June 17: The number of people complaining of being cheated in the name of foreign employment is on the rise. As the number of complaints lodged with the Department of Foreign Employment (DFE) has increased along with the claims of swindling of large amount of money, there is a confusion as to whether the claimants have been really cheated or other incidents are linked to foreign employment.

Director General of the Department, Shesh Narayan Poudel, says that people have been filing such complaints even in cases related to normal transactions and personal dispute.

There is a provision in the Foreign Employment Act 2064 that if the victim is found to have been cheated in the name of foreign employment, the victim will get compensation by adding 50 percent to the amount cheated.

According to the concerned officials, the number of complaints lodged with the department has increased due to the greed of getting more compensation if the victims are able to prove that the transaction is related to foreign employment. Director General Poudel said that the problem of foreign employment fraud is becoming more and more complicated due to fake claims. He said, “It is not difficult to solve the problem of the genuine victims. But it is difficult to settle fake claims.”

Examining the complaints received by the department in the last six years, it is clear that around Rs 5 billion has been swindled. Compensation of around Rs 820 million has been paid in the last six fiscal years. During this period, more than 9,000 complaints of fraud were registered, as per the information of department. Some even file complaints at the police, local level, and district administration offices.

Fraud cases in the name of foreign employment were registered even during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the number of people going for foreign employment during the period was very low. An employee of the department said, “Most of the complaints lodged with the department are against brokers and manpower companies. We have been found people filing cases in the name of foreign employment fraud even in cases of normal transactions.”

Kamal Karki of Ramechhap who handed over Rs 500,000 to a broker to go abroad said, “Making a complaint does not earn money. Evidence is needed to prove fraud.”

According to the stakeholders, brokers have been running fraudulent business by showing the temptation of developed countries in recent times to the people. An employee of the department said, “There are lots of cheating cases by tempting them to go to Europe, America and Australia.”

Director General Poudel says that research and investigation is required to reduce fraudulent activities in the name of foreign employment. He said, “At the moment, not only the employees of the department but also the police are insisting on taking action against the swindlers.”

He said that cases of educational consultancies being established by swindlers to cheat unsuspecting people is rising in recent days.

 “A lot of people are coming in with complaints of fraud. It is really difficult to differentiate between real and fake claims,” Added Poudel.