Tracking a passenger file means knowing, at any moment, which stage a worker's file is in and which named person is responsible for moving it on. A file passes through registration, document checks, embassy filing, manpower clearance and delivery before the worker flies. Most delays in a recruiting agency come from the handovers between those stages, not from the stages themselves.
Why ownership matters more than speed
An office can be fast at every individual task and still lose a file, because a file nobody owns sits on whichever desk it last landed on. When a worker's relative phones to ask where things stand, the honest answer should be one name and one stage, not "let me ask around".
The rule that fixes this is simple: every stage has one owner, and a file only leaves a stage when somebody records that it has left.
The stages
1. Registration
Owner: the front desk or data entry.
The passenger record is opened from the passport in hand. Name, passport number, issue date, date of birth, parents' names, address, profession and the agent or reference who brought the worker in. The stage is finished when the record exists and the passport details have been typed from the passport itself, not from a photocopy or a phone photo.
2. Document and readiness check
Owner: a second person, not the one who typed the record.
Someone else compares the record against the documents: spelling, numbers, dates. They also confirm that the passport has enough validity left, that the medical and police clearance dates are recorded, and that nothing required is blank. The stage is finished when the file has no empty required fields and nobody has found a mismatch.
3. Visa, MOFA and medical
Owner: the processing desk.
The visa details, MOFA number and status, and medical are recorded as they happen. The thing to watch here is timing: a medical or clearance taken too early can expire before the file reaches the embassy. Confirm the current validity periods with the relevant authority rather than relying on memory.
4. Embassy filing
Owner: the embassy desk.
The passport goes into a batch for the next submission day. The stage is finished when the batch has been submitted, not when it has been assembled. A file that is assembled but never submitted is the most common invisible stall in an office.
5. Manpower clearance
Owner: the manpower desk.
Training, BMET registration and the clearance itself. The desk owns the file until clearance is complete and the manpower status says so.
6. Delivery
Owner: the delivery desk.
The passport and documents are handed to a named person, on a recorded date. Only then is the file closed from the office's side.
Cancellation, at any stage
A file can be called off at any point. When it is, the reason should be written down at that moment, along with which stage it was cancelled from, because the questions about money and refunds come later and the person who knew the reason may not be there.
How to tell a file is stuck
- It has been at the same stage longer than files usually take there.
- Nobody can name who is responsible for it.
- It has moved forward and back more than once without a note saying why.
- A date on it, such as passport validity or a medical, will run out before the next stage can finish.
A weekly look at files by stage, rather than a search for one name when somebody phones, catches these before the worker notices.
How EmbassyFile tracks the stages
In EmbassyFile the stages are the sidebar itself: Passenger List, Embassy File List, ManPower Section and Delivery Section, with a Cancel Section beside them. A passport moves between them by being sent, and each send records who sent it, when and an optional note. The passenger list marks incomplete records red, the dashboard counts how many passengers sit at each stage, and the Passenger Status screen finds a worker wherever their file currently is.
Key points
- Every stage needs one named owner, and a file leaves a stage only when that is recorded.
- The readiness check should be done by someone other than the person who typed the record.
- An embassy batch is finished when it is submitted, not when it is assembled.
- Cancellations need a reason recorded at the time, not reconstructed later.
- Reviewing files by stage each week catches stalls before the worker does.
Frequently asked questions
What are the main stages of a manpower file in a Bangladeshi recruiting agency?
Registration, a document and readiness check, visa and MOFA work with the medical, embassy filing, manpower clearance, and delivery. A file can also be cancelled at any of those stages.
Who should check a passenger record after it is entered?
A second person, not the one who typed it. The person who made a spelling or number mistake is the one least likely to see it.
How do I know which files are stuck in my office?
Look at files by stage each week and ask which have stayed too long, which have no clear owner, and which have a date that will expire before the next stage finishes.
Should a cancelled file be deleted?
No. It should be marked cancelled with a written reason and the stage it was cancelled from, so that any refund or agent adjustment can be explained later.