The Foreign Workers’ Management Policy Committee has approved a deadline extension to March 31, 2026, for over 300,000 migrant workers to complete work permit requirements, preventing labor disruptions.

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Key Points

• The Foreign Workers’ Management Policy Committee approved an extension for over 300,000 migrant workers from Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam to fulfill work permit requirements, aiming to maintain labor stability and prevent disruptions.
• Key deadlines have been adjusted, moving the original completion date from February 24, 2026, to March 31, 2026. This extension covers essential submissions like health insurance documents and a 900-baht work permit fee.
• With 375,038 out of 890,786 workers yet to comply, the extension is crucial to avoid status loss and potential workforce shortages. The Labour Minister has instructed the Department of Employment to expedite measures for affected workers and ensure economic stability.

The Foreign Workers’ Management Policy Committee has approved an extension for migrant workers from Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam to complete work permit requirements, covering more than 300,000 individuals. The measure will be submitted to the Cabinet for approval to prevent labor disruptions and protect production stability.

The extension covers the submission of health insurance documents and medical examination results, as well as the payment of the 900-baht work permit fee. The original deadline of February 24, 2026, has been moved to March 31, 2026, allowing eligible workers additional time to comply and remain in the legal employment system.

Data presented at the meeting showed that 375,038 workers out of a total of 890,786 have not yet completed the required procedures. Without the extension, many could lose their status, limiting employers’ ability to hire them legally and increasing the risk of workforce shortages in key industries.

Labour Minister Treenuch Thienthong has directed the Department of Employment to expedite drafting a ministerial notification granting special permission for affected workers in line with the earlier Cabinet resolution. The ministry will forward the committee’s decision to the Cabinet to ensure continuity in the labor market and reduce potential economic impact.

Source : Work Permit Deadline Extended for 300,000 Migrant Workers

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Mumbai: Retail investors, drawn by the superior returns from international markets compared to local equities in the last year, are rushing to allocate money to mutual fund schemes that bet on overseas equities. Amid the dash to put money in these top performers, they are overlooking a crucial detail: many of these exchange-traded funds are at a 20-25% premium to their current values, leaving them exposed to any sharp reversals.

Currently, many of these schemes do not accept fresh subscriptions because they have hit the central bank’s overseas investing limit for mutual funds. The industry currently operates under a $7-billion limit for international mutual fund schemes and an additional $1-billion window for ETFs. The industry first hit this ceiling in February 2022, and since then, only schemes that haven’t exhausted their individual limits – or those where redemptions have freed up space – have been able to accept subscriptions. This resulted in a sharp spike in demand for ETFs, which are traded like stocks on exchanges – with investors buying them at premiums to their net asset values – the daily prices.

“Retail investors blindly buy ETFs, and there is no attempt to look at the premium or discount to the NAV,” says Chetan Nandani, founder, Prime Care Investments.

Currently, the Nippon India Hang Seng ETF trades at a 21% premium to its NAV, while the Mirae Asset Hang Seng Tech ETF trades at a premium of 23%. The Mirae Asset S&P 500 Top ETF trades at a premium of 18%, the Mirae Asset NYSE Fang+ ETF at 19%, while the Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 ETF trades at a premium of 2-3%.

“Overseas ETFs can no longer create new units to meet additional demand. However, since they trade on the exchanges, investors can still buy in the secondary markets,” says Kunal Valia, founder, Statlane – a Sebi-registered research analyst. “This has led to crowding into a handful of overseas ETFs, due to which these ETFs are trading at a premium way higher than the NAV.”

As per data from Value Research, international funds, on average, have returned 28% over the last year, compared with Nifty’s 12.8%.
RBI-imposed overseas limits have kept many US-focused mutual fund schemes shut for fresh subscriptions. While investors can bypass these curbs by using the Liberalised Remittance Scheme to buy ETFs abroad, the route comes with high transaction costs and the added hassle of separate brokerage accounts and compliance paperwork. Another alternative is to buy international funds set up in GIFT City, but the minimum investment of $5,000 makes it accessible only to larger-ticket investors. Investors who bought these international ETFs from the secondary market run the risk of sharp drawdowns if the RBI eventually decides to lift this limit. In such an instance, the lofty premiums on many of these products could evaporate quickly.

“Such investors carry a huge risk. The premium on these funds can disappear overnight if RBI were to increase or open up the limits,” warns Nandani. “If that happens, such investors could see a straight capital loss of 20-25% on these ETFs.”