How to Spot a Study Abroad Agent Scam in Bangladesh

Most study-abroad fraud in Bangladesh is not exotic. It is six repeatable moves, and every one of them is detectable before you pay. Print this and check any offer against it — including offers from us.

1. The quote that exists nowhere else

The move: a fee figure that appears only in the agent’s PDF, brochure, or WhatsApp message.

The check: every legitimate tuition figure is published by the university or a government body. Ask: “Send me the URL on the university’s own website where this fee appears.” An agent who cannot do that in five minutes does not have the figure; they have a markup.

2. Year-one pricing sold as the total

The move: quoting the first year’s tuition, or a “package,” so the number sounds manageable.

The check: demand a written total for the full duration: tuition × years, hostel, food, insurance, visa fees, flights, and any coaching or exam you will need afterwards. Then compare that number against a local private university. For MBBS in particular, a mid-tier foreign degree frequently costs more than a Bangladeshi private medical college once everything is counted.

3. Payment to a personal account

The move: cash, bKash, or a transfer to an individual’s account “because the university’s channel is slow.”

The check: pay the university, through traceable banking channels, and get a receipt in the university’s name. There is no legitimate reason for your tuition to pass through a person’s personal account. This single rule prevents most total losses.

4. “You don’t need the eligibility certificate yet”

The move: for MBBS abroad, telling you to enrol first and handle Bangladesh Medical & Dental Council paperwork later.

The check: BM&DC’s published requirements include an Eligibility Certificate, and BM&DC conducts a Registration Qualifying Examination for MBBS — it held the exam in April 2026 and publishes results and internship notices for it. Verify your intended college on bmdc.org.bd for your admission year, before money moves. Recognition is institution-level: “China is recognised” is not an answer; the specific college and its actual language of instruction are.

This is the most expensive lie in the industry. Students finish five or six years and discover they cannot register to practise.

5. Forged documents “to help you”

The move: an agent supplies a Medium of Instruction letter, bank statement, or test result you did not obtain yourself.

The check: never sign or submit a document you cannot personally trace to its issuer. A refusal for deception attaches to your passport and follows you to every embassy for years. You are not buying convenience; you are buying a permanent record.

6. Guarantees that nobody can make

The move: “guaranteed admission,” “guaranteed visa,” “guaranteed scholarship,” “you can practise anywhere with this degree.”

The check: admission depends on verification, visas depend on immigration officers, scholarships depend on committees, and licences depend on national councils. Anyone guaranteeing these outcomes is either lying or planning to forge something. Undergraduate full scholarships in Germany, for instance, are rare precisely because tuition is already free — a promised one is a red flag, not an opportunity.

The five questions that end a bad conversation

Ask these, in order, and watch what happens:

What is your trade licence number and physical office address?
Send me the university page showing this fee.
What is the total cost for the entire program, itemised?
Can I email the university’s admissions office directly, right now, and cc you?
Which government body regulates the profession I am studying for, and what does it require of foreign graduates?

An honest counsellor answers all five without friction. A fraud gets defensive at question 2 and hostile at question 4.

What we do differently

Every figure on this site links to the government or university page it came from. We charge nothing, we do not take commission from universities, and where we do not know something we write UNVERIFIED instead of inventing it. If you find a number on this site that you cannot verify at its source, tell us and we will remove it.