UAE Visa Restrictions Deeply Impact Bangladeshi Labour Market

Bangladeshi workers, professionals, and tourists are facing major difficulties obtaining visas for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as unofficial restrictions imposed since mid-2024 continue to disrupt travel and employment. The bottleneck began after political developments in Bangladesh in August 2024, which reportedly prompted the UAE to slow visa issuance, especially for low- and semi-skilled workers.

Delegations and individuals have struggled for months to secure visas. A recent 27-member Bangladeshi team attending the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi barely received their visas in time despite confirmed flights and hotel bookings. Similar delays caused Bangladeshi participants to miss the Forex Expo Dubai and even affected sports events, such as cricketer Soumya Sarkar missing a T20I series.

Data from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) shows that only 8,000 semi- and skilled workers were sent to the UAE up to September 2025, a sharp decline from previous years. Tourist and transit visa issuance has nearly halted, devastating outbound tour operators and airlines dependent on UAE-bound travel.

The Bangladeshi Foreign Ministry has been in ongoing talks with UAE authorities, but officials note that visa policy remains under UAE government control. More than 1.2 million Bangladeshis currently live in the UAE, making the slowdown a significant challenge for remittances and bilateral labour ties.

Sources indicate that restrictions target low-skilled workers due to concerns over recruitment fraud, visa violations, and past protests by Bangladeshi migrant workers. While high-skilled professionals can still obtain visas, the majority of labour, tourist, and transit visa categories remain frozen, creating long-term impacts on Bangladesh’s labour export sector.