Our transparent 8-step recruitment process

The process begins with the overseas employer issuing a formal demand letter that lists job titles, worker numbers, salary, benefits, accommodation, working hours and contract duration. GWN coordinates attestation of this demand letter through the Nepali embassy in the destination country, then through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu and the Ministry of Labour. Multi-country attestations (common for Gulf countries) can involve two or three government offices. Only attested demand letters can proceed to DOFE filing — a protection that prevents fraudulent or altered job offers from reaching workers.

With the attested demand letter in hand, GWN files a pre-approval application with the Department of Foreign Employment. DOFE reviews the job offer against minimum wage standards, checks that the employer is not blacklisted and verifies that the destination country has an active bilateral agreement with Nepal for the relevant job category. Pre-approval is the official government green light to advertise the vacancy. It is illegal under the Foreign Employment Act 2007 to advertise or recruit for an overseas job without this approval — a rule that protects workers from fraudulent offers.

DOFE-approved vacancies are published on our website with full contract details — salary, accommodation, working hours, benefits and contract duration. For higher-volume campaigns, we also publish in national newspapers as required by law. Our counselling desk pushes vacancies to our WhatsApp and SMS candidate lists, reaching workers in all seven provinces. We deliberately publish more detail than the legal minimum so candidates can make truly informed decisions about whether a job is right for them.

Our counsellors screen applications against the employer's requirements, shortlist qualified candidates and arrange employer interviews. Interviews may be conducted in person at our Battishputali-9 office (often with an employer-side interviewer visiting Nepal), by Zoom / Google Meet for European employers, or via recorded video assessment for some Gulf and Korean clients. We coach candidates on interview expectations without coaching them to misrepresent their skills — because a mismatch between the CV and the worker's actual capabilities harms both the worker and our employer relationships.

Skilled and semi-skilled roles — welder, electrician, plumber, mechanic, carpenter, mason — require a practical trade test at a CTEVT-approved (Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training) test centre. Trade tests verify that a worker's claimed competency is real before the employer commits to a visa. This benefits workers too: workers who pass a credentialed trade test can negotiate higher starting salaries and are less likely to face disputes when they arrive on site. For Korea EPS, the government-mandated skills test and language exam replace this step.

Selected workers must pass a fitness-for-work medical examination at a government-approved clinic. For Gulf-bound workers (UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman) this is the GCC-approved medical (GAMCA). European destinations use their own country-specific clinics in Kathmandu. Japan and Korea have dedicated government-appointed clinics. GWN schedules and coordinates these appointments. Workers who fail a medical examination are notified immediately, and our welfare team helps them understand their options — including appeal procedures where available.

GWN files the visa application with the destination country's embassy in Kathmandu, enclosing the medical certificate, attested demand letter, DOFE pre-approval, trade test certificate and signed employment contract. Simultaneously, we register the worker with the FEPB welfare fund (mandatory insurance) and apply for the Nepal labour permit from DOFE. Gulf visas typically take 10–14 days. European work permits vary from 14–30 days. Korean and Japanese visas have government-set timelines. GWN tracks every application and notifies workers at each stage.

Before departure, every GWN-placed worker attends a Pre-Departure Orientation (PDO) session — a Government of Nepal requirement that we exceed in depth and honesty. Our PDO covers: destination country culture and laws, rights and responsibilities under the employment contract, how to use Wage Protection System (WPS) and verify salary deposits, who to call if things go wrong, embassy contacts, FEPB welfare claim procedures, and a realistic picture of life in the destination country. Workers receive a welfare bag with an emergency-contact card, embassy hotline lanyard and multilingual pocket guide. GWN coordinates airport pick-up at the destination with the employer for smooth arrival.