Twelve permits and 29 days: how we took over a project an intermediary left halfway

01 / The call

Permits issued, no people, and an intermediary who won't pick up

The logistics centre of a building materials distributor had ordered twelve workers from India through an intermediary: order pickers and forklift drivers for the spring peak. The intermediary had a partner in India, received documents and powers of attorney from the centre, and within a few weeks work permits were issued for all twelve.

For the next two months the logistics director heard the same thing: the candidates are in the consulate queue, not long now. Then the intermediary stopped answering altogether. HR had copies of the permits and CVs, but nobody knew where the candidates, their passports or visa applications were. The centre came to us with one sentence: tell us what can still be saved.

Olena, head of our company projects, asked for everything available: permit copies, the contract with the intermediary, correspondence, and candidate contacts from the CVs. The intermediary's contract had no deadlines at all and paid on 'arrival'. For the centre that meant no money had gone yet; for the people and the permits it meant nobody was responsible for time.

Permits

12, issued 61 days ago, for order pickers and forklift drivers

Passports

In the intermediary's partner's office in India, according to the candidates

Visas

Not a single application that could be confirmed

Deadline

29 days until the employment contract deadline

02 / The countdown

Counting back from day 90, not forward from today

Under the Employment Law, an employment contract with a foreign national must be signed no later than 90 calendar days from the issue date of the work permit. If no contract is signed, that permit can no longer be used for that person: a new one has to be applied for, with a new fee. The fee is refunded only if a permit is refused, and these permits had been issued.

So our first move wasn't to call the intermediary but to draw up a calendar counting back from day 90. A person has to enter, get to the centre and sign a contract. Before that comes the ticket; before the ticket, a D visa in the passport; before the visa, consular processing; before processing, an appointment, biometrics and a complete document file. Each step has its own minimum time, and adding them up showed who could still make it. We showed the centre this calendar on day one, so every permit decision was based on numbers, not promises.

1. Day 90

   Deadline: employment contract signed, and a copy submitted within 10 days.

2. Days 87-88

   Entry and travel to the centre, with the contract the next morning.

3. Day 84

   Tickets bought only once the visa is in the passport.

4. A week before tickets

   D visa issued, with a margin for consular delays.

5. Days 62-64

   Appointment and biometrics for those with a complete file.

6. Day 61, today

   A conversation with every candidate and a search for passports.

Counting back answers the key question within an hour: who can still be brought over, and who isn't worth spending more days or money on.

03 / Candidates

Twelve conversations in Hindi in two days

The CVs had contacts, but half the numbers didn't answer. Rajesh, our manager for workers from India, called the candidates and spoke to them in Hindi, messaged them, and our partner in India visited two people in person. Within two days we had spoken to all twelve.

Rajesh told each of them the same thing: who we are, why WORKIN is now running the project, that a permit has already been issued for them, and how much time is left. Then he asked three questions: do you still want to come, where is your passport, and what documents do you have. The answers fell into three groups, and each group got its own decision.

Over those two months, two candidates had found work at home and pulled out. We didn't try to persuade them: someone talked round in the final week often doesn't make it. Three wanted to come but had no police clearance certificate with an apostille, and under our checklist that certificate takes four to six weeks. It didn't fit into twenty-nine days.

04 / Passports

Getting passports back from someone else's partner

Seven passports were in the intermediary's partner's office in Delhi. The partner said he was holding them 'for the visa', though no consular application had been made. A passport belongs to its holder, and a candidate can take it back at any time. The only question was how to do it quickly and without a conflict that would cost another week.

Our partner in India gathered the seven candidates, and they went to the office in person with written requests for their passports. With each request we included a WORKIN letter in English: a new agency is running the project, the permits have been issued, and the people need their passports to apply for visas. The passports were returned the same day. Each candidate photographed his data page and sent it to Rajesh.

• candidates attend in person rather than having a third party collect the passport;
• each brings a written request and an agency letter with the project details;
• our partner is present, but only the holder receives the passport;
• a photo of the data page reaches us the same day;
• we check the passport details against the permit before the visa application.

05 / The consulate

Seven D visa files with nothing to question

Once the passports were back, the consular stage came down to the quality of the file. A D visa for employment requires an appointment, biometrics in person, an insurance policy with cover of at least EUR 30,000, and documents confirming the purpose of travel. Any mismatch between the permit, passport and invitation means extra questions, and we had no time for those.

Olena checked every file before booking: the name in Latin script in the passport and permit, the job title, the term and the housing address. In one permit the candidate's name had been transliterated differently from his passport. We added an explanation showing both spellings, and the consulate accepted the documents without returning them. We got appointments for all seven in the first three days.

The centre had rented housing for the workers in advance, and we checked the address documents as we would for any filing: proof of housing is needed for the visa and later for the residence permit and registration of residence. How we handle those documents after arrival is described on our migration support page.

1. 01

   Permit and invitation

   A copy of the work permit and an invitation with the same job titles and terms.

2. 02

   Passport

   Valid with a margin, details matched to the permit, with a note on the different name spelling.

3. 03

   Insurance

   A policy with cover of at least EUR 30,000 for the whole term of the visa.

4. 04

   Housing

   A document confirming the worker's residential address in Ukraine.

06 / The reserve

Five places the visa route couldn't fill in time go visa-free

Five of the twelve places couldn't be filled by the visa route before the peak: three candidates were waiting for certificates and two had pulled out. The centre needed people in the warehouse precisely during the spring season. So in parallel with the consulate we opened visa-free recruitment in Uzbekistan: citizens of that country enter without a visa, and the whole route from search to first shift takes four to seven weeks on average.

We filed new permits for five places for candidates from Uzbekistan. Sherzod, our manager for workers from Uzbekistan, found experienced order pickers and forklift drivers through licensed partners and checked their warehouse experience in video interviews before filing. More on that route on our visa-free entry page.

We didn't lose the three Indian candidates with incomplete files: their police clearance certificates were ordered straight after the conversation, and they'll travel in the centre's next wave with new permits. The two who pulled out got a polite reply from Rajesh and a contact for the future.

07 / Arrival

Seven people and seven contracts before day 90

1. Day 79

   D visas issued to all seven. Tickets booked on a single flight.

2. Day 86

   The group arrives: meeting, travel to housing, a worker's guide in Hindi.

3. Day 87

   Employment contracts signed. Copies submitted within 10 days.

4. First week

   Tax numbers, bank accounts, residence permit applications.

5. Weeks 5-7

   Visa-free workers from Uzbekistan arrive in two groups.

On arrival day Olena handed the centre a file for each worker: permit, visa, contract and residence permit filing date. That's where our work with the group ended, and the centre had its people with documents in order three days before the deadline. Each stage of such a project is described on how it works, and what falls to the employer on the employer duties page.

The centre never paid the intermediary, because his contract paid on 'arrival'. We drew up our contract with the centre differently: with a deadline for every stage and responsibility for each. You can see what such a contract looks like on the WORKIN contract page.

08 / Outcome

Seven permits saved and five places filled before the peak

Permits

7 of 12 used on time, 3 candidates travelling in the next wave

Passports

Returned to their holders within a day, without conflict

Visas

Seven files accepted by the consulate without return

Contracts

Signed on day 87, copies submitted on time

The peak

Five places filled by visa-free workers from Uzbekistan

There's nothing WORKIN can't solve, even in someone else's project: we count the days, talk to people in their own language, get documents back and know how to put together a file the consulate has no questions about. The WORKIN replacement guarantee lasts at least 6 months from the worker's first shift, provided the agreed working, pay and housing conditions are kept. What to do when a candidate disappears after a permit is issued is covered in the scenario about a no-show after the permit, and how to calculate a project's full cost before signing in the scenario about true costs. More on such projects on our pages about workers for logistics and workers from India.

09 / FAQ

Questions and answers