Illegal Nepali migrants in Malaysia falling prey to fellow Nepalis

KATHMANDU: Dip Raj Limbu from Panchthar, who has been living illegally in Malaysia for seven years, is now trying to return home. He paid 3,000 ringgits to Kabir Kunwar of Syangja who promised to facilitate his return and arrange documentation. Kunwar, however, went out of contact.

Limbu is not the only one defrauded by Kunwar. According to Limbu, more than 100 Nepalis in Malaysia say they have given money to Kunwar to facilitate their return to Nepal. Limbu told Himal Press through social media that he only realized he got scammed after Kunwar disappeared with the money. “Nepali workers, who are staying illegally in Malaysia, are often defrauded by fellow Nepalis. Most of these frauds are committed by illegal workers themselves,” Limbu said. “Fellow countrymen are deceiving Nepalis by claiming they have connections with Malaysian immigration and the Nepali embassy.”

Limbu added that defrauding Nepalis by promising to help them return home, protect them from Malaysian police or secure good employment has become a lucrative business for many of these defrauders.

Similarly, Siddhartha Karki from Ramechhap, who has been living illegally in Malaysia for nine years, said one Chandra Tamang, who introduces himself as a representative of the Non-resident Nepalis Association (NRN), has defrauded 11 Nepalis, including him, of 2,000 ringgits each. “He promised us that he would be back after preparing documents. But we haven’t heard of him since he took the money,” Karki said. “Since we are staying here illegally, we cannot even go to the police.”

Karki said some fraudsters are using Nepali women migrant workers in Malaysia to ‘honey trap’ Nepali workers staying illegally in Malaysia.

The Malaysian government’s RTK Recalibration program, which ran from June 27, 2023, to June 30, 2024, is being used by scammers to fleece Nepali workers. The Malaysian Home Ministry recently issued a warning about fraudsters targeting foreign workers through such schemes. The Ministry clarified through a notice that no repatriation program is currently in operation and warned that those spreading false information would face legal action.

Bholanath Guragain, Consul at the Embassy of Nepal in Kuala Lumpur, said the embassy has been warning workers about these scams. “The Malaysian government currently has no repatriation program for illegal immigrants,” Guragain said. “Although we receive reports of various scams targeting Nepali workers, it is difficult to help illegal workers as their whereabouts are unknown.”

The embassy estimates that 80,000-100,000 Nepalis are working illegally in Malaysia. Under the Recalibration 2.0 program, 1.1 million foreign workers, including an estimated 7,000 Nepalis, have submitted online applications to return to their respective countries.