Malaysia has reopened its job market to Bangladeshi migrant workers but introduced nearly a dozen requirements that Dhaka finds difficult to accept, said Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Asif Nazrul today.

He spoke after launching the new “Overseas Employment Platform” at an event in a Dhaka hotel.

Nazrul said Bangladesh has already raised concerns over several of the proposed conditions and will continue negotiations with Malaysia in hopes of securing terms that better protect Bangladeshi jobseekers.

Under Malaysia’s new rules, recruitment agencies must meet several criteria — including having a minimum of five years’ experience, sending at least 3,000 workers abroad within the past five years, and working with at least three destination countries.

Additional requirements include maintaining a valid licence, providing a police clearance or good-conduct certificate, operating their own training and assessment facilities, supplying reference letters from at least five overseas employers, maintaining a permanent 10,000-sq-ft office, and proving compliance with labour regulations in destination countries.

Nazrul cautioned that such strict conditions could create opportunities for a new syndicate to form.

If these standards are enforced, very few agencies will qualify to send workers. Our aim is to keep the labour market open and competitive,” he said.

Speaking about the “Overseas Employment Platform,” he added that the system is intended to make recruitment more transparent and help protect potential migrants from fraud and exploitation.