TaraM

I have been offered a job in ADCO (Abu Dhabi company). However, have heard that passports are taken away from expats for a period of employment. Is that true? Has anybody experienced this in ADCO?

Ka Ora!

Welcome to the Forum, You would be bettering posting this in the Middle East Section of the forum as this section is for Employment requests. Bob , NorthernLad , rowell , Are the Moderators and Blue Cat is the Concierge over there should you get any issues give one of them a shout.

Blue Cat

welcome, some companies do this but it is not the norm, remember it says clearly on your passport that it is the property of HM Government and no one else.

Millhouse

yeh, that'll stop them.


Under UAE law they are not allowed to - the reality is that it is unlikely for a western expat to have their passport held. The converse is true if you have an Asian passport.

Jim Smith

[QUOTE=EmiratesMillhouse;9185637]
Under UAE law they are not allowed to - the reality is that it is unlikely for a western expat to have their passport held.

Sadly not true.

al dente

Under Labour Law, employers are encouraged to hold passports here. Not all do though but, if they do, i don't know what would happen if you reported it to your embassy.

Millhouse

really? I thought the Ministry of Interior specifically banned it not long ago.

It's probably a grey area where the laws contradict. I've seen enough stuff in the papers saying that it was illegal.

al dente

You're right, I just double checked. However, i was discussing it with a judge (get me!) and she was saying that it is recommeded by the Govt to hold passports.

http://www.dubaifaqs.com/passport-ke...ployer-uae.php

"The laws in UAE do not entitle the employer to keep the employee’s passport for whatever reason and the passport shall not be submitted to anyone unless upon order of Public Prosecution or court only." - Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Bahar Advocates and Legal Consultants in response to a question to "Ask The Law" (Gulf News 09 May 2010). This type of question and answer is frequently seen in the UAE press, other media sources and online forums and websites.
Forty-four percent of respondents said their companies "demand" employees hand in their passports, while 6 percent said their companies hold the passports of junior to mid-level staff. - Maktob Business 09 November 2009
Musthafa Zafeer, founder and managing partner of Dubai-based law firm Musthafa & Almana, said a passport confiscation case costs between 5,000 dirhams ($1,360) and 10,000 dirhams, but described it as a "simple case". - Maktoob Business 03 November 2009
"It’s illegal, ... The government will not tolerate companies that withhold passports," - Yousuf Abdulghani (Abdul Ghani?), Executive Director of Policies and Strategy at the UAE Ministry of Labour (Arabian Business 30 April 2009).
Certain insurance companies required employers to withhold passports under insurance schemes to protect firms against workers who abscond, - Arabian Business reporting on comments from Alex Zalami, senior advisor for the UAE Ministry of Labour (which does not sound like a legally justifiable reason to our untrained and unqualified understanding of the law).
"This is not a question of jail, nobody forces any of the men to work. ... The issue of keeping the passports is an issue that is important for us, ... it is better for us to have the passports from a security point of view. If a labourer wants to leave, he can leave any day he wants." - Riad Kamal, CEO of Arabtec Holding (a Dubai based construction company which helped build the Burj Dubai), reported by Arabian Business 09 April 2009.
"Amnesty seekers can file a complaint at the labour relations department if their previous sponsor demands money in exchange for the passport. The ministry will summon the employer and ask him to submit the passport. If he refuses strong measures will be taken," - Humaid Bin Deemas, Assistant Undersecretary at the UAE Ministry of Labour, during an amnesty period, referring to employers wanting money in exchange for returning passports to employees who had left their companies (Gulf News 15 July 2007).
"Retaining workers' passports amounts to forcible work in violation of the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) Convention on the Abolition of Forced Labour, to which the UAE is a signatory." - Aref Mirza, Director of the UAE Ministry of Labour Legal Department (Gulf News 13 June 2006).
"Employers who fail to give workers their passports on request are in breach of trust. The offence carries a prison term of up to three years or a fine of up to Dh20,000," - Gulf News report of comment from an unnamed legal consultant (13 June 2006).
However, all ministries, including those of Finance and Industry, Interior, Labour and Social Affairs are retaining passports of their expatriate staff. - Gulf News 13 June 2006.
"A passport is a personal document that proves the identity of the holder, and the laws stipulate that the bearer must keep his or her passport and present it to the authorities concerned upon their request," Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Interior, UAE ministry circular 25 December, 2002.

Jim Smith

However some employers are above the law!

commander

anyone who accepts a job that entails them handing over their passport to the company to lock away needs their heads examined.

i mean, what will it take some people to say 'enough's enough'?


whats next?

'not only do we want your passport but we must insert an electronic tagging device into your neck'

Sadly, some muppets would accept this, so desperate they are to work in the golden paved streets of the UAE.

Spugsy

aye when I worked at al futtaim it was 'company policy', me and two others refused and got hauled into the managers office and we still refused.

Philipino who works for the missus actually brought the police in and they forced the company to give it back to her.

soukie

The only time I let go of my passport is at visa renewal time and then I constantly nag the PRO to get my passport back.

lullabelle

your passport will be taken off you to get your visa done - it took them three weeks to get mine back and 5 weeks to give me the rest of the family's. I was extremely uncomfortable without it. It probably shouldn"t take that long but we have a very, ahem, relaxed, HR department and more or less absent PRO.

I know of people who keep their maid's passport "incase they run away"

hmmmmm

Boomhauer

For expats from developed nations I agree they shouldn't give up their passports as they are not in the desperate situation many Africans and Asians are in.

Norm_uk

No one should give their passport to an employer regardless of where they are from or how "desperate" they are for work.

UAE Law states it is illegal for employers to retain passports of staff. Aside from when the PRO has to get your visa there's no reason for anyone to hold your passport other than yourself. Virtually anyone who goes to the authorities and complains about this has their claim upheld regardless of nationality.

That said most government ministries still retain staff passports.

People often don't complain because they are scared of losing their jobs - but almost all senior local government and law enforcement here are on record as stating it's illegal and we can file complaints if it happens.

N