Sri Lankans Seeking Israeli Jobs Fall Victim to Fraud and Embezzlement Scams- SLBFE

By Leenah Wahab   

Over 3000 complaints have been made alleging that employment agents charged exorbitant fees for non- existent job opportunities in Israel and South Korea, the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) said.  

SLBFE Chairman Kosala Wickremasinghe urged Sri Lankans to be vigilant and refrain from paying money to agents who claim to be registered with the SLBFE, without proof of a legitimate job order.   

Other complaints included- embezzlement of funds for Israeli and Korean jobs, high prices for Israeli and Korean airline tickets and visa scams in which duplicates of visas are sold illicitly.   

According to the SLBFE, Section 37 of the Act prohibits licensed agencies from collecting money or passports without a legitimate job order. “Any agency claiming to provide E8 visa jobs without this agreement is operating outside the law,” he said.   

The SLBFE clarified that it has not approved or endorsed the E8 visa system, and cannot be held responsible for any visa cancellations related to these fraudulent activities. “This means the SLBFE cannot legitimize contracts signed outside its purview, and financial losses due to these false promises are the responsibility of the agencies involved,” he said.   

Mr. Wickremasinghe said investigations into human trafficking and discussions of establishing controls on labour migration are also underway.   

Moreover, 5800 Sri Lankans have applied for work in Israel, and of these SLBFE noted that 850 people have been granted Israeli visas to work in agriculture and been added to the list of applicants.