10.21 AM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

Some sponsors cashing in on maid's visa transfer

Published
By Sneha May Francis and Maryam Alyamahi

A few residents in Abu Dhabi, who are looking to hire full-time maids, were in for a shocker when current sponsors of their shortlisted maids demanded them to pay anywhere between Dh2,000 and Dh5,000 as fee for their transfer.

When Emirates24|7 contacted the Department of Naturalisation and Residency in Abu Dhabi, they clarified that this issue did not fall under their jurisdiction.

However, a reputed lawyer in the UAE clarified that this practice is indeed illegal, and warned residents against paying up.

“The old sponsor (of the maid) cannot ask the new sponsor for money. It is illegal.

“However, the old sponsor can ask money from the worker [only] if there’s a clause specifically stating the same in the contract between the two parties – the sponsor and the worker. But, if there’s no such clause then the old sponsor has no right to demand any money from the new sponsor.”

Penny George, a resident of Khalifa City, explains: “After I selected a maid, she told me that her current sponsor wanted to speak to me before the official handover.”

“He insisted that he will not be able to hand over the maid until I paid him Dh5,000.”

When she asked the sponsors the reason for the demand, they insisted that this was the norm and that the amount was in line with what was charged by a maids’ agency. “They told me that if I went through a maids’ agency then I would have to pay as much, or even more.”

This unreasonable demand was requested by not one, but two sponsors.

Penny added that a few days later, the maid called her again and pleaded her to pay the money. “She had finished her visa term with her sponsor and was hoping to find new work, but this clause made it impossible for her to find a suitable employer. She was told that if nothing comes up, she would have to return to her country, the Philippines.”

Another resident reported a similar issue when the maid she had selected faced a similar demand from her current employer. “This girl was willing to work for me provided I paid her present employer Dh2,500,” said the resident who wished not to be named.

“When I called her sponsor, who is a doctor, he asked me if I could pay the maids’ agency, then why couldn’t I pay him?”

She refused to cough up the money, and is still on the lookout for a maid.

Over the years, the UAE has drafted numerous guidelines and strict laws to safeguard the rights of expat domestic workers.