Has my wife been scammed by this job agency in Oman?

Hi Dawud, I'm really sorry to know about your wife's situation, can't imagine what you must be going through. I would suggest her to call the local labour ministry and explain her situation. This kind of fraud is very common in most gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, and I'm sure the ministry would understand. It is illegal for your employer to confiscate your passport and I'm certain the local authorities will take some action. Good luck and keep us posted. Fatima

Hi Dawud,

Unfortunately it sounds like this is definitely some kind of fraud. I suggest that your wife visits the nearest embassy of her home country ASAP and explains to them what has happened. They should be able to advise her and help her.

The agency your wife used should also be reported, so it's best that she gathers all the information she has about them so that they can be tracked down by the authorities. The embassy should also be able to advise her of the best course to follow in this respect.

Best of luck.

M

Meagan, thanks so much. The most painful part is that Nigeria doesn't have Embassy in Oman nor in Nigeria. It's really a mess. I don't the implication if report this to Oman Royal Police. The main issue here is the language barrier and hope they won't compromise.

Oh dear, that definitely makes things more difficult. Normally in a case where there wasn't an embassy available in your wife's location I would then advise her to go to a Nigerian embassy in a neighbouring country - but since she doesn't have her passport I don't think she would be able to cross the border.

The next best thing, I think, would be for her to get in touch with a nearby Nigerian embassy via phone and get some advice. There is one in Abu Dhabi and one in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. I think the one in Abu Dhabi would be closer, should she need to travel there at a later date. But at this stage the most important thing is that she gets hold of someone and finds out what she should do. The Nigerian embassy in UAE or Saudi may be able to direct her to a representative of Nigeria in Oman even if there is no official embassy there.

Please keep us updated with her situation. I hope she manages to make some progress soon.

Embassy of Nigeria in Riyadh: http://nigeria.org.sa/
Embassy of Nigeria in Abu Dhabi: http://nigerianabudhabi.org/

Bravo, thanks for the info. I'll keep you posted.

Dear Dawud Has your wife spoken to the person she is working as maid in his/her house? She must explain that she is not maid and she has not applied to work as one and should demand that she goes to the police station. If she has fluent English she can get her case heard, she may not get her money back from the Fraud company but she will probably be able to stop working as maid and get back to her home country. Fairness should be applied regardless of presence of embassy Let me know if you need contacts in Oman

She had explained to their employer but the Agents insisted that she should work by force. I'll appreciate if you can share a contact with me in Oman that can help. She's sick and they're not ready to take her to the hospital.

Hi Dawud,

Sorry to hear your wife's situation still hasn't improved. Did she try giving those two Nigerian embassies a phonecall? No luck there? I'm not sure what else to suggest, but I really hope the other person who replied to you gets back to you with some contacts. One thought I did have is, are you currently in Nigeria? Maybe you can get in touch with the Nigeria Immigration Department on her behalf and explain the situation? Hopefully they would be able to offer some help or at least advice on where to go to for help. Otherwise maybe she could even try to phone them from Oman? I've found their contact details online, you can click here for their address, phone number, email, etc.

Hope things start to turn around for your wife soon.

M

Hello evry1 Just want an advice just got a job in Oman and I have paid R6000rands as an application fee..do you think I have been scammed?

Hi Anonymous,

Unfortunately having to pay money for a job application isn't a good sign. Have there been any other signs of something fishy going on? Were you contacted by them or did you contact them first? Do they have legitimate contact details and an address? Do they have a website? And, perhaps the most important point, have they contacted you at all since you paid them?

For some of the common signs of job scams, take a look at our article on the topic here. This should help you ascertain if the job is legit.

Good luck.

M

The you Meagan and others that contributed to this. I hereby declared that She's back home to join her family.

Hello all! As someone living in Saudi Arabia, let me tell you that there are way too many scammers in the Gulf these days and you should never ever pay any money, no matter how small the amount, for a job application. Sometimes, they don't charge you for a job application but then direct you to their "travel agents" or "immigration officers" who charge you money to "help you with your visa" and then disappear. Please be very very careful and do not accept a job in the Gulf without visiting first. The laws here are very strict and it is difficult for foreigners to get help unless their embassy is very very helpful, or they speak Arabic. Please stay safe guys and good luck!

Hello Meagan,I believe you're good? I want to find out the basic salary for a salon car driver in a transport company or any other company and a cleaner in companies/hotels. Thank you

please can you help me with the wbesites of rereputable and registered companies recruiting in Oman and Saudi Arabia