🚩 Work & Earn Abroad

Spot & Avoid Job / Visa Scams (Read Before Paying Anyone) — Kenya 2026

The pain: Fraudsters sell Kenyans fake overseas jobs and visas, take large upfront fees, then vanish.

The outcome: You verify the agency and employer yourself, never pay for a “guaranteed” job, and report fraud.

Verify the agency with the Kenyan government FIRST — every overseas recruitment agency must be NEA-licensed. Search diaspora.go.ke/verify. Don't trust a certificate the agent shows you.

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Apply to legitimate roles yourself, on official portals.

The rules that protect you

Never pay for a “guaranteed” job or visa — no legitimate process guarantees one, and for most routes (UAE, Canada LMIA) the EMPLOYER pays for the permit.
Deal only with NEA-licensed agencies (verify at diaspora.go.ke/verify and nea.go.ke), verify the employer independently, and apply through official portals yourself where possible.
Keep every receipt, contract and licence number; report suspected fraud to NEA, the DCI, and the relevant embassy.

Red flags

Large upfront fees to a personal M-Pesa number.
Pressure/urgency; a tourist visa sold as a way to “work.”
No written contract; unsolicited WhatsApp/Telegram offers.
Requests to surrender your passport; salaries that are too good to be true.

Ready to act? Use these free tools

Ask Mjuzi (free AI) →

Sanity-check an offer or agency in plain English before you pay — free.

International CV Builder →

Apply to legitimate roles yourself, on official portals.

Questions people ask

How do I verify a recruitment agency is genuine in Kenya?

Every overseas recruitment agency must be NEA-licensed, so verify it yourself at diaspora.go.ke/verify and nea.go.ke. Don't trust a certificate the agent simply shows you.

Is it normal to pay upfront for an overseas job?

No. Never pay for a 'guaranteed' job or visa, as no legitimate process guarantees one, and for most routes like the UAE and Canada LMIA the employer pays for the permit. Large upfront fees to a personal M-Pesa number are a red flag.

Where do I report a job or visa scam in Kenya?

Report suspected fraud to NEA, the DCI, and the relevant embassy. Keep every receipt, contract and licence number as evidence.

Keep it current: Always verify the agency and employer on the official government sites yourself — never rely on a document the agent provides.

Official sources