Don't pay anyone for visas, or work permits: Italian envoy

Italian Ambassador to Bangladesh Antonio Alessandro has advised visa-seekers not to pay anyone for visas, emphasising that the embassy only charges small taxes and processing fees.

"We only take small taxes and processing fees, so applicants should not pay anyone for buying working permits or procuring visas. The services are free except these fees," Alessandro said after meeting with the State Minister for Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Shofiqur Rahman Choudhury at the ministry this afternoon.

They discussed ways to improve migration to Italy from Bangladesh and addressed both regular and irregular flows of migration to Italy.

Alessandro explained the delay in visa processing, citing the discovery of forged documents, counterfeit working permits, and fraudulent applications, which have slowed down the process.

He assured concerned individuals about the expiration of work permits, saying, "I want to reassure those who are concerned about the expiration of work permits that they do not need to panic. If they email VFS Global, their working permits will not expire, but it will just take some time before getting a proper appointment."

He also mentioned that they are currently receiving a limited number of applications due to pending ones.

Additionally, State Minister Shofiqur Rahman Choudhury said that they are actively working to expedite visa processing for migrants.

He further informed reporters that the ministry has sent letters to extend the deadline for sending Bangladeshi migrants to Malaysia who are on the pipeline, as the current deadline is set to expire on May 31.