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Overseas employment
Going abroad for work from Bangladesh: what the law allows, and what it punishes
Overseas employment from Bangladesh is governed by the Overseas Employment and Migrants Act, 2013. This page sets out who may lawfully send you abroad for work, and the penalty the Act attaches to each abuse.
Overseas Employment and Migrants Act, 2013
Act No. 48 of 2013
27 October 2013
2023 (Act 41 of 2023) and 2026 (Act 42 of 2026)
BMET, a government body or company, or a licensed recruiting agent
10 years' rigorous imprisonment (section 34)
10 October 2026
The short answer
A private individual cannot lawfully send you abroad for work. Only the Bureau (BMET), a body or company established by the Government, or a licensed recruiting agent may do so. If someone takes money from you on a false promise of a job abroad, or holds on to your passport, the Act treats that as a criminal offence carrying up to five years' imprisonment and a fine of at least one lakh taka.
Who may lawfully send you abroad for work
Section 3 of the Act vests control of all activity connected with selecting workers in Bangladesh and sending them abroad for employment in the Government, or in an authority the Government empowers.
The same section names exactly who may carry out recruitment work: the Bureau, a body or company established by the Government, and a recruiting agent. Anyone outside that list — including a sub-agent who has not registered as the Act requires — is acting outside the law.
What the Act punishes, and how heavily
Chapter Eight of the Act sets the offences and their penalties. The schedule below follows the Act's own section numbers, including the 2023 and 2026 amendments.
Sending or helping to send someone abroad for work in breach of the Act; taking money on a false promise of overseas employment; withholding a migrant worker's passport, visa or migration papers without lawful reason; or luring someone into a migration contract by false promises of higher pay
Up to 5 years' imprisonment and a fine of not less than ৳1,00,000
Section 31Publishing a recruitment or migration advertisement without the prior approval of the Government or the Bureau
Up to 1 year's imprisonment and a fine of not less than ৳50,000
Section 32Obtaining a demand letter, visa or work permit by illegal means, or buying and selling one inside Bangladesh
Rigorous imprisonment of not less than 2 years and up to 7 years, and a fine of not less than ৳3,00,000
Section 33, as amended in 2023Carrying on recruitment work after a licence has been cancelled or revoked
1 to 2 years' imprisonment and a fine of ৳1,00,000 to ৳5,00,000
Section 33A, inserted in 2023Arranging or helping someone leave Bangladesh from a place other than a designated departure point
Rigorous imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine of not less than ৳5,00,000
Section 34A recruiting agent running a branch office, or appointing a sub-agent, in breach of the conditions in the Act
1 year's imprisonment, or a fine of ৳1,00,000 to ৳5,00,000
Section 35(1), as amended in 2023Working as a recruiting agent's sub-agent without the registration the Act requires, or presenting yourself as one
1 year's imprisonment, or a fine of ৳50,000 to ৳2,00,000
Section 35(2), as amended in 2023Any other breach of the Act for which no penalty is separately stated
Up to 6 months' imprisonment, or a fine of up to ৳50,000, or both
Section 35A, inserted in 2026Aiding, abetting or inciting any of the offences above
The same penalty as the offence itself
Section 36What this means before you pay anyone
1. Check the licence before you pay
Section 3 permits only the Bureau, a government-established body or company, and a recruiting agent to carry out recruitment. Ask for the agency's licence number.
2. Treat an unapproved advertisement as a warning sign
Section 32 makes it an offence to publish an overseas-employment advertisement without prior approval from the Government or the Bureau.
3. Never hand your passport to an individual or sub-agent
Section 31 makes it an offence to withhold a migrant worker's passport, visa or migration papers without lawful reason.
4. Confirm who you are actually dealing with
A sub-agent must itself be registered. Working as, or posing as, an unregistered sub-agent is an offence under section 35(2).
5. Leave through a designated departure point
Section 34 sets the heaviest penalty in the chapter, up to 10 years, for arranging departure from anywhere else.
Questions people ask
Is it illegal to go abroad for work through a broker?
A private individual cannot lawfully carry out recruitment. Section 3 vests control of selecting and sending workers abroad in the Government or an authority it empowers, and allows only the Bureau, a body or company established by the Government, and a recruiting agent to conduct recruitment work.
What happens if an agent keeps my passport?
Section 31(c) makes it an offence to withhold a migrant worker's passport, visa or migration-related papers without lawful reason. The penalty is imprisonment of up to five years and a fine of not less than one lakh taka.
What is the penalty for selling a work visa in Bangladesh?
Section 33 covers obtaining demand letters, visas or work permits by illegal means and buying or selling them inside Bangladesh. Following the 2023 amendment the penalty is rigorous imprisonment of not less than two and up to seven years, and a fine of not less than three lakh taka.
Can a job abroad be advertised on Facebook without permission?
No. Section 32(1) makes it an offence for any person or recruiting agent to publish or promote an overseas-employment or migration advertisement without the prior approval of the Government or the Bureau. The penalty is up to one year's imprisonment and a fine of not less than fifty thousand taka.
Where these provisions come from
Overseas Employment and Migrants Act, 2013 (Act No. 48 of 2013), Chapter Two section 3 and Chapter Eight sections 31 to 37 — Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd (retrieved 10 October 2026). Overseas Employment and Migrants (Amendment) Act, 2023 (Act No. 41 of 2023), sections 9, 10 and 11 (retrieved 10 October 2026). Overseas Employment and Migrants (Amendment) Act, 2026 (Act No. 42 of 2026), section 2 (retrieved 10 October 2026). Reviewed by the AGB editorial desk. This page describes the text of the Act and is not legal advice.
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