party, it shall convey this specimen passport to the other Party through diplomatic channels no later than thirty (30) days before the entry into force of any passports based on the new specimen. The Parties shall apply the standards and practices for machine-readable travel documents recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
3. Each Party shall notify the other Party of any changes to its national legislation regarding the issuance of the passports referred to in Article (1) no later than thirty (30) days before the entry into force of the changes.
4. In the case of loss, theft, damage or invalidity of any of the passports specified in Article (1) in the territory of the state of the other Party, the diplomatic or consular mission to which the holder of the lost, stolen, damaged or invalid passport belongs, shall provide the documents that enable the holder to return to the state of their Party. The diplomatic or consular mission must notify the other Party of the incident without delay through diplomatic channels.
5. The Parties shall cooperate in the field of travel documents security.
Article (9)
The Parties may amend this Agreement by mutual consent through additional protocols or exchanges of notes pursuant to the procedure set out in Article (11). If no date is specified for the entry into force for the amendments, Article (11) (1) shall apply mutatis mutandis. The amendments shall form an integral part of this Agreement.
Article (10)
Any disputes arising from the interpretation or application of the provisions of this Agreement shall be settled amicably by diplomatic consultation or negotiation between the Parties.
Article (11)
1. This Agreement shall enter into force thirty (30) days from the date of receipt of the last written communication, through diplomatic channels, by which the Parties have formally informed each other that the national requirements for such entry into force have been fulfilled and that specimen passports for machine-readable and electronically enabled passports of the types referred to in Article (1) with biometric identification capability in compliance with the international standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) have been introduced and conveyed to the other Party.
2. This Agreement shall be applicable for an indefinite period of time. If either Party wishes to terminate it, they shall inform the other Party of this fact in writing through diplomatic channels. They may give notice of termination with such communication. The termination shall take effect three (3) months after receipt of the notice of termination and the Agreement shall thereupon cease to have effect. The notice of termination need not state grounds .
3. The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany shall register this Agreement with the Secretariat of the United Nations, in accordance with Article (102) of the United Nations Charter, immediately following its entry into force. The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany shall also inform the Sultanate of Oman of the registration, and of the (UN) registration number, as soon as this has been confirmed by the Secretariat of the United Nations .
Article (12)
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as affecting the rights and obligations contained in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 18 April 1961 or the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 24 April 1963. This Agreement shall not affect any obligations contained in any other bilateral agreements concluded by the Parties.
Done at Muscat on Tuesday, 8 March 2016, in duplicate in the Arabic, German, and English languages, all three texts being equally authentic. In case of divergent interpretations of the Arabic and German texts, the English text shall prevail.
|
For the Government of the Sultanate of Oman |
For the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany |
|
H.E Yusuf Bin Alawi Bin Abdulla |
H.E.Dr.Frank-Walter Steinmeier |