Every GCC deployment that goes through a licensed Indian recruiter starts with one document: the demand letter. Under India's Emigration Act 1983, no MEA-licensed recruiter can legally initiate visa processing or emigration clearance without a signed, compliant demand letter. Without one that passes the Protector of Emigrants review, nothing moves.
What surprises most first-time employers is how often demand letters fail on the first pass - and not on obscure legal grounds. The same omissions come up repeatedly.
The Non-Negotiable Elements
Company identification: Full registered company name, trade licence or commercial registration number, and the authorised signatory's name with their designation. Must be on official letterhead - not a digital template with a copied logo.
Labor authority reference: MOHRE Establishment Card number for UAE; Chamber of Commerce registration for Saudi Arabia; MADLSA employer ID for Qatar; LMRA employer ID for Bahrain; PAM file number for Kuwait; MOM registration for Oman. Without this, the authority cannot verify the employer's status.
Role title and headcount: The job title must match exactly the visa category approved by the GCC labor authority. "Warehouse Worker" and "RF-Scanner Picker/Packer" are different classifications in MOHRE's system. Specify the exact number requested - must align with approved quota.
Salary and benefits in local currency: Monthly basic salary stated in AED, SAR, BHD, QAR, KWD, or OMR - not USD. The Protector of Emigrants verifies salary against minimum wage schedules using local currency figures and will not do the conversion. Include overtime rate, accommodation provision or allowance, and annual air ticket entitlement.
Contract duration: A fixed term - typically 2 or 3 years. "As required" or performance-conditional durations are not valid under MEA rules.
Accommodation certificate: For UAE and Saudi Arabia, a separate document confirming employer-provided housing meets the relevant authority's standards. Saudi Arabia also requires this attested by the Saudi embassy in India. It is not an optional attachment - it is a required component of the documentation set.
Authorised signature and company stamp: Signed by HR Director level or above, with the official rubber stamp. A signature without the stamp triggers a manual query.
Working Template
``` [Company Name] | [Trade Licence No.] | [Date]
To: AK International, New Delhi
Subject: Demand for [Number] [Job Title per visa category] - [Country]
We, [Company Name], registered under [Authority] No. [XXX], authorise AK International (Lic: B-3252/DEL/PER/1000+/5/11251/2025) to source and deploy [number] workers on the following terms:
Role: [Exact title matching visa category] Salary: [Currency] [Amount]/month Overtime: [Rate]/hour after 8-hour shift Accommodation: [Employer-provided / [Currency] [X] allowance/month] Contract: [2/3] years, renewable by mutual consent Annual Ticket: One return economy India flight per contract year Site: [City, Country]
[Signatory Name] | [Designation] | [Date] [Company Stamp] ```
Send the Draft Before You Finalise
The specific requirements change more often than employers realise. MOHRE updated its minimum salary guidance for several job categories in 2024. MHRSD revised contract attestation requirements in 2025. A demand letter that cleared MEA review 18 months ago may not clear now.
Send your draft to AK International before issuance. We check it against current country-specific requirements and flag problems before they become a hold notice - this takes us two hours and saves 5-7 days off your deployment.