Sept sees 48% YoY jump in overseas jobs; Saudi deal promises further uptick
However, jobs dropped 33% from Aug, which sector insiders say is normal in foreign employment.
Overseas employment of Bangladeshis surged 48% year-on-year in September, driven largely by demand in Saudi Arabia, and a recent landmark recruitment agreement with the Gulf nation could push numbers even higher, offering relief to a strained labour market, sector insiders say.
Bangladesh sent around 95,694 workers abroad in September. Though the figure is nearly double that of the same month last year, it is 33% lower than August, when 142,665 workers went abroad — the highest-ever single-month overseas employment, according to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).
Labour industry insiders said that, while lower than August, the September figure reflects the typical flow of foreign employment.
Like previous months, Saudi Arabia recruited the highest – 59,500 workers in September.
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Although reliance on a single destination raises concerns, stakeholders are hopeful that Bangladeshi workers' rights in Saudi Arabia will be protected following Monday's (6 October) landmark agreement. The Bangladesh Embassy in Riyadh said in a statement that the pact will also boost skilled migration.
For the first time in 50 years of diplomatic ties, Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia have signed a formal agreement on recruiting general workers. While Saudi Arabia began hiring Bangladeshi workers informally in 1976, no formal agreement existed until now. Previously, two agreements were signed: one on domestic workers in 2015 and another on skills verification in 2022.
Over the past five years, Saudi Arabia accounted for nearly 57% of the approximately 45 lakh (4.5 million) Bangladeshi workers sent abroad, according to BMET data.
However, this substantial outflow is predominantly concentrated in low-skilled jobs, with over 80% of workers employed in such roles.
Even a significant portion of workers did not get their promised jobs or are suffering from irregular payment and Iqama (residency permit) issues.
Golam Moshi, former Bangladesh envoy to Saudi Arabia, told TBS, "Saudi Arabia is now focusing on hiring skilled workers, as many low-skilled jobs are increasingly being done by locals. For this reason, the country is signing agreements with various nations to recruit more skilled labour."
Noting that many Bangladeshis who have recently gone to Saudi Arabia remain unemployed, he said, "Many of those who went on so-called free visas have no jobs, and some don't receive regular wages. During my tenure, we used to verify whether each job offer was genuine before a worker departed – that's the embassy's responsibility."
Asked whether the new agreement would ensure labour rights, he said, "Every agreement contains good commitments, but enforcing them requires active responsibility from our embassy."
Unofficial estimates suggest more than 3.2 million Bangladeshis currently work in Saudi Arabia, making it the largest single destination for Bangladeshi labour overseas.
"Still, we are sending most workers to Saudi Arabia as cleaners, construction workers, housemaids, with salaries not more than Tk30,000. But if we could send more skilled workers as per the agreement, it will have a positive impact on remittance from KSA," Shamim Ahmed Chowdhury Noman, former secretary-general of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira), told TBS.
"Our large portion of workers are getting a minimum salary between 600 to 800 Saudi Riyals. We have been negotiating to increase it to over 1,000 Riyals per month for a long time. We hope that the agreement will resolve the issues of minimum salary, Iqama, regular payment, and other protections for our workers," he added.
Saudi Arabia recently introduced a mandatory skilled verification certificate (SVP—also known as Taqamul) for low-skilled workers, creating fresh hurdles for future overseas employment. However, it has been relaxed for some categories temporarily as per the demand of the Bangladesh side.
Recruitment in other destinations ranges from 1,000 to 10,000 workers
Excluding Saudi Arabia, recruitment in traditional markets remains limited. In September, Qatar, Singapore, the Maldives, Kuwait, the UAE, Cambodia, Jordan, Italy, and Iraq were among the top 10 destinations – but recruitment numbers per country ranged only between 1,000 and 10,000.
Labour migration to traditional markets like Malaysia, Oman, and Bahrain remains mostly suspended.
Bangladesh could send 60,000-70,000 workers per month on average in the pre-Covid period, which has increased to nearly one lakh per month in recent years.
Meanwhile, the inflow of remittances through formal banking channels increased in September compared to the previous two months, with Bangladesh receiving a total of $2.68 billion, according to data released by the Bangladesh Bank.
The September figure marks the highest monthly remittance so far in the current fiscal year (FY2025–26). Earlier, Bangladesh received $2.47 billion in July and $2.42 billion in August.
Remittance inflow also showed year-on-year growth, up from $2.40 billion in September 2024. The highest remittance inflow of 2025 was recorded in March, reaching $3.29 billion.
