Men, aged 18 to 35, who are eligible for military service under the regime’s conscription law, will no longer be allowed to sign contracts for work abroad effective Friday, overseas employment agencies told the BBC.
“The restriction only affects men,” said an agent in Yangon. The issuance of Overseas Worker Identification Cards (OWIC) is also expected to be limited with the new restriction in place.
Migrant workers from Myanmar who had already signed contracts before Jan. 30 are still allowed to leave for overseas employment, according to the agencies.
Under the 1999 Foreign Employment Law, migrant workers must hold an OWIC with a five-year term to travel overseas. This card contains detailed information about the holder, which is kept by the regime Ministry of Labour.
Eighteen to 35-year-old males are required to serve in the military for at least two years, and up to five years in the case of an “emergency.” Myanmar has been in a state of emergency since the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.
Professionals such as doctors or engineers could serve up to age 45 under the conscription law. Men of eligible military service age reportedly face restrictions on leaving the country with a visitation passport.
Currently, any men working under a Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) are also subject to similar restrictions. The regime is sending workers to regional countries, including Thailand, Japan and South Korea, under an MOU.
“If the government stops issuing permits for workers within the working age, no country will hire older workers. All contracts are being suspended and refunds are still pending,” said an agency official, referring to the regime in Naypyidaw which seized power after the 2021 coup.
Most of the regime’s taxes come from workers abroad and this restriction is seen as cutting off their own revenue.
On Sept. 1, 2023, the regime mandated migrant workers to open a joint account with a bank regulated by the regime Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) before departure.
Workers must remit 25 percent of their salaries monthly, via regime-controlled banks, or quarterly into an account which allows the regime to access. Those who fail to comply will be denied passport extensions and OWIC, and may face future travel bans.
Last November, the regime formed a supervisory committee to enforce remittance rules by pressuring employment agencies to report on workers who fail to remit the money.
Migrant workers from Myanmar traditionally use hundi, an informal system where agents charge a small fee and convert money at the market rate of 4,000 MMK to $1 USD.
Since the new remittance rules require conversion at the CBM exchange rate of 2,100 MMK to $1 USD, or the affiliate bank rate of 3,000 MMK to $1 USD, the value of migrant workers’ earnings have dropped significantly.
The regime Ministry of Labor failed to respond to the BBC regarding these latest restrictions before publication.