Worker guide · 7 min read · updated Nov 2026

How to spot fake overseas job offers and recruitment-fee scams

Every week thousands of skilled workers – electricians, welders, pipe fitters, drivers, cooks – apply for jobs in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Europe and Canada. Most offers are genuine. But a steady stream are fake, and the people who lose money are usually the workers who can least afford it. This guide explains the warning signs we see most often while collecting vacancies for this site, and what to do instead.

The golden rule: the employer pays recruitment costs

Under the International Labour Organization's employer pays principle, workers should not pay fees to get a job. Gulf labour laws follow the same idea: Saudi Arabia's Labour Law places recruitment, iqama and work-permit costs on the employer, and the UAE and Qatar also prohibit agencies from charging workers recruitment fees. Some countries of origin allow a small, capped, receipted service fee by a licensed agency – but "pay 150,000 to confirm your visa" is never normal.

If anyone asks you to pay for a visa, a "processing fee", a "medical booking", a "trade test slot" sent to a personal account, or a "security deposit", stop and check before you pay anything.

Ten warning signs of a fake job offer

Salary far above the market. A general helper offered SAR 6,000 or a driver offered AED 12,000 a month is not a lucky break – it is bait. Compare with the real vacancies on our last 7 days page.
You were "selected" without an interview or trade test. Real employers for skilled trades almost always test or at least interview you.
Contact only through WhatsApp or a free email address (gmail, yahoo, hotmail) claiming to be a large company such as Aramco, ADNOC or QatarEnergy. Big companies use their own domains and official career portals.
Pressure to pay quickly – "only 2 seats left", "visa expires tomorrow".
Payment to a personal bank account, mobile wallet or crypto.
An offer letter with spelling mistakes, wrong company address, a logo copied from the internet, or no basic salary figure.
No licence number. Licensed recruitment agencies can give you their licence number, which you can check with the government authority in your own country.
The visa is a "visit visa" or "free visa" that you are told will be "changed later". Working on a visit visa is illegal in the GCC and leaves you with no protection.
They ask for your passport to be posted to an address that is not a registered office.
The job vanishes when you search the company name with the word "scam" or "fraud" and find other workers' complaints.

How to check an offer in 15 minutes

Search the company. Does it have a real website with a physical address and landline? Does the job appear on its own careers page or a reputable job site?
Check the agency licence with your own government – for example the eMigrate portal in India, the Bureau of Emigration in Pakistan, the DMW (formerly POEA) in the Philippines, BMET in Bangladesh or the Department of Foreign Employment in Nepal.
Ask for the offer in writing showing basic salary, allowances, working hours, overtime, accommodation, food, transport, contract length and air ticket. A genuine employer will put this on paper.
Call the company switchboard yourself using a number from its official website – not the number on the message you received.
Ask other workers. Former employees on Facebook groups and community WhatsApp groups often know the company.

What to do if you already paid

Keep every receipt, chat screenshot and bank transfer slip. Report the agent to the emigration authority in your own country and to the police cyber-crime unit. If you are already in the Gulf, contact your embassy's labour wing. Acting quickly gives the best chance of stopping the agent before others are cheated.

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