Overseas Job and Work Visa Agent Scam over the phone

How it looks over the phone, the red flags and what to do.

A phone call lets the scammer talk fast, sound confident and keep you from thinking. The caller ID can be faked, so it proves nothing. Overseas Job and Work Visa Agent Scam is one of the ways this shows up: Agents promise well-paid jobs abroad and collect visa and ticket fees, then vanish or send people with fake papers. Learn the checks to make.

What overseas job and work visa agent scam looks like over the phone

• An unknown or international number, or a number that looks like a real office.
• A calm, official voice that already knows your name or the last digits of your card.
• Being told to stay on the line and not to tell your family.

The scammer advertises on social media or through a local office with posters of airports and planes. Names of well-known employers may be used. A 'consultant' tells you that a quota is open for a limited period and that only a few places are left. You are asked to register with copies of your passport and certificates and to pay a first instalment, usually to a personal account.

Red flags to check on the phone call

• A foreign job with very high pay and no real interview.
• Large fees are demanded before any visa is shown.
• Payments go to a personal bank account or UPI ID.
• The agent keeps your passport or original papers.
• The caller asks for an OTP, UPI PIN, card PIN or CVV.
• You are told that a case, arrest, block or penalty is coming within minutes.

What to do

1. Do not pay or hand over your passport to an unverified agent.
2. Check whether the recruiter is registered through the official government channel for overseas employment.
3. Verify the employer and the visa type independently.
4. Tell a family member and report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility).
5. Hang up. A real bank or office will not mind that you call them back.
6. Call the bank or office on the number printed on your card, bill or official app, not on a number the caller gave.

Report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility). If money moved, call 1930 immediately.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 if you paid online, giving the account details.
2. Tell your bank through the number on your card so it can try to hold the transfer.
3. File a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in and with the police, keeping all receipts and chats.
4. If your passport is with the agent, report it and ask for help from the nearest passport office.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

Safeavio Sentinel's scam check reads the offer text you paste and lists signs like large fees before a visa, a personal payment account and a short deadline. The link check helps you review a recruiter's page address before opening it. Money Shield asks you to verify who you are paying before you send money. It cannot verify recruiters or visas, so confirm through official government channels.

Full guide: Overseas Job and Work Visa Agent Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: social media, WhatsApp.

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