The average Bangladeshi worker pays 3–5 lakh BDT for a Ukrainian work permit that no Bangladeshi agent has any legal authority to issue. The money is divided between a BAIRA-licensed recruiting agency, its sub-agent, and in many cases a 'Ukrainian employer' who exists only on paper.
What BAIRA Is — and What It Is Not
BAIRA — the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies — is a trade body representing Bangladeshi manpower-export agencies licensed by the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET). BAIRA membership is a domestic Bangladesh credential. It confers no authority, recognition or legal status under Ukrainian immigration law.
A BAIRA licence authorises an agency to recruit Bangladeshi workers for deployment to countries that have bilateral Manpower Cooperation Agreements (MCA) with Bangladesh. Ukraine does not have such an agreement with Bangladesh. This single fact is the structural foundation of every BAIRA-related Ukraine scam: the mechanism that makes BAIRA-licensed agencies legitimate operators in, say, the Saudi or Malaysian corridor simply does not exist for the Ukrainian corridor.
When a BAIRA-affiliated agency tells a client it can "arrange" a Ukrainian work permit, it is either ignorant of this legal gap or it is lying. In practice, the distinction matters less than the outcome: the client pays, the documents delivered are either forged or worthless, and the 'legal status' never materialises.
The Sub-Agent Structure
BAIRA agencies rarely deal directly with individual clients at the village or district level. They operate through networks of unlicensed sub-agents — local brokers who work out of market offices, phone shops or simply by word of mouth in rural and semi-urban areas.
The sub-agent's job is client acquisition. They identify families with a member interested in working abroad, present Ukraine as a desirable and achievable destination (often citing Schengen proximity, high wages in IT or construction, and a 'simple' permit process), collect an initial fee, and pass the client to the BAIRA agency in Dhaka or Chittagong. The sub-agent receives a recruitment commission — typically 20,000–60,000 BDT per referred client, paid by the agency out of the total fee collected.
The sub-agent has no accountability. They are not licensed, not registered with BMET, and not a party to any written agreement with the client. If the migration fails, the sub-agent is simply unreachable — they have already moved to the next family in the next district.
The Fee Chain: Dhaka to Kyiv
Based on documented cases reviewed by Kyiv Pathway, the total fee collected from a Bangladeshi applicant for a fraudulent Ukraine work permit package typically runs between 300,000 and 500,000 BDT (approximately $2,700–$4,500 USD at current rates). This fee is not paid as a single amount — it is typically collected in instalments, which prevents the client from understanding the full cost upfront and makes recovery harder.
| Sub-agent recruitment commission | 20,000–60,000 BDT |
|---|---|
| BAIRA agency processing fee | 80,000–150,000 BDT |
| 'Visa support' and document preparation | 40,000–80,000 BDT |
| Employer 'sponsorship' fee (kickback) | 80,000–160,000 BDT |
| Flight, accommodation 'deposit' | 30,000–60,000 BDT |
| Total range | 300,000–500,000 BDT |
The 'employer sponsorship fee' — sometimes called an 'employment guarantee fee' or 'contract deposit' — is the most revealing element of the fee structure. In a legitimate Ukrainian work permit process, the employer pays fees to the State Employment Service; the worker pays nothing to the employer. Any arrangement where the worker pays a fee to or through the employer is a near-certain indicator of fraud. The 'employer' in this context is typically either a shell company or a real company that has agreed to issue fraudulent invitation letters or employment contracts in exchange for a kickback from the Bangladeshi agency.
BMET Clearance Bypass
All Bangladeshi workers legally deployed abroad are required to obtain BMET (Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training) clearance before departure. BMET clearance requires that the destination country, the employer and the job category are all registered in the BMET system. Ukraine is not a registered destination in the BMET bilateral agreement framework, and Ukrainian employers are not registered in the BMET employer database.
Legitimate BAIRA operators cannot obtain BMET clearance for Ukrainian placements. Fraudulent operators bypass this entirely — either advising the client that BMET clearance is 'not required' for Ukraine, or issuing forged BMET clearance documents. A worker who departs Bangladesh without genuine BMET clearance has no official record of their migration, no insurance coverage under the Wage Earners' Welfare Fund, and no recourse through the Bangladeshi diplomatic system if things go wrong in Ukraine.
Four Documented Fraud Patterns
The Ghost Employer
The most common pattern. A Ukrainian company — often freshly registered and with no actual operations — issues an employment contract and invitation letter in exchange for a kickback from the Bangladeshi agency. The worker arrives in Ukraine on a Type D visa and discovers no employer, no job site, and no one answering the phone number on the contract. The company's EDRPOU (Ukrainian company registration number) is real, but the company is dormant or acts as a letterbox. By the time the worker is in Kyiv, the Bangladeshi agency has stopped taking calls.
Red flag: Employer refuses a video call. Employment contract lacks a registered address that matches the EDRPOU registry. 'Director' name cannot be verified in the Ukrainian company registry (ЄДР).
The Forged Work Permit
The agency presents a document styled as a Ukrainian State Employment Service work permit. The document may look convincing — it carries seals, official- looking text, and a permit number. The permit number either does not exist in the State Employment Service register, corresponds to a permit issued to a different person entirely, or the permit was genuinely issued but has since been cancelled. The worker arrives and is immediately identified as an undocumented migrant.
Red flag: You cannot verify the permit number on the official State Employment Service portal. The issuing authority address does not match any real State Employment Service office. The permit was 'issued' within days of application — real permits take 30–60 working days.
The Tourist Visa Switch
The agency correctly tells the client that obtaining a Ukrainian Type D visa requires an invitation letter. Unable to produce a genuine employer-backed letter, they instead obtain a Type B or Type C tourist/business visa on a false pretence. The client enters Ukraine as a tourist. There is no legal path from a tourist visa to a work permit without leaving Ukraine. The client overstays, works illegally, and faces deportation and a multi-year entry ban.
Red flag: Agent says 'you can fix the permit once you are there.' No Ukrainian lawyer can legalise work status for someone who entered on a tourist visa and began working — the legal requirement is that the work permit application precedes the visa application, not the reverse.
The Partial Refund Trap
When a client becomes suspicious and requests a refund, the agency offers a partial return — typically 30–50% of fees paid — conditional on the client signing a document stating that the agency provided all agreed services and the client is withdrawing voluntarily. This document is used to prevent any future legal claim. Clients who accept are effectively waiving their right to a complaint with BMET or law enforcement. Clients who refuse are told that the remaining fees are non-refundable under the terms of their agreement — a term buried in a Bengali-language contract the client was given 10 minutes to sign.
Red flag: Any partial refund offer conditional on a signed release. Any contract that designates all fees as non-refundable regardless of outcome.
What Victims Can Do
If you have already paid fees to a BAIRA-affiliated or informal agent for Ukrainian migration services, the following steps are available:
- Stop all further payments immediately.
- Collect and retain every receipt, message, bank transfer record and document you have received.
- File a complaint with BMET's Anti-Trafficking and Fraud cell. BMET has authority to investigate BAIRA-licensed agencies.
- File a complaint with the Bangladesh Police if criminal fraud is suspected.
- Contact the Ukrainian Embassy in Dhaka to verify any document that claims to be an official Ukrainian government document.
- Do not travel to Ukraine on documents you cannot verify independently.
How a Legitimate Ukrainian Work Permit Actually Works
A genuine Ukrainian work permit is issued by the State Employment Service of Ukraine (Державна служба зайнятості) — a government body with no offices or representatives in Bangladesh. The application is submitted by the Ukrainian employer, not by the worker and not by any Bangladeshi agent. The employer must have a verified EDRPOU, must advertise the position locally for a statutory period, and must obtain approval from the regional employment office before the permit is issued.
No Bangladeshi person, agency or BAIRA member has any role in this process. A legitimate work permit is a document you should be able to verify on a Ukrainian government portal before you pay anyone anything. If you cannot verify it, you do not have it.
Use our Employer Verification service before engaging any agent or signing any contract. It takes 24–48 hours and costs $40–$80. It is the cheapest insurance you can buy.