Over 1,000 Nigerians Stranded In UK Over Fake Employment, Ashamed To Return Home – IOM

Intending migrants have been advised to be cautious of a syndicate that specialises in offering fake employment letters to Nigerians seeking to work in the United Kingdom, UK.

The United Nations Migration Agency, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), gave the advice, urging them to seek out proper information before embarking on any migration.

According to the IOM, over 260,000 Nigerians had approached it in 2023, seeking guidance on how to migrate through regular or approved routes and also undergoing pre-departure medical health assessments.

It said no fewer than a thousand Nigerians are currently stranded in the UK, having gotten visas based on the fake employment letters procured for them, only to get to the respective organizations in the UK and then be denied acceptance because the letters did not emanate from those organizations.

This was disclosed at a news conference in Abuja by IOM’s Chief of Mission, Mr Laurent De Boeck in Abuja.

According to him, some of the victims lost as much as $10,000 each in their desperate attempts to secure foreign jobs.

He said they are consequently stranded in the UK because some of them lack the means to come back, while others are ashamed of coming back to their families.

He said, “There are some of them who lost over $10,000 only to be given fake employment letters, which allowed them to get visas. They get there, present the letters, and the organizations tell them that the letters did not emanate from the organizations. Over a thousand people are affected.”

Speaking further, De Boeck noted that IOM was working with partners to repatriate thousands of persons, including Nigerians, from Tunisia, which has recently placed a ban on migration.

He said the IOM is working extensively with Italy to develop regular pathways for qualified Nigerians and that it would also engage other countries like Spain, Belgium, France, and others.

“In Kano, people are displaced within and there are others who have migrated, which is why our offices in Libya and Niger have more migrants originating from Kano”, he stated.