How to Verify Overseas Education and Employment History for Expats in the UAE

The UAE's status as a global hub means organisations frequently hire top talent from dozens of countries. While candidates present robust CVs, the speed and scale of international hiring often bypasses critical verification steps. Relying on self-reported data for candidates with overseas employment and education histories creates a significant pre-employment checks gap and exposes the employer to the risk of negligent hiring and CV fraud.

For Conflict Advisory Group, verifying the integrity and credentials of expat candidates is a specialist challenge, not just an administrative one. We focus on bridging the gap left by fragmented global records and differing data privacy laws.

1. The Educational Authenticity Challenge 

Verifying an overseas degree goes far beyond reviewing a physical diploma. Given the global rise in fraudulent "diploma mills" and forged certificates, verification must be direct-to-source.

• Fragmented Systems: Unlike domestic checks, there is no single global registry for academic qualifications. Effective verification requires contacting the specific university or educational institution directly, often in a different language and time zone, to confirm the degree's authenticity, dates of attendance, and mode of study.
• The Credential Assessment: It is critical to assess the equivalency and recognition of the degree. A security consulting firm must ensure the foreign institution is a recognised body in its home country and that the qualification meets the required standard for the role in the UAE.
• Professional Licences: For regulated fields (e.g. law), verification must extend to professional bodies and licensing authorities to ensure the candidate's license is active and free from sanction or suspension.

2. Employment History: Bridging the Information Gap 

Verifying an expat's employment history is often the weakest point in the pre-employment checks process, presenting unique logistical and legal obstacles:

• Data Privacy Restrictions: Global privacy laws (like GDPR) severely limit the information former employers are legally permitted to disclose. Often, they can only confirm the start date, end date, and job title. Getting deeper insight into performance or conduct requires specialised, legally compliant techniques.
• Non-Disclosure: Unexplained gaps on a CV, or short-term overseas employment, often conceal periods of professional misconduct, termination, or litigation. These gaps must be thoroughly assessed using legal methods.

Conflict Advisory Group's Specialist Verification Focus

Conflict Advisory Group provides a crucial layer of scrutiny that conventional HR background checks cannot replicate, converting fragmented global data into actionable risk intelligence. Conflict Advisory Group specialises in performing comprehensive employment and education referencing globally.

Our focus areas for expat pre-employment checks also include:

• Criminality Checks: Our analysts conduct mandatory screenings to uncover a candidate's criminal history using legally compliant methods applicable across multiple jurisdictions. This ensures the identification of past offences and regulatory exclusions that pose a security risk.
• Financial Integrity Checks: We analyse financial integrity using data derived from credit risk proxies and adverse media related to bankruptcy, fraud, or serious financial mismanagement.
• Global Sanctions: Mandatory screening against global watch lists (e.g. UN, OFAC, Interpol) and Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) lists to ensure the candidate poses no regulatory or financial risk to the client.

By moving beyond simple document review, Conflict Advisory Group ensures that your expat hiring decisions are built on a foundation of verified credentials and comprehensive integrity checks.

For an in-depth review of your current global screening procedures, contact Conflict Advisory Group today.