A Bangladeshi man who lived in Malta for years cannot return to the island after having his employment terminated and his residence permit revoked while he was abroad.
And he cannot contest the decision because appeals must be lodged in person and in Malta.
Tanvir Ahmed had been working in Malta for three years when his mother fell gravely ill last May.
When he heard she would need a kidney transplant, Ahmed rushed to Bangladesh to be by his mother’s side on May 24.
“I had the full permission of my employer to go to my country for two months as my mother’s health deteriorated drastically and she was on the verge of passing away,” Ahmed said.
But, a month into his stay in Bangladesh, two e-mails the 29-year-old man received gave him an unpleasant surprise.
On June 27, JobsPlus informed Ahmed that his job as a salesperson was terminated, citing “abandoned place of work” as the reason. The termination was dated May 30, six days after he had left for Bangladesh.
A few days later, on July 3, Identity Malta revoked Ahmed’s residence permit.
“Once the legitimate scope of residence has been lost, Identity Malta is bound to withdraw the residence permit,” Identity Malta said when responding to questions.
“My family is dependent on me, I was working in Malta to support my family,” Ahmed said.
The agency went on to tell Ahmed he “may appeal the decision before the Immigration Appeals Board (IAB)”.
The appeal must be submitted within three working days, the Identity Malta e-mail said.
But when Ahmed asked if he could appeal the decision online, he was told he could only do so in person.
“I’m sorry to inform you but the only way to pay and lodge the appeal is at our front office,” the IAB replied when Ahmed informed the board of his situation.
According to IAB policy, a person can appeal an Identity Malta decision on someone else’s behalf. But Ahmed could not find anyone to do so within three days.
When a friend tried to lodge the appeal weeks later, IAB said the three-day period to do so had expired.
Ahmed even went to the Department of Industrial and Employment Relations and Legal Aid Malta only to be told they could not do anything.
Ahmed wrote to Identity Malta, saying the decision to revoke his residence permit was “wrongful and unjust”.
Identity Malta responded by saying that “applicants who are stuck abroad would need to submit a new online application”.
“I am shocked with the situation. My life is being destroyed,” Ahmed said.
“Is this humanity,” he questioned.
Ahmed also contacted the Maltese consulate in Bangladesh but received no reply.
In a final effort, Ahmed e-mailed over 30 individuals, including Identity Malta CEO Mark Mallia, home affairs minister Byron Camilleri, employment minister Clyde Caruana and justice minister Jonathan Attard.
“I find myself stranded in Bangladesh, facing unexpected challenges and uncertainties. The sudden termination and revocation have left me in a difficult situation, with limited options and uncertainty about my future,” Ahmed wrote.
“I am a citizen of a poor country; just because my skin colour is dark I don’t have the right to see my mother when she is sick,” he asked.
Ahmed, still in Bangladesh, has now restarted the process of moving to Malta from square one.
This means he must first acquire a single work permit before applying for a visa.
In January, Times of Malta reported that people from Southeast Asia have to wait for at least a year and a half for a visa decision that will determine if they can work in Malta.
Even then, Bangladeshi applicants are unlikely to successfully receive a visa, with sources close to the Bangladeshi immigration process saying that only around 20% of visa applicants are successful.