Sagar Ghimire

The Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) has urged insurance companies to maintain online archive aspiring migrant workers who purchase short-term insurance policies from them.

The move comes on the wake of growing complaints of forgery of insurance documents while receiving work permits from DoFE.

According to the new requirement of DoFE, insurance companies will have to make details of policy buyers along with picture available on their online database for at least five years so that concerned stakeholders can access the data whenever they need.

“As we have been receiving complaints about hurdles in claiming compensation due to submission of fake insurance documents while seeking work permit, we decided to make details of policy buyer online. This will not only control forgery of documents but will also simplify the claim settlement process,” Krishna Hari Puskar, director general of the DoFE, told Republica. “DoFE will issue permit only to those whose insurance policies are available online.”

Apart from the bureaucratic hurdles, the insured parties, especially kin of the deceased foreign worker, face difficulties in finding insurance policy while seeking compensation. The online archive will help them to track the insurance info from the multiple identity option available in the online, said Puskar.

Tanka Bahadur Raut, first vice-president of Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies, told Republica that maintaining online archive of insured workers was a long-held demand of foreign employment agencies. “This system will simplify the process of buying insurance policy as well as settling compensation claim,” he added.

Insurance companies, however, have argued that the new requirement will add financial burden on them as well as create unnecessary hassles for the aspirant migrant workers. “This is a good initiative. But this could increase expenses of aspirant migrant workers as well as make the entire process lengthier,” Nabin Sharma, chief of foreign employment insurance policy plan at Prime Life Insurance -- one of the five life insurance companies that are currently selling insurance policy to migrant workers - said.

Aspiring migrant workers below 35 years of age heading to Gulf countries -- United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait - have to buy insurance policy worth Rs 2,130. Similarly, Malaysia-bound aspiring workers below and above 35 years need to pay Rs 2,700 and Rs 2,900, respectively, for the insurance policy. The policy is valid for three and half years for workers heading to Malaysia and two and half years for those heading to Gulf countries as per the contract period of the migrant worker.

According to the Insurance Board, a total of 936,697 migrant workers purchased insurance policy over the last eighteen months. Among them, 1,159 insured parties have received claims worth Rs 683 million.

The next to kin of migrant worker, who dies during the insurance period, can receive Rs 500,000 and an additional Rs 50,000 for transport of body from the insurance company. Similarly, migrant workers, who are partially disabled during the period, can claim for compensation as per the damage.

Published on: 3 March 2014 | Republica