No Fees, Ever: How to Spot a Bad Recruitment Agency
If you are a skilled tradesperson, driver, mechanic, or professional from the Philippines, South Africa, Bangladesh, Colombia, or anywhere else considering working abroad, this is the most important article on the Sama Talent website for you to read. Read it before you sign anything. Read it before you send any agency a single peso, rand, taka, or peso colombiano. Read it before you give your passport to anyone.
The promise of a job abroad is real. There are tens of thousands of genuine, well-paid, life-changing roles available to skilled workers from the Philippines, South Africa, and beyond every year. Sama Talent places workers into those roles. So do many other legitimate agencies.
But the same promise has been used to defraud, exploit, and traffic hundreds of thousands of workers over the past decade. This article tells you how to tell the difference, and what to do if you have already been scammed.
The scale of the problem
The numbers are sobering. From January to June 2025, the Department of Migrant Workers handled 299 illegal recruitment cases in the Philippines — a sharp increase from the 71 cases recorded in all of 2024. The pace of illegal recruitment is accelerating, not slowing. Trans.info
The volume happening online is staggering. In DMW’s fourth full year of operation, data from 2022 to November 2025 shows that 170,140 Facebook and TikTok pages were shut down for conducting illegal recruitment activities such as online direct hiring and charging fees. From only 614 pages in 2022, the taken-down pages rose to 85,538 in 2025 alone. Onrec
And the human cost is real. In 2024, the Philippine government reported assisting 1,377 victims of unspecified forms of exploitation including illegal recruitment, illegal adoption, and other forms of exploitation. DMW assisted 535 trafficking victims identified in 2024. The DMW assisted 2,021 victims from cyber scam hubs in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar in 2025 alone, with 1,914 of them repatriated to the Philippines. UkOnrec
Workers in South Africa, Bangladesh, Colombia, and India face equivalent risks. The model is the same wherever skilled workers are recruited for overseas employment: bad actors exploit the gap between hope and verification.
The principle every legitimate agency follows
There is one principle that underlies every regulated, ethical recruitment system in the world. It is called the Employer Pays Principle. It is championed by the International Organization for Migration through its IRIS (International Recruitment Integrity System) flagship initiative, working alongside the International Labour Organization, the Leadership Group for Responsible Recruitment, the Consumer Goods Forum, the Fair Labor Association, and the Responsible Business Alliance. Returnloads
The principle is simple: the costs of recruitment are borne by the employer, not by the worker.
The IRIS Principles, which set the global standard for ethical recruitment, explicitly state that labour recruiters must not charge directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, any fees or related costs to migrant workers, for the services related to recruitment for temporary or permanent job placement or employment. The labour recruiters must not require migrant workers or their family members to provide a monetary deposit or other guarantee. Total Law
This principle is reflected in the ILO’s General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment (adopted in 2016) and the Definition of Recruitment Fees and Related Costs (adopted in 2018), and the Montreal Recommendations on Recruitment (launched in 2019). Wetherby Training
In plain terms: any agency asking you to pay them money to find you a job abroad is operating outside the standards set by every major international body in this space. They are also, in most cases, operating outside the law of your country of origin.
What Philippine law actually says
For Filipino workers specifically, the legal position is clear.
Only licensed recruitment and manning agencies may lawfully recruit and deploy workers for overseas employment, and they must comply with the rules on recruitment fees. The long-standing baseline rule in POEA/DMW regulations for land-based OFWs has been that agencies may charge a placement fee not exceeding one month’s basic salary of the worker, but over time, the government has strengthened the “no placement fee” policy for many OFWs. talent
Under the Revised POEA Rules and Regulations, the worker shall pay the placement fee to the licensed recruitment agency only after signing the POEA-approved contract. The agency must issue a BIR-registered receipt stating the date of payment. The costs of recruitment and placement shall be the responsibility of the principal employer.
For destinations like Ireland and the UK, Filipino workers are generally placed under the “no placement fee” policy. Sama Talent, as the receiving agency in Ireland, absorbs the recruitment cost entirely. Filipino workers placed through Sama Talent pay nothing.
If any agency in the Philippines or elsewhere asks you to pay them money to be placed into an Irish or UK role, they are breaking the law and you should report them.
The eight warning signs of a bad agency
Most illegal recruiters and scam operations follow predictable patterns. If you see any of these signs, do not proceed with that agency. Walk away, regardless of how good the opportunity sounds.
1. They ask for money upfront.
This is the single biggest red flag. In one recent case, an illegal recruiter posing as a DMW employee was arrested after asking a victim for a placement fee of P200,000 to P230,000 for a fruit picker role in Canada. The victim was promised they could go to Canada within two months after payment. Baku
No legitimate agency will ever ask you for a placement fee, training fee, processing fee, documentation fee, expedited service fee, or any other upfront payment. Not before contract signing. Not after. Not ever, in most modern recruitment corridors.
The only legitimate costs you may need to pay personally are direct payments to government agencies, hospitals, or your own passport office for documents you need anyway (medical examinations, police clearance, passport application). These are paid directly to those institutions, never to an agency.
2. They cannot show you their licence.
Every legitimate recruitment agency operating from the Philippines must hold a DMW (formerly POEA) licence. Every legitimate Irish recruitment agency must hold an Employment Agency Licence issued by the Workplace Relations Commission. UK agencies must be registered with the appropriate authority.
Verifiable licence numbers exist for a reason: so you can verify them. Sama Talent’s Irish licence is EA 5649, valid to May 2027, registered with the Workplace Relations Commission. Our DMW partner agencies hold valid DMW licences and can show them on request.
If an agency cannot produce a licence number, or the number they give you does not appear in the official register, they are not licensed. They are operating illegally.
3. They are recruiting through Facebook, TikTok, or WhatsApp without an office.
Social media is now the dominant channel for illegal recruitment. Veteran recruitment sector leader Raquel Bracero has highlighted that fellow Filipinos abroad are using TikTok and Facebook to directly hire Filipinos in host countries, often claiming such online recruitment is legal in the host country when it is not. Onrec
Legitimate agencies have offices, registered companies, verifiable contact details, and a paper trail. They have websites with real addresses, real phone numbers, and named directors. If your only contact with an agency is a Facebook profile, a TikTok account, or a WhatsApp number with no verifiable physical address, you are not dealing with a legitimate agency.
4. They guarantee a specific job, salary, or timeline before any assessment.
Legitimate recruitment involves matching candidates to roles based on skills, experience, and employer requirements. No real agency can promise you a specific job at a specific salary on a specific date before they have assessed your skills, interviewed you, and matched you with a willing employer.
Promises of guaranteed placement, guaranteed salary, or guaranteed visa approval are signs of fraud. The actual visa decisions are made by governments, not agencies. The actual hiring decisions are made by employers, not agencies.
5. They tell you to travel as a tourist and “sort out paperwork on arrival”.
This is the calling card of trafficking operations. In past cases, the DMW reported that victims were instructed to fly to Cambodia, Myanmar, or Laos as tourists. They were duped into paying placement fees of as much as P200,000. Hgvlgvtraining
No legitimate route to working in Ireland or the UK involves travelling there as a tourist and converting your status on arrival. Ireland requires a General Employment Permit or Critical Skills Employment Permit issued by DETE, plus a work visa issued by Irish Immigration. The UK requires a Certificate of Sponsorship issued by your employer and a Skilled Worker visa issued by UK Visas and Immigration. Both must be in place before you travel.
If anyone tells you to fly to a destination country as a tourist and they will sort out the paperwork there, they are setting you up for either deportation or worse.
6. They will not give you written documentation.
Every step of a legitimate recruitment process is documented in writing. The job offer is written. The contract is written. The agency licence is written and verifiable. The fee structure (if any) is written and receipted.
If an agency resists giving you written information, or insists on verbal-only conversations, they are protecting themselves from accountability. Walk away.
7. They pressure you to decide quickly.
Real opportunities do not expire in 24 hours. Real recruitment timelines run over months, not days. If an agency tells you that you must accept, pay, or sign today or lose the opportunity, that pressure is a deliberate tactic to prevent you from doing due diligence.
Legitimate employers and agencies understand that major life decisions take time. Any reasonable opportunity will still be there next week.
8. They ask you to take a loan to pay them.
Some illegal recruiters now offer “financing arrangements” where you take out a loan in your home country to pay the placement fee, with the agency arranging the lender. This is a doubly exploitative model: you pay an illegal placement fee, plus interest, plus you become financially trapped to a lender connected to the recruiter.
It is critical to distinguish between administrative bans and judicial orders. The DMW maintains a Watchlist and a Blacklist, but these are generally reserved for workers with pending disciplinary cases or those convicted of crimes. Private civil debt — such as an unpaid personal loan or a balance with a lending company — is not a legal ground for the DMW to automatically blacklist an OFW or deny them an Overseas Employment Certificate. However, the financial damage and emotional pressure of this kind of arrangement is severe regardless. Agriland
If an agency suggests you take a loan to pay them, the agency is the problem, not the loan.
How to verify a legitimate agency
Before you engage with any recruitment agency, follow these steps.
For Philippine workers:
- Check the agency on the DMW verification system. Search for the agency name and licence number at the DMW website. Verify the licence is current and valid.
- Check the job order is approved. The DMW also maintains a list of approved job orders. A legitimate role with a foreign employer will appear in this list.
- Verify the foreign principal. The Irish or UK employer should also be searchable through public company registers (Companies Registration Office in Ireland, Companies House in the UK).
- Cross-reference the Irish agency. If the role is for Ireland, verify the receiving agency’s Employment Agency Licence with the Workplace Relations Commission.
For South African workers:
- Verify the recruitment agency is registered. South African recruitment agencies should be registered with the Department of Employment and Labour.
- Cross-reference the destination country agency. Verify the Irish or UK agency through the receiving country’s regulator (WRC for Ireland, employment agency regulator for the UK).
- Confirm the employer is legitimate. Check the employer on Companies Registration Office (Ireland) or Companies House (UK).
For all workers, universal checks:
- Search the agency name plus the words “scam” or “complaint” online. If others have been defrauded by an agency, complaints will appear.
- Ask for the names of three workers the agency has previously placed. A legitimate agency with happy clients can provide references. An illegal recruiter cannot.
- Ask to see a sample employment contract. Legitimate agencies have standard contracts they can share with you (with employer-specific details redacted) so you can see what you would be signing.
- Ask what happens if the role does not work out. Legitimate agencies have replacement guarantees and grievance procedures. Illegal recruiters do not.
What to do if you have already been scammed
If you have already paid money to an illegal recruiter, or you suspect you have been recruited illegally, take these steps immediately.
1. Stop paying. Do not send any more money. Do not pay any “additional processing fees” or “expedited service fees.” The amounts already lost are difficult to recover; do not throw good money after bad.
2. Preserve evidence. Preserve electronic trails immediately; screenshots should show URL, timestamp. Save every message, every receipt, every email, every Facebook post. This evidence will be needed for any criminal complaint. Logistics UK
3. Report to the DMW (Philippines). File a complaint at the DMW Migrant Workers Protection Bureau. The DMW has dedicated investigators and the power to file criminal charges. You can also contact the DMW Anti-Illegal Recruitment and Trafficking in Persons program directly.
4. Report to the local police. Illegal recruitment is a criminal offence under Republic Act 10022 (the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act) in the Philippines and equivalent legislation in most source countries. Cases can lead to criminal prosecution and recovery of funds.
5. Contact your country’s embassy abroad. If you have already travelled and are abroad in a difficult situation, contact your country’s embassy in the destination country immediately. In 2024, DMW established and implemented an immediate care and financial assistance fund (AKSYON fund), which provided assistance such as airfare, meal allowances, shelter, medical care, and other services for overseas Filipino workers facing difficulties abroad. Uk
6. Seek legal advice. Free legal support is available from the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) for Filipino workers, and from equivalent legal aid services in other source countries.
What Sama Talent commits to
We will close with what we promise, in writing, to every candidate we work with.
1. You will never pay us anything. No application fee. No placement fee. No training fee. No documentation fee. Not before contract signing. Not after. Not ever.
2. We will not take a margin from your salary. You are hired directly by your employer. Your salary is paid to you in full. We are paid separately by the employer, not from your wages.
3. We will be transparent about every stage. You will know what visa route you are on, what the timeline is, what the employer pays, what your salary will be, and what your contract says. You will see written documentation at every stage.
4. We will tell you the truth, including when it is bad news. If we cannot place you, we will tell you why. If a role is harder than it sounds, we will tell you that too. We will not promise things to win your trust and then deliver less than we promised.
5. We will be there after you arrive. Our involvement does not end at the airport. We support every candidate through their first six months in their new country, and we maintain contact for the longer journey of permit renewals and family reunification.
6. You can verify us. Sama Talent and Offshore Services Ltd is registered in Ireland under CRO 810220, holds Employment Agency Licence EA 5649 issued by the Workplace Relations Commission and valid to May 2027, and has operations in Manila, Johannesburg, Dhaka, Birmingham, and Delaware. Our registered office is at Venture Hub, 136 Capel Street, Dublin 1, D01 T2C9. Every part of this is verifiable in public registers.
If you have already encountered an agency that does not meet these standards, walk away. There are legitimate routes to a good job abroad. Do not let bad actors stop you from finding one.
Ready to apply with confidence?
If you are a skilled worker considering a move abroad, Sama Talent has open roles in trades, driving, and engineering across Ireland, the UK, and the United States. Visit samatalent.com/jobs to see what is currently open. Email jobs@samatalent.com to register your interest.
We will not charge you a cent. We will tell you the truth about your prospects. And we will be there after you land.
About this article: Citations are drawn from the Department of Migrant Workers (Philippines), the International Organization for Migration’s IRIS Ethical Recruitment initiative, the International Labour Organization’s General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment, the US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report, and current 2025-2026 reporting from Philippine news organisations on illegal recruitment cases. Sama Talent is a regulated Irish employment agency, EA 5649, with operations across six countries placing skilled workers ethically and at no cost to the candidate.
