State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Shofiqur Rahman Chowdhury announced on Tuesday that the Omani government has opened its labor market in 12 categories, including physicians, engineers, nurses, and teachers, specifically for Bangladeshi nationals.
“Oman will legalize 96,000 illegal Bangladeshi workers and is also considering waiving fines for these illegal expatriates,” the minister said during a press briefing after a courtesy call from the Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to Bangladesh, Abdul Ghaffar Bin Abdul Karim Al-Bulushi.
Shofiqur Rahman mentioned discussions about dedicating a technical training center (TTC) to provide training to workers according to Oman’s demands. Currently, skilled Bangladeshi workers can obtain visas, but a proposal will be submitted to allow unskilled workers as well.
A joint working group meeting between the two countries is likely to be held soon, he added. This comes after the Omani government imposed a temporary visa ban on Bangladeshi nationals, except for official purposes, on October 31, 2023.
