Foreign nationals staying and working illegally in Bangladesh have been given a cutoff time until January 31 to secure necessary documents for stay or face legal action.
The Ministry of Home Affairs issued Thursday a notice to this effect, as reports of government agencies say many are staying illegally and working sans valid work permit.
Signed by Khuda Baksh Chowdhury, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser for Home Affairs, the circular mentioned that many foreign nationals are illegally staying or working in Bangladesh, despite a previous reminder.
On December 8, the Home Ministry requested the unauthorized foreigners to take necessary documents for legalizing their works or stay in the country.
The previous circular had not mentioned any deadline while the fresh one coming Thursday set the timeline for legitimizing their stay.
"It is hereby brought to the notice of all concerned that many foreign nationals are illegally staying or working in Bangladesh. In this case, foreign nationals illegally staying or working in Bangladesh are requested to acquire the necessary documents to stay or work in Bangladesh by 31 January 2025," the latest Home Ministry notice reads.
It says after the end of the deadline, "legal action will be taken against those staying illegally and the relevant institutions".
All public departments and institutions concerned have also been requested to provide necessary cooperation in this regard.
Some government reports have it that more than 0.10 million foreigners living in Bangladesh. Of them, many are illegal as they do not have visa or work permit or their stay permission expired.
Among the illegitimate foreign nationals, Indians and Chinese are on top of the numbers as many of them are working here even after the expiry of their visas or work permits, reposts said.
Most of them are working in Bangladesh's readymade garment and textile sectors where foreign hires dominate top jobs in many cases.
Besides, foreign nationals from the USA, the UK, Canada, Nepal, Russia, Japan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Italy, South Korea, Belarus, Indonesia, Japan, Bhutan, Portugal, Finland, and Argentina, Africa and other parts of the world live in Bangladesh for work.
Home Ministry officials think it is "not only the matter of security, Bangladesh is also being deprived of revenues".
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