The government has recently revoked the licences of 56 recruiting agencies over various irregularities and allegations of fraud in sending workers abroad. Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury disclosed this during the question-and-answer session on the fifth day of the fourth session of the 13th National Parliament on Sunday.

The Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister further said that disciplinary action is being taken against recruiting agencies under the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Act, 2013, following investigations into complaints filed by workers or their guardians. These complaints include not getting jobs after being sent abroad, failure to receive iqama (residence permits), not receiving salaries as stipulated in contracts, and fraud in the name of overseas employment.

In response to another question from reserved women's seat lawmaker Sajeda Samad, the minister said that Bangladeshi workers went to 115 countries for employment in 2026. The government will take initiatives to appoint local lobbyists or consultants abroad to explore new labour markets for Bangladeshi workers. At the same time, the government is implementing various programmes to expand existing labour markets, develop skilled workers and improve the language skills of people seeking employment abroad.

The minister said Bangladesh is sending workers to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Singapore, Portugal, Seychelles, Serbia, Fiji, Romania, Macedonia, Mauritius, Italy and various other European countries. To increase overseas employment, initiatives will be taken to appoint country-specific local lobbyists or consultants where necessary, based on recommendations from Bangladesh missions abroad.

Saying that the government is working to reopen the Malaysian labour market, he said the adviser and minister of the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry visited the country from April 8 to 11. Bilateral discussions were held with senior representatives of Malaysia regarding the recruitment and deployment of workers. The Prime Minister also recently visited Malaysia. Subsequently, the ministry's adviser and minister visited the country again towards the end of July. He expressed hope that the way would soon be paved for sending Bangladeshi workers to Malaysia.

Regarding the expansion of Qatar's labour market, the minister said the seventh meeting of the Bangladesh-Qatar Joint Committee was held in Dhaka on May 18. At the meeting, Qatar's Labour Minister Dr Ali bin Samikh Al Marri expressed interest in recruiting workers from Bangladesh in the trades of electricians, plumbers, AC technicians and welding.

In addition, technical interns are being sent to Japan at no cost with the assistance of the International Manpower Development Organization (IM Japan). Agreements have been signed with seven more Japanese companies. Through the government recruiting agency Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL), workers are being sent to various countries, including Brunei, Jordan, South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, at low costs or free of charge.