14 September 2015, Times of Oman
Nepal has stopped issuing labour permits to migrant workers whose air tickets and visa fees are not being paid for by their prospective employers in Oman, a senior official of the Nepal Embassy in Muscat said.
Speaking to the Times of Oman, the official said the embassy of Nepal in Muscat takes this opportunity to refer to the decision of the government of Nepal to send Nepalese workers abroad for employment at zero cost.
“The decision provides that recruiting countries willing to recruit Nepalese workers will have to provide two way tickets to all the workers and obtain their visa free of cost,” said Rojina Tamrakar, chargé d’affaires of the Nepal Embassy in Muscat.
She also said this rule applies to all the Gulf countries, including Oman. “The Government of Nepal, Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) issues labour permits to the Nepalese workers going to the GCC countries (Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar) and Malaysia for foreign employment only after ensuring the terms of free visa and free ticket (two way) and also that no other cost shall be deducted from the salary of any worker.
Hence, this free ticket and free visa is for seven countries in all — six GCC countries and Malaysia. “The embassy will now attest the demand letters which ensure free tickets and free visa and meet other criteria set by the Government of Nepal,” she said.