Bangladeshi domestic laws and policies do not have any specific provisions regarding refugees’ international travel. As such, Bangladesh does not issue travel documents to Rohingya refugees for international travel. However, the 1973 Bangladesh Passport Order indicates “no person shall depart or attempt to depart from Bangladesh unless he holds a valid passport or travel document" (Article 3).

For travels of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, such as departure on resettlement or complementary pathways to a third country, the receiving country issues international travel documents (as per the existing laws and policies of the respective receiving country), which essentially contains basic information of the individual on the travel document, such as name, date of birth, sex, date of issue, issuing authority, etc.

Upon request from the receiving country and based on the travel document issued by the receiving country, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs authorises an “exit permit” after completion of security clearance by Bangladeshi law enforcement agencies. Exit permits are an internal government process, and no document is issued by the Government of Bangladesh to the departing Rohingya refugees. However, without this prior authorisation, Rohingya refugees are barred from leaving the country. 

For non-Rohingya refugees, given that they are not registered with the Government of Bangladesh as refugees in Bangladesh, they are required to obtain an “exit visa” from the Department of Immigration and Passports, as the Government considers that they have overstayed their visa in Bangladesh and thus are subject to immigration regulations. Upon security clearance by the law enforcement agencies, the exit visa is granted, and is usually valid for seven days. The process is usually a self-facilitated one by the non-Rohingya refugees, where they apply for the exit visa on their own. UNHCR issues them an 'attestation letter' confirming their refugee status, country of origin and the year of recognition. In rare cases, the embassy of the country of origin (in case of voluntary repatriation) or the embassy of the receiving country (in case of resettlement or complementary pathways) gets involved in the process and facilitates (sometimes even by paying overstay fees).