Bangladesh’s Visa Crisis: Understanding the Denials and Desperation

Bangladesh is grappling with a severe “full-blown crisis” of escalating visa denials and tightening restrictions from key global destinations, including the Gulf, Southeast Asia, and Europe. This isn’t just about travel; it’s a direct hit to outbound tourism, corporate ventures, and, most critically, the nation’s vital labor migration sector, which fuels its economy through remittances. The root causes are complex: widespread visa overstays, rampant use of forged documents, and serious concerns about human trafficking.

The economic fallout is stark, with outbound travel plummeting and labor migration shrinking, threatening the crucial flow of remittances. For migrants and their families, the human cost is immense: crushing debt, pervasive exploitation, and profound psychological distress from failed journeys. Unscrupulous recruitment agencies and informal networks within Bangladesh exacerbate the problem, engaging in deceptive practices and illegal fees. Meanwhile, destination countries are tightening their borders, driven by their own concerns about irregular migration and visa system integrity.

While Bangladesh has legal frameworks like the Overseas Employment and Migrants Act (OEMA 2013) and the Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act (PSHTA 2012), and engages in international cooperation, its effectiveness is often undermined by implementation gaps, low conviction rates for traffickers, and systemic vulnerabilities. Resolving this crisis demands a united front: stronger domestic governance, enhanced international collaboration, and comprehensive support to ensure safe, dignified, and regular migration pathways for Bangladeshi citizens.

A Nation on the Move, Now Facing Closed Doors

Bangladesh, a nation of over 173.5 million, relies heavily on overseas migration. With hundreds of thousands of young people entering the workforce annually, and domestic job creation struggling to keep pace, going abroad isn’t just a choice – it’s often a necessity. Low-skilled workers can earn four times more overseas than at home, making migration a powerful economic lifeline.

The remittances sent back by these workers are the lifeblood of Bangladesh’s economy, stabilizing finances, boosting foreign exchange reserves, and significantly contributing to GDP. In 2024, remittances accounted for a substantial 6.0% of the nation’s GDP. Over 2.1 million workers ventured abroad in FY2022 and FY2023 alone, surpassing pre-COVID levels. Since 1976, approximately 15 million Bangladeshis have worked globally.

However, this crucial pathway is now under threat. Bangladesh faces a “full-blown crisis” of widespread visa denials and stringent restrictions from countries in the Gulf, Southeast Asia, and beyond. This isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a direct challenge to the economic stability and future development of the nation.

The Tightening Grip: Why Visas Are Being Denied

The global landscape for Bangladeshi travelers and workers is rapidly shrinking. At least a dozen countries have halted visa issuance or are rejecting applications at “alarming rates,” while another dozen have significantly slowed processing.

Key Restrictions and Reasons:

Southeast Asia: Vietnam, Laos, Egypt, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan have completely stopped issuing visas. Vietnam’s ban on tourist visas, for instance, was triggered by a “steep 60-70% non-return rate”. Indonesia suspended visa-on-arrival in 2021, now requiring high fees and long waits. Cambodia has replaced visa-on-arrival with stringent eVisa rules. Thailand’s e-visa system, implemented in January, has led to major delays and a surge in rejections, with around 4,500 reported in early June alone.
South Asia: India, a traditional hub for medical and student travel, now issues only a fraction of visas, primarily for urgent cases, especially after political unrest in August 2024.
Gulf and Middle East: The UAE, Oman, and Malaysia – three of Bangladesh’s largest labor markets are no longer issuing visas for low-skilled workers. Saudi Arabia temporarily suspended work visas for Bangladesh and 13 other countries until June 2025, causing significant delays. Visit visas, when resumed, are limited to single-entry, 90-day stays. The UAE suspended general visa issuance in mid-2024, with partial resumption under tight quotas, indicating that demand far outstrips supply.
Europe: Romania and Croatia, once emerging destinations for workers, have largely ceased processing visas due to concerns about migrants moving to Western EU nations. Over 30,000 Bangladeshi visa applications were rejected by EU member states in 2024. Schengen countries, Italy, France, Germany, and the UK are seeing rising rejection rates and prolonged delays.
East Asia: Japan shifted all visa processing to VFS Global due to a document forgery case, causing delays for genuine applicants. China and Hong Kong are experiencing rising visa cancellations and rejections. Hong Kong reportedly rejects 99% of Bangladeshi passports, even for seasoned travelers, due to thousands claiming asylum and staying illegally.

The Core Drivers of Denial:

The primary reasons for these widespread restrictions are:

Visa Overstays: A significant number of Bangladeshis overstay their visas, leading countries like Vietnam to impose outright bans.
Forged Documents: The pervasive use of “forged bank statements and fake certificates” is a major reason for closed doors. Studies show agents often falsify medical and pre-departure certificates.
Human Trafficking: This is a central global concern. When visa fraud and trafficking originate from a country, restrictions inevitably follow. Bangladesh is recognized as a source, transit, and destination for human trafficking.
Recruitment Scams and Misconduct: Stricter policies in Gulf countries like the UAE, Oman, and Malaysia are a direct response to allegations of recruitment scams, widespread forged documents, and labor unrest. Over 25% of all visa or residency violators in the UAE are Bangladeshis, often linked to corruption and informal networks.
Political Climate and International Image: Some experts suggest that broader concerns over shrinking democracy, corruption, and human rights violations in Bangladesh contribute to its damaged international image and visa restrictions. Allegations linking Bangladeshi nationals to militancy in Malaysia have further exacerbated this.

Specific reasons for rejection vary by country:

UAE: Females under 22 traveling alone, unskilled professions in passports, handwritten passport copies, previous criminal offenses, and unclear prior visas.
Thailand: False information, damaged passports, fake documents (e.g., office letters, bank documents), applying for the wrong visa type, and insufficient bank balance.
Malaysia: Social visit passes do not allow work or study. Rejections also occur for incomplete/false documents, financial insufficiency, lack of genuine intent, academic ineligibility, and criminal records.

The cycle is vicious: economic pressure pushes Bangladeshis towards informal, unregulated migration channels, which are rife with fraud. When migrants arrive under false pretenses, they are more likely to overstay or engage in irregular activities, prompting destination countries to tighten policies, further limiting legitimate pathways and pushing more people into the shadows.

The Human and Economic Toll

The visa crisis has inflicted profound economic and social damage.

1 Economic Repercussions

Tourism & Corporate Travel: Outbound tourism from Bangladesh has plummeted by 50-60% in the past year, and corporate tours by nearly 70%. Overall, outbound tourism has cratered by as much as 80% since 2024, with flight ticket sales dropping 60% since December. One tour operator, Taslim Amin Shovon, saw his corporate client numbers fall from 2,000-3,000 annually to just 300, with 20% due to visa issues.
Labor Migration: Overall, overseas migration from Bangladesh dropped significantly by 27.4% in 2024, from 1,390,811 in 2023 to 1,009,146. In the UAE, employment for Bangladeshis fell from 5,000 hires monthly pre-2024 to a mere 23 in December. Oman also reported a severe decline.
Remittances: While remittances showed resilience during early COVID-19, peaking at $24.78 billion in FY20-21, they have since fluctuated. The current “full-blown crisis” and drastic reduction in new labor deployments pose a significant threat to future inflows. Given that remittances are a “pillar of the economy” and vital for foreign exchange reserves and GDP growth, a sustained reduction could trigger macroeconomic instability and undermine economic progress.

Socio-Economic Burden on Migrants and Families

Migration often depletes household resources, pushing families into deep debt to finance journeys. Many failed migrants return home burdened by debt bondage, having paid three to six times the government’s fixed migration cost for a failed endeavor. For some, the entire migration episode is spent just servicing this debt.

Deception and Exploitation: A staggering 75% of complainants were not given job contracts before migrating, and 47% never received work permits. Even among those with permits, only 24% secured the promised jobs. Illegal recruitment practices forced 36% of migrants to return within three months, and another 40% within six months. Male workers without permits were often confined until their visas expired, then classified as absconders, making them highly vulnerable.
Human Cost: The experience of failed migration, coupled with financial insecurity, societal harassment, and family rejection, severely impacts migrants’ psychosocial well-being. Stories abound: Mojnu Mia lost Tk 130,000 to a fake visa. Rashedul paid Tk 445,000, was trafficked to Malaysia, confined, tortured, forced to arrange an additional Tk 380,000 from his family, and then jailed for a year. Rasel Ahmed paid $30,000 to smugglers for a failed trek to the US, enduring 18 months in detention before deportation. The record high of 4,813 Bangladeshi migrant worker bodies arriving in 2024, a figure increasing annually since 2021, underscores the dire situations faced abroad, with many deaths “effectively unexplained”.

This crisis is a profound human tragedy, exposing systemic failures to protect citizens, leading to widespread exploitation, psychological trauma, and even death.

Systemic Flaws and the Path Forward

The Shadow of Unscrupulous Agencies

A significant number of Bangladeshi migrants fall victim to false promises from recruiting agents or informal middlemen (dalals). “Contract substitution” is rampant, where promised conditions, pay, or jobs are drastically altered upon arrival. Despite a government mandate of zero migration fees for female domestic workers, 65% reported being illegally charged Tk50,000 to Tk2 lakh by agents.

Alarmingly, 80% of respondents in one study were recruited through unauthorized sub-agents, despite laws permitting only licensed agencies. About 22% reported agents forging medical certificates, and 16% falsifying pre-departure orientation certificates, both crucial for emigration clearance. This widespread forgery directly fuels visa rejections.

The “inherent conflict of interest” within the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), which both licenses agents and handles arbitration cases, further weakens oversight. This allows illicit practices to flourish, damaging Bangladesh’s international reputation and making its citizens vulnerable.

Government Efforts and Persistent Challenges

Bangladesh has established legislative frameworks like the Overseas Employment and Migrants Act (OEMA) 2013, aimed at promoting safe migration and protecting workers’ rights. The Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act (PSHTA) 2012 criminalizes both sex and labor trafficking, with stringent penalties. The government has increased prosecutions and convictions against traffickers and initiated investigations into cases involving Rohingya victims. It has also amended policies to improve oversight of recruitment agents and established a welfare fund for migrants.

However, significant challenges remain:

Low Conviction Rates: Despite more cases, the conviction rate for human trafficking is “not satisfactory,” with courts often imposing fines instead of jail time, weakening deterrence.
Implementation Gaps: Collaboration between police and prosecutors is often poor, leading to delays and weak cases. The BMET’s dual role creates a conflict of interest, and its arbitration process is slow and under-resourced, resolving only 39% of complaints, often with minimal compensation.
Vulnerable Pathways: Despite bans on certain categories of female labor, many women still migrate through unofficial channels, increasing their vulnerability.

Bangladesh also engages in international cooperation, including mutual legal assistance pacts and extradition treaties to combat transnational trafficking. Efforts are underway to develop a “Talent Partnership” with the European Union to promote regular and safe migration pathways.

A Call for Dignity and Action

The visa denial crisis is a severe, multi-dimensional challenge for Bangladesh, born from a complex interplay of internal vulnerabilities, like widespread document forgery, human trafficking, and fraudulent recruitment, and external pressures from destination countries tightening their borders. Its impacts are devastating, crippling economic sectors and threatening vital remittances, while imposing immense financial, physical, and psychological burdens on millions of Bangladeshi citizens.

Sustainable solutions require a fundamental shift, transforming Bangladesh’s migration landscape from one of precarity to one of dignity and opportunity. This entails recognizing migration as a shared responsibility, necessitating coordinated action from origin countries, destination countries, and international organizations.

Recommendations for a Way Forward:

For the Bangladeshi Government:
- Strengthen Oversight: Rigorously enforce regulations on recruitment agencies, ensuring zero fees for workers and holding fraudulent recruiters criminally accountable. Address the BMET’s conflict of interest by separating its licensing and arbitration roles, and invest in training and resources.
- Combat Fraud & Trafficking: Intensify investigations and prosecutions of trafficking, ensuring significant prison terms for convicted traffickers. Improve police-prosecutor collaboration.
- Protect Migrants: Implement mandatory, high-quality pre-departure trainings on rights and assistance avenues. Establish robust victim identification and protection services, including for male and returning victims. Create sustainable alternative employment opportunities for returnees.
- Improve Diplomacy: Proactively address internal governance issues and corruption to enhance Bangladesh’s international reputation. Negotiate more favorable, ethical, and transparent bilateral labor agreements.
For Recruiting Agencies:
- Ethical Practices: Adhere strictly to the “no fees charged to migrant workers” principle. Ensure all contracts are clear, transparent, and accurately reflect working conditions.
- Transparency: Cease using unauthorized sub-agents and conduct all recruitment through licensed, regulated channels.
For Destination Countries:
- Expand Legal Pathways: Collaborate with Bangladesh to establish and expand legal, transparent, and mutually beneficial labor mobility schemes, reducing incentives for irregular migration.
- Protect Rights: Vigorously enforce labor laws protecting migrants from exploitation, wage theft, and passport confiscation. Provide accessible grievance mechanisms without fear of deportation.
- Targeted Measures: Implement targeted restrictions against individuals or entities involved in fraud, rather than blanket bans that harm legitimate travelers and workers.
For International Organizations & Civil Society:
- Capacity Building: Continue supporting Bangladesh in strengthening migration governance, pre-departure training, and reintegration programs.
- Advocacy: Advocate for the ratification and implementation of international conventions on migrant worker rights, and provide direct support and legal aid to victims.

By adopting a comprehensive, rights-based approach, Bangladesh can navigate this crisis, protect its citizens, and ensure that migration remains a pathway to dignity and prosperity.

C. Basu.

Bibliography

Must Read

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply