MRP blow for jobseekers
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is refusing to issue visas to Bangladeshi jobseekers who do not have machine-readable passports (MRPs), officials at Bangladesh embassy in the UAE said.
The UAE immigration authorities are demanding MRPs of all jobseekers, possibly because they are a bit annoyed that some hold MRPs and others manual passports, Bangladesh Ambassador to the UAE Nazmul Quaunine told The Daily Star by phone yesterday.
He said he has already requested the authorities to issue visas to all passport holders since Bangladesh introduced MRPs only recently and it will take time to issue those to all.
Dhaka launched MRPs on April 1 but kept on providing manual passports in cases of emergency for a certain period.
Bangladesh's recruiting agencies meanwhile said thousands of jobseekers would be affected if the problem concerning visas is not resolved.
The UAE is the biggest importer of manpower from Bangladesh recruiting over 2.5 lakh workers a year. Around seven lakh Bangladeshis working there sent home Tk 73,318 crore last year.
Nazmul said the immigration office in Abu Dhabi is asking the UAE employers to submit to it MRPs of all Bangladeshi jobseekers. Visas are issued on the basis of passport copies submitted to the immigration authorities in that country.
"Instructions that all must have MRPs follow confusion in the UAE immigration," the ambassador said. He mentioned that Bangladesh government had initially kept emergency manual passports valid for one-year after the introduction of MRPs but later changed the validity period.
The home ministry in a circular on April 8 announced that emergency manual passports would be valid for two years because of various problems faced by the expatriate Bangladeshis.
In another circular on May 18, the home ministry said emergency manual passports would be valid for three years.
The Ambassador said he has also requested the UAE employers to explain the matter to their government.
Contacted, Additional Home Secretary Iqbal Khan Chowdhury said the government would take urgent steps to issue MRPs to all those going to the UAE.
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