The Hon. Arun Hemachandra - Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment
On behalf of the Minister, the Deputy Minister stated that as of 26 August 2025 there were 981 licensed foreign employment agencies registered with the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment, with 48 agencies in the process of renewing licences, and tabled the relevant lists. He said only licensed agencies, Government-to-Government schemes, or self-secured employment are lawful under the SLBFE Act, and that legal action is taken against unauthorized recruiters. He further reported that from 1 January to 31 July 2025 the SLBFE received 662 complaints about fraudulent foreign employment recruitment, involving an alleged Rs. 488.32 million, and that such cases are handled by the SLBFE Special Investigation Unit under the Act.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, I answer:
¶ 02 Foreign Employment Agencies: Details (Q. 1234/2025)
¶ 03 (a) (i) As at 2025.08.26, 981 licensed foreign employment agencies are registered with the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE). The detailed list with names and registration numbers is at Annex 01 (long list). (ii) As at 2025.08.26, 48 agencies are in the process of renewing their licenses; their names and registration numbers are at Annex 02 (long list).
¶ 04 Annexes 01 and 02 are tabled.
¶ 05 (iii) No. Persons may sometimes be recruited by entities without lawful authority; such instances reported to the SLBFE are dealt with under the SLBFE Act (Act No. 21 of 1985 as amended by Acts No. 04 of 1994 and No. 56 of 2009). Under the Act: 1. Only agencies with valid licenses may recruit persons for foreign employment. 2. Government-to-Government (G2G) recruitment is handled by the State. 3. Individuals may also go abroad on jobs secured by themselves, in terms of the Act.
¶ 06 Agencies without valid licenses have no legal authority to recruit for foreign employment. Action is taken against such agencies/persons under the Act. A list of persons against whom legal action has been taken for such offences is tabled as Annex 03.
¶ 07 (b) (i) Yes. Such instances are reported—illegal agencies and individuals defraud money on the pretext of providing foreign jobs. Complaints received by the SLBFE are handled under the Act through its Special Investigation Unit. (ii) From 2025.01.01 to 2025.07.31, 662 complaints were received; the amount allegedly defrauded totals Rs. 488.32 million. (iii) Foreign employment must be provided only by agencies licensed under the SLBFE Act. Where licensed agencies or individuals promise jobs and default, legal action is taken under the Act. The SLBFE also proceeds legally against entities collecting money without licenses to send persons abroad.
¶ 08 (c) Not applicable.
¶ 09 Annex 03 tabled.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Tuesday, 9 September 2025 ·No. 1757672711095734 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Arun Hemachandra - Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 9 September 2025. No. 1757672711095734. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/9661