The Overseas Labor Center (Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs) has recently issued a warning about fraudulent activities involving the impersonation of the Center and the illegal collection of money from job seekers intending to work in Australia.
According to the Center, there have been instances of individuals misusing social media platforms to impersonate the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs and the Overseas Labor Center. They have created fake Fanpages with names such as “Overseas Employment Consulting Center – Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs” and “Asian Overseas Employment Consulting” to post job advertisements for positions in Australia on TikTok, falsely claiming to represent the Ministry and the Center.
These fraudulent individuals have also posted documents bearing the signature of Mr. Dao Ngoc Dung, Minister of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs, along with images of the Ministry’s leaders working with foreign partners, to deceive and lure potential job seekers into their scheme.
The scammers have further pretended to be officers of the Overseas Labor Center and demanded that job seekers transfer an amount ranging from 40 to 50 million VND to their specified accounts or set up their own international payment accounts (Visa cards) and deposit the same amount.
Once the unsuspecting job seekers transferred the money to their Visa accounts, the scammers provided them with a link that enabled them to steal the individuals’ account information and transfer the funds to another account.
The Overseas Labor Center has categorically stated that the aforementioned Fanpages are not their official electronic information pages or those of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs. These acts of impersonation and fraud are illegal and aimed at extorting money from job seekers.
At present, the Overseas Labor Center is in the process of negotiating with the Australian side and has not yet started the labor export process to Australia. Once the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs approves the labor export, detailed recruitment information will be publicly announced on the following official websites: molisa.gov.vn; dolab.gov.vn; and colab.gov.vn.
The Center advises that if anyone has fallen victim to these scams and made illegal payments, they should immediately report the incident to the police and inform the Center to facilitate verification and clarification.
Under the Pacific Australia Labor Mobility (PALM) program, the Australian Government will allow up to 1,000 Vietnamese workers to take up jobs in the agricultural sector. These workers can choose between short-term employment lasting 6-9 months or long-term employment ranging from 1 to 4 years.
The criteria for Vietnamese workers to participate in this program include being 21 years of age or older, possessing a minimum IELTS score of 4.0 or equivalent, meeting health requirements, having relevant occupational knowledge, skills, or work experience, and being selected by Australian employers.
The job positions offered to Vietnamese workers require low to semi-skilled labor in the agricultural sector, including horticulture, meat processing, seafood, and forestry.
Further details will be announced during the recruitment process. The Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs, in collaboration with the Australian Government, will jointly select the participating Vietnamese service enterprises.
