employer won't give back my passport

[mrbig]

Baby, I have a very hard time believing you went to the Philippine Embassy and all they told you is pay your employer and you can get your passport back. They work for you. They know holding a persons passport is against the law. I know the lead lawyer there, Mr Rizal, you pm me your case number you recieved and I will call him and have him look into the situation.

[babylou]

mrbig, pls. check you pm. thanks.

[M123]

I've come across this a couple of times. Retaining the passport is against the law but it is still common practice.

I don't think there is a quick fix from what I've seen.

[babylou]

@M123, what should I do if I don't have the money to pay for all the employer's expenses? Am I stuck here in Dubai? I have no more money.

[M123]

I've not been here long enough to give you good advice, but in the couple of cases I've heard, probably best bet is to go to the police who will put some pressure on your employer to release the passport. (they'll probably give him a phonecall or something telling them to give back your passport)

Employer could still want to drag this on and take it to court, but there is the possibility he will simply release it after being contacted by police.

This is one scenario I am aware of, for the rest it is worth following the advice of this thread.

One point of note, is that Arabs by nature (if your employer is arab) do not like to be belittled or undermined, and they will become ultra stubborn if you try to fight. I strongly suggest being apologetic to your employer and try to negotiate some kind of compromise, whether it's to pay a lesser amount, or do a certain amount of work or something (or even ask them to recommend something you can do that you can realistically achieve to get your passport back).

If this fails, then go to the police, but your objective is to get your passport, not get into a battle.

[Ogri750]

It is illegal for any employer to hold a person's passport, unfortunately many do.

It is also illegal for a company to ask for fees relating to visas and sponsorship.

Copied from the "Ask The Law" section in Gulf News

A reader from Dubai asks: I have been working for a company in JAFZA for five months and I want to leave without notice during my probation period. But my company wants me to pay my visa charges and all other charges. These were not mentioned in the labour contract. I want to go back to my country immediately, but it refuses to cancel my visa and return my passport. What should I do?

I would like to bring to the questioner's attention that the company has no right to ask the employee to pay the visa charges or other charges incurred by the company, as this act is against the labour law. These charges should only be incurred by the employer.

In other words, the employee should never be told to bear such charges even in the case of him breaching his labour contract, as the labour law states other penalties against the employee in case of such a breach. For instance, if the labour contract is for a limited period then the employee, in the case of terminating the contract before the expiry of its term, would be obliged to compensate the employer for not committing to the labour contract, in addition he will have a ban stamped against him. But if the labour contract is for an unlimited period then the employee would not be obliged to compensate the employee. In such a case the Ministry of Labour would only stamp a ban against him. These penalties against the employee, in case of a breach of the labour contract, are the only penalties permitted by law. No law permits a company to make its employees bear such charges related to visa or residence expenses.

In this case, the questioner is advised to file a labour complaint in order to cancel his employment and return to his country.

Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Bahr Advocates and Legal Consultants.

[babylou]

Originally Posted by Ogri750

It is illegal for any employer to hold a person's passport, unfortunately many do.

It is also illegal for a company to ask for fees relating to visas and sponsorship.

Copied from the "Ask The Law" section in Gulf News

A reader from Dubai asks: I have been working for a company in JAFZA for five months and I want to leave without notice during my probation period. But my company wants me to pay my visa charges and all other charges. These were not mentioned in the labour contract. I want to go back to my country immediately, but it refuses to cancel my visa and return my passport. What should I do?

I would like to bring to the questioner's attention that the company has no right to ask the employee to pay the visa charges or other charges incurred by the company, as this act is against the labour law. These charges should only be incurred by the employer.

In other words, the employee should never be told to bear such charges even in the case of him breaching his labour contract, as the labour law states other penalties against the employee in case of such a breach. For instance, if the labour contract is for a limited period then the employee, in the case of terminating the contract before the expiry of its term, would be obliged to compensate the employer for not committing to the labour contract, in addition he will have a ban stamped against him. But if the labour contract is for an unlimited period then the employee would not be obliged to compensate the employee. In such a case the Ministry of Labour would only stamp a ban against him. These penalties against the employee, in case of a breach of the labour contract, are the only penalties permitted by law. No law permits a company to make its employees bear such charges related to visa or residence expenses.

In this case, the questioner is advised to file a labour complaint in order to cancel his employment and return to his country.

Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Bahr Advocates and Legal Consultants.

This is almost similar to my case. I already filed a complaint on Labour and they are the one who is demanding me to pay my Indian employer for his visa and labor card expenses amounting to dhs13,000.

[Marco76]

Originally Posted by babylou

This is almost similar to my case. I already filed a complaint on Labour and they are the one who is demanding me to pay my Indian employer for his visa and labor card expenses amounting to dhs13,000.

This is why I hate this place so much. Foreign 'labour' are little more than slaves here and employers do everything they can to either stop you from leaving/paying inflated charges etc etc. You have no rights and are faced with bureucracy everwhere. I worked for a UK firm and believe me, they were no better!

Your Government issues you your passport to YOU. Under no circumstances would I surrender it to a 3rd party. Can you not simply go to your embassy and say it was lost and obtain a new one?

I hope you get your passport back asap and get the hell out of here.

[addyonline]

Most Arabs countries that they are GOD and expats are their Slaves !!

[Marco76]

Originally Posted by addyonline

Most Arabs countries that they are GOD and expats are their Slaves !!

I couldn't agree more with you on that one old boy!