Visit visa work contract trap: why Nigerians must match the visa to the job before boarding

Tips · 2026-10-29 · 10 min read

Two Nigerian job seekers review a contract and phone with a closed passport on the table in a bright Lagos apartment.

The visit visa work contract trap is simple: a recruiter gets you a short visitor or tourist visa, then hands you a contract for one or two years of work. The paper looks like a job, but the visa does not allow it, so once you land you have no legal right to that job, and once the visa ends you have no right to stay at all. The fix is just as simple: before you pay anyone or board any flight, check that the visa in your name is a work visa tied to the job you were offered.

What NAPTIP found in the Baghdad case

In February 2025, NAPTIP's Director General described job seekers intercepted on their way to a supposed job in Baghdad. They had been recruited by unlicensed labour recruiters "not known to any constituted authority in Nigeria".

The detail that matters for every japa plan is this one. NAPTIP said the recruits were issued a 60 days visa but had signed a 2-year labour agreement. Once that short visa expired, they would lose all legal rights to demand anything, including their salary.

A contract cannot give you rights that your visa does not. If the two documents do not agree, the visa wins, and the worker loses.

Why the visa decides your rights, not the contract

A work contract is a private paper between you and an employer. A visa is a decision by a government about what you may do in its country. A recruiter who says "the visa is just to enter" has it backwards.

Australia says it directly: you can't work in Australia on an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) or a Visitor visa. No employer can change that, and an employer can't cancel or fix a visa either; only the Department of Home Affairs can grant, refuse or cancel visas.

The EFCC adds the Nigerian side of the warning. Visa scammers claim connections at embassies, demand repeated fees and may issue fake visas that lead to arrest at exit or entry ports. Its advice is to check the official website of the country you plan to work in.

Visit visa or work visa: how to tell them apart

You do not need to be a lawyer to spot a mismatch. Put the offer and the visa side by side and ask these questions.

Check	Real sponsored work visa	Visit visa work contract trap
Australia: visa type	A work visa such as the Skills in Demand (subclass 482), nominated by your employer	A Visitor visa or ETA, on which you can't work
Australia: who you work for	Only the nominating business, in the nominated occupation	"Any employer" or "we will place you when you arrive"
New Zealand: how you apply	The accredited employer sends you a link to the online AEWV form	The recruiter "processes" a visa for you and asks for cash
Where it was lodged	ImmiAccount for Australia, or the online form the accredited employer sent for New Zealand	"Through the embassy" or "our contact at the High Commission"
Can you check it?	Yes: VEVO for Australia, Visa Verification for New Zealand	No record, or the recruiter keeps the papers
Length	Matches the job; a 482 lets you work for your sponsor for up to 4 years	Short visa, long contract, like NAPTIP's 60 days against 2 years

How Australia ties a work visa to one job

A sponsored job in Australia normally runs on the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482). It is a temporary visa that lets an employer sponsor a suitably skilled worker for a position it cannot fill with a suitably skilled Australian. Our guide to the Skills in Demand (482) visa for Nigerians walks through the streams and the paperwork.

For this trap, two conditions matter. A 482 holder may work only in the occupation they were nominated for and only for the nominating business (or, in some circumstances, an associated entity). And if you are outside Australia when the visa is granted, you must begin that employment within 90 days of entering the country.

So a genuine Australian offer names one employer and one role, and your visa matches both. If the employer in your contract is not the business that sponsored you, ask why before you travel. Employer Sponsored Jobs explains the same point from the other direction in its guide to changing employer on a 482 visa: the new sponsor's nomination must be approved before day one.

The Australian High Commission in Nigeria does not process visa or citizenship applications. Those are managed by the Department of Home Affairs and lodged through ImmiAccount, as the High Commission's own travelling to Australia page says. Our guide to where Nigerians should go instead of the High Commission covers who handles what.

How New Zealand ties a work visa to one employer

In New Zealand, most sponsored jobs go through the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV). It is for people with a job offer from an accredited employer, and that employer must send you a link to the online application form.

The job offer itself must be for at least 30 hours of work a week, from an accredited employer with an approved job check for the job, and paid at least the market rate. Our explainer on the New Zealand AEWV for Nigerian workers sets out the full process.

INZ is also clear about money. It never asks for visa fees to be paid into a bank account, and New Zealand employers cannot charge you fees for a job or make you pay their recruitment costs, even through a third party. A recruiter asking you to transfer naira "for the visa" fails both tests.

Five checks before you pay or board

Run these in order. One failed check is enough to stop.

Name the visa. Ask the recruiter in writing which visa you will travel on, by name and subclass. "Visit", "tourist", "business visit" or "ETA" for a paid job is the trap.
Check the recruiter's licence. Recruitment for jobs outside Nigeria needs a Recruiter's Licence for international placements. Look for the agency on the NELEX list of accredited private employment agencies, and read our guide to checking whether your recruitment agency is really licensed.
Match employer to visa. The business on your contract should be the one that sponsored you in Australia, or the accredited employer that sent your AEWV link in New Zealand.
Look the visa up yourself. For Australia, find the grant in VEVO; Home Affairs says a grant that cannot be found there is probably fake. For New Zealand, use INZ's Visa Verification service. Use your own device, not a link the recruiter sends.
Refuse to pay for the job. The EFCC says no credible employer demands pre-employment payments for whatever reason. Australia treats paying an employer for visa sponsorship as illegal, and INZ declines an AEWV if money was offered for a job offer.

When you find a real sponsored role, apply properly: a clear, honest CV matters more than any middleman. A tool such as Build AI CV can help you set out your trade or professional experience in a format Australian and New Zealand employers can read quickly.

Common mistakes Nigerians make with visa type

Trusting the contract over the visa

A signed contract with a long term feels safe. NAPTIP's case shows it is not: a 2-year agreement on a 60 days visa gave the workers nothing once the visa ran out.

Letting the recruiter hold the papers

Scamwatch advises never sending your passport or identity documents to an employer or recruitment firm unless you are certain they are genuine. If you cannot see your own visa grant, you cannot check it.

Believing "embassy contacts"

The High Commission warns that no Australian diplomat or Australian Border Force special agent will contact you offering jobs or visas. Anyone selling a visa "through the embassy" is selling something that office does not do. Our guide on testing a fake Australian job offer email shows the quick checks.

Planning to "change the visa later"

Travellers are sometimes told they can switch to a work visa once they arrive. Home Affairs warns that people who engage in visa fraud through a scam agent risk refusal or cancellation and a ban from Australia for up to 10 years.

Paying a japa consultant who is not registered

In Australia, each registered migration agent has a MARN, and someone claiming to be an agent without a MARN or an OMARA listing is not legitimate. Our guide to checking two registers before you pay a japa consultant shows where to look.

If you are already abroad on the wrong visa

Do not hide, and do not pay the recruiter again to "fix" it. Contact the authorities of the country you are in, and keep copies of your contract, messages and payment receipts.

For Australia, the Home Affairs visa scams page explains what to check. Visa enquiries go to the Home Affairs Global Service Centre on +61 2 6196 0196. For New Zealand, Immigration New Zealand's guide to protecting yourself from immigration scams covers the official contacts and the warning signs.

Family at home in Nigeria can report a trafficking concern to NAPTIP on 627 or *627#, or the toll-free line 234 703 0000 203. NAPTIP's wider warnings are covered in our post on the red flags of trafficking dressed up as work.

If you are still in Nigeria and want to see what genuine sponsored roles look like, browse the current listings on NaijaAbroad, for example IT and technology jobs in Australia and New Zealand.

Frequently asked questions

Can I work in Australia on a visitor visa if the employer says it is fine?

No. Home Affairs states plainly that you can't work in Australia on an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) or a Visitor visa. An employer's permission does not change the conditions of your visa, and only the Department of Home Affairs grants, refuses or cancels visas.

How do I check that an Australian visa in my name is real?

Look the grant up in VEVO, the government's visa checking system. Home Affairs says a visa grant that cannot be found in VEVO is probably fake, and ImmiAccount is the only official website for applying for an Australian visa.

What does a genuine work visa from New Zealand look like?

For most migrant workers a real job goes through the Accredited Employer Work Visa. The employer must be accredited, have an approved job check for the role and send you a link to the online application form. You can confirm a New Zealand visa with Immigration New Zealand's Visa Verification service.

Does a recruiter in Lagos need a licence to send me to a job abroad?

Yes. A recruiter placing Nigerians in jobs outside Nigeria needs a Recruiter's Licence for international placements from the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment. Check the agency's name on the NELEX list of accredited private employment agencies, and walk away if anyone asks you to pay for the job itself.

Where do I report a recruiter who sent someone abroad on the wrong visa?

NAPTIP takes reports of human trafficking on 627 or *627#, the toll-free line 234 703 0000 203, and 0800CALLNAPTIP. For Australian offers, the High Commission asks people to report suspected scams to local police, to Scamwatch or through the Home Affairs Border Watch online form.

Key takeaways

A contract cannot give you rights your visa does not: on a Visitor visa or ETA you can't work in Australia.
A genuine work visa is tied to your employer and role, such as the 482 in Australia or the AEWV in New Zealand.
Check every grant yourself in VEVO or with INZ Visa Verification before you travel.
Use only licensed recruiters on the NELEX list, and never pay for a job or for sponsorship.
Report trafficking concerns to NAPTIP on 627 and suspected visa scams to the destination country.

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