Iraq remains legally closed to Nepali workers, with the Department of Foreign Employment keeping the country on its list of prohibited destinations for all categories of labour, including domestic workers.

Despite the ban, an estimated 30,000 Nepalis are still working in Iraq and its autonomous Kurdistan region, according to Binod Shrestha, Chair of the Non-Resident Nepali Association in Iraq. Most are women employed in domestic work or the service sector, many of whom have spent decades there. Fearing they would be unable to return to their jobs, several have not visited Nepal for over a decade.

Nepal stopped issuing labour approvals for Iraq following security concerns after 12 Nepalis were killed by an Iraqi insurgent group on September 1, 2004. Since then, Iraqi authorities have repeatedly sought the lifting of the ban through various channels, but Nepal has maintained that it will not send workers to Iraq, citing ongoing security risks.

Rita Shrestha, 44, from Dharan, has been working at a cafe in Sulaimani, in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, for the past 15 years. She arrived in Iraq in 2010 and spent her first two years in domestic work before moving into the service sector as a cashier. She now earns $1,200 a month.

“I went to Nepal once in 2015, after five years. I have not gone back since,” she said in a phone call with the Post. “Arranging travel to Nepal would cost around Rs250,000. I cannot spend that much, and there is no guarantee the arrangement would work.”

Shrestha said she is supporting her daughter’s education in the United Kingdom while continuing to live in Iraq. “People say Iraq is bad, but for us it feels like living in Nepal,” she said.

Meena Magar, 35, from Taplejung, has been working as a domestic worker in the same household in Iraq for the past 12 years. She rejects the perception that Iraq is unsafe. “Would I have brought my sister’s daughter here if Iraq was unsafe?” she said. “The employer’s family treats me like one of their own.”

Magar said she started on a salary of $300 and now earns $700 a month. Like many others, she is distressed about not being able to return home. “My parents have grown very weak and are often ill. They need regular treatment, so I have brought them to Kathmandu from Taplejung,” she said. “Still, they worry they may never see me again.”

Her husband has died, and her only son is studying in the US. “If I were allowed to return to Iraq after visiting Nepal, I would take a month’s leave to see my parents,” she said.

Dhanumaya Waiba Lama, 39, from Ramechhap, has been in Sulaimani since 2015 and has not returned to Nepal even once. She lives in a rented room with her sister’s daughter and said she was taken to Iraq by her own brother.

Lama works in seven households a week, earning about $1,200 a month. “Everything here feels like my own. I live with my brother’s daughter,” she said. “We are earning, but we are burdened by memories of family and the fear of not being able to return home.”

Nepalis have continued to arrive in Iraq in large numbers for work since the 2015 earthquake. Women far outnumber men, making up about 75 percent of Nepali workers. Many of their passports are now expiring.

After the 2004 killings, Iraq was declared a prohibited destination for Nepali workers. In January 2011, the Ministry of Labour and Employment decided to recognise all Nepalis already in Iraq. When the US adopted a policy of not employing Nepalis without Nepal’s approval, a plan was made to repatriate all Nepali workers. Faced with the prospect of thousands losing their jobs at once, the ministry decided to issue labour approvals only to Nepalis working at US camps. No new decision has been taken since.

The labour ministry has adopted a policy of recognising Nepalis who travelled on visit visas up to September 30, 2024. Under this policy, nearly 500,000 Nepali workers employed in major destinations without labour approval have begun to be legalised. Iraq, however, remains excluded.

While the government does not issue labour approvals for Iraq, it continues to provide passport services to Nepalis living there.

From May 31 to June 3, the Nepali embassy in Kuwait set up a mobile camp in Al-Jadriya, Baghdad, to renew passports and provide consular services. One-way travel permits were also issued to Nepalis unable to return home due to expired passports. Earlier, from February 2 to 7, the embassy provided electronic passport renewal services to 548 Nepalis in Erbil and Sulaimani.

Narayan Kumar, who works in Baghdad, said thousands of Nepalis have been employed across Iraqi provinces for decades. “Some had lost their passports, others had expired passports. With no Nepali embassy in Iraq, renewing or issuing new passports was impossible, making it extremely difficult for thousands to return home,” he said. “At that time, the Nepali embassy in Kuwait took a commendable initiative. But the Nepal government still refuses to issue labour approvals for Iraq, citing it as a conflict-ridden country.”

Jitman Gurung, from Gorkha, who works at a hotel in Baghdad, said hundreds of Nepalis are forced to travel via third countries, spending millions of rupees, due to the lack of labour approval. The hotel alone employs about 50 Nepalis as security guards, waiters, and cooks. “If the government can distribute passports in Iraq, why not issue labour approvals as well? That would protect thousands of Nepalis from being cheated,” he said.

Indira Lama, 53, from Bara, said there is nothing to worry about security in Iraq. “Life here feels normal to us. The government keeps imposing a ban on our travel, citing an incident from two decades ago,” she said.

In September 2024, Najam Mirzan, deputy head of mission at the Iraqi embassy in New Delhi, met acting Nepali ambassador Surendra Thapa and urged Nepal to lift the ban. Iraq, once crippled by conflict and war, has begun focusing on infrastructure development and has proposed a labour agreement with Nepal to bring in skilled workers.

The government has yet to decide whether Iraq should be included within Nepal’s foreign employment framework. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said the issue should be addressed politically. “This needs to be addressed at the political level,” a ministry official said.