After the death of Sultan Qaboos, Haitham's first cousin, on 10 January 2020, Haitham was named by the royal family and Qaboos's will as
Sultan of Oman the next day and took an oath before an emergency session of the
Council of Oman in
Al-Bustan. According to
Omani state TV, Qaboos's letter was opened by the Defence Council and his identity was announced shortly thereafter. As sultan, he also held the positions of prime minister, supreme commander of the armed forces, minister of defence, minister of finance, minister of foreign affairs and chairman of the
Central Bank of Oman until 18 August 2020 when he appointed
Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi as foreign minister,
Sultan bin Salem bin Saeed al-Habsi as minister of finance, and
Taimur bin Asa'ad Al Said as chairman of the
Central Bank of Oman. In his first public speech, he promised to uphold his predecessor's
peace-making foreign policy and to further develop Oman's economy. Haitham bin Tariq is married and, unlike his predecessor, also has children, two sons and two daughters. Early in his reign he signed Oman to the
United Nations Convention Against Torture, the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. In October 2020 Oman was the first Gulf state to send an ambassador back to
Syria after they downgraded or shut missions in Damascus in 2012 over attacks by the government there on protests at the start of the
war. On 11 January 2021, the Sultan issued a royal decree creating a
Crown Prince role, stating that Oman's crown prince will be the
eldest son of the serving sultan. This made his eldest son,
Sayyid Theyazin, the country's first crown prince, and officially formalised the method of succession. He also amended the
Basic Statute of Oman to reaffirm citizens' and residents' freedom of expression and opinion, removed a law that allowed the state to monitor private phone conversations, social media or postal correspondence, and granted the freedom to practice religious rites according to recognised customs provided it does not violate the public order or contradict morals. In April 2021 Oman introduced its
value added tax (VAT), later than the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain but before Qatar and Kuwait. In May and June 2021, there were many protests against the Omani government over economic concerns such as unemployment and corruption. Some protesters were arrested and then released. During his visit to the United Kingdom, he met Queen
Elizabeth II at
Windsor Castle and was honoured with a
GCMG. In September 2022, following
Elizabeth II's death, Haitham visited
Buckingham Palace to offer his condolences to King
Charles III. He visited Tehran in May 2023 where he discussed regional diplomatic and security issues, two days after Muscat mediated a prisoner swap between Iran and Belgium. In 2023 the government approved a $5.2 billion investment fund, the Oman Future Fund, to support diversified economic growth and announced a new development project,
Sultan Haitham City. In 2023 a Tourism Law was promulgated. The Medium Term Fiscal Plan for 20202024 proposed greater fiscal sustainability. Oman's overall fiscal deficit averaged 12.8% of gross domestic product from 20152020, while the budget deficit reached approximately 3.6% in 2021. Oman enjoyed a budget surplus of approximately 5% of GDP in 2022 – the country's first surplus since 2013. Oman's long-term sovereign credit rating changed from junk status to the investment grade of BB+ in 2024. In 2025
Moody's upgraded Oman's long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to "Baa3" from "Ba1", due to expectations of continued improvement in debt ratios and resilience to lower oil prices. During the
Twelve-Day War, in a call with President
Masoud Pezeshkian, Sultan Haitham emphasised the need for de-escalation from both sides and a return to negotiations to halt the ongoing conflict and its catastrophic repercussions. In May 2025 Oman mediated a
ceasefire between the US and Houthi forces. In 2025 Oman become the first country in the Gulf to impose a personal
income tax. Oman, will impose a 5% tax on taxable income for individuals earning over 42,000
Omani rials ($109,091) per year starting from 2028. The tax will apply to about 1% of the population. Officials said that the tax was intended to promote equity and reduce the country's dependence on oil and gas, which made up around 70 per cent of the state revenues last year. Revenue estimates for the new tax stand at less than 0.5% of GDP. On 9 March 2026 Sultan Haitham was the first Arab leader to congratulate Iran's new supreme leader,
Mojtaba Khamenei, underscoring Muscat's continued commitment to maintaining positive relations with Tehran. == Titles, styles, and honours ==