Muscat, Oman (BBN)-Illegal Bangladeshis workers wishing to leave Oman under a goodwill gesture in the wake of Oman government's three-month-long amnesty programme will be provided with special airfare.
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Biman Bangladesh will offer special fares to amnesty-seekers who wish to leave Oman, reports the Times of Oman.
"For expatriates wishing to leave Oman under the government's amnesty programme, Biman Bangladesh will also offer special fares to Dhaka," said Showkat Hossain, country manager, Oman, Bangladesh Biman.
It is learnt that the discounts will be available to people going to certain destinations in the subcontinent.
"It is still at the level of a proposal that needs to be finalised," he said.
Amnesty-seekers have been asked to get in touch with airlines or their travel agents to obtain details of the special offer.
"Discounted fares will only be offered after amnesty-seekers have clearances from the government and the embassy," said Shahzad.
He also said, "We expect that people will start moving out by the end of this month and the process will continue till the end of July."
According to a notice uploaded by the Ministry of Manpower on its official twitter account, the amnesty period will begin on May 3 and end on July 30.
Between this period, the undocumented workers can leave Oman without paying fines for violation of resident status rules in the Sultanate, the notice says.
As per a rough estimate, there are around 50,000 undocumented migrant workers from different Asian countries including Bangladesh waiting to avail themselves of the amnesty.
There may be around 40,000 to 50,000 undocumented Bangladeshi migrant workers in Oman.
Last December, the Times of Oman was the first to report about the possibility of the announcement of amnesty for undocumented migrant workers in Oman, a fact that was confirmed by an official from the Ministry of Manpower.
BBN/AI-05May15-3:30pm (BST)