ISLAMABAD – Pakistani nationals who secure overseas employment directly, without using a licensed recruitment agency, are required to get their work visas protected from the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment.
The citizens, who are going to abroad, need to pay a certain fee of Rs9,200 to complete the process.
Word Visa Protector Fees
According to the fee breakdown, the amount covers four components: an insurance fee of Rs2,500, an Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) welfare fund contribution of Rs4,000, a registration fee of Rs2,500 and an immigration promotion fee of Rs200.
Visa Protector Advisory
Overseas job seekers have been advised to identify their recruitment method correctly when applying for protector registration, as separate procedures apply to direct employment and jobs obtained through licensed recruitment agencies.
Applicants who secure jobs independently should apply under the direct employment category and pay the prescribed charges through the official payment procedure. They should avoid handing over money, original passports or other documents to unrelated agents merely to submit an application or pay the registration fee.
Keeping payment receipts and application records is also important to help prevent financial losses and delays if a person entrusted with money or documents disappears.
Candidates recruited through licensed overseas employment promoters, however, should ensure their cases are processed through the appropriate agency-based procedure. They should not declare themselves direct employment applicants if a recruitment agency arranged their jobs.
Before departure, workers are advised to check the protector sticker on their passports to verify that the agency’s name is correctly recorded.
An incorrect registration category may leave the recruitment agency’s role unclear in official records, potentially complicating the examination of future disputes involving recruitment, payments or employment conditions.
However, the presence or absence of an agency’s name on a protector sticker alone does not determine its legal responsibilities. Employment agreements, payment receipts, communications and other supporting evidence may also be relevant when examining a complaint.
To protect themselves, overseas job seekers should verify the recruitment agency’s licence, obtain receipts for every payment and ensure their protector registration reflects the actual method through which they secured employment.
Anyone who identifies a discrepancy in their registration details should contact the relevant protector office promptly for guidance on correcting the record.
