Ministry of Health: Chest X-ray mandatory for renewal of working visa

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has made chest X-ray mandatory as part of the employment visa renewal process. Earlier, one had to go for blood test only at the Department of Diseases Surveillance and Control centres across the country.

An official at the ministry said, “From April 1, the requirement for chest X-ray has been made mandatory for employment visas.”

The X-ray is to be done at approved private medical centres before visiting the MoH centres for blood test. “All are requested to have chest X-ray posteroanterior (PA) view done at approved private medical centres in Oman. The report has to be brought at the time of medical fitness examination at our centres effective April 1, 2019,” read a notice at the ministry’s Darsait centre.

Chest X-ray helps detect strains of tuberculosis (TB) present in lungs. To completely eradicate TB from Oman, the Ministry of Health has stepped up measures to control the communicable disease.

Mohammed, an Egyptian and a resident of Muscat said, “I had gone to the MoH centre in Darsait for blood test for my visa renewal on Sunday morning and this is when I came to know about this new rule.”

Renewal of visa used to cost RO371 and after the X-ray requirement it will go up by RO10, said a public relations officer of a media house.

This article originally appeared on: https://muscatdaily.com/Archive/Oman/Chest-X-ray-mandatory-for-renewal-of-work-visa-MoH-5dv4