How Freelancers ID Works
Introduction
Freelancers ID is an identity card issued by the Government of Bangladesh to the freelancers and online workers. This ID card initiative intends to work towards providing long awaited social acceptance of freelancers and online workers within the community. It will also work as proof of employment and income in applicable situations.
Eligibility
In order to obtain Freelancers ID card one must maintain following eligibility criteria –
- Citizen of Bangladesh
- Earned minimum $1000 via online work in last 12 months (see applicant types for more)
- Can provide proof of contract/job obtained via marketplace/direct client
- Earnings obtained by providing legal means of service/sale of digital products
Failure to maintain any of the above mentioned eligibility criteria may result in rejection of application.
Application Process
Any freelancer looking to obtain Freelancers ID needs to visit www.freelancers.gov.bd and submit an application by filling out an online application form. Applicants will be asked for personal information, work/earning related information and skill expertise related questions.
Have your National ID handy and prepare a profile picture before starting the application.
Once the application is submitted the applicant needs to pay 1500 BDT as application fee. The details of the payment procedure will be emailed to the applicant’s designated email address.
After the payment is complete it will take upto 7 days to complete the verification process. During this process an assessor may reach out to an applicant via email or video call for more information or clarification of information which are already provided. Part of the assessment process may also include a video call where the applicant is asked to share his/her computer screen and verify certain details provided in the application.
Upon successful verification the applicant will be notified via email/sms. Applicants can then log into www.freelancers.gov.bd portal and view or download the ID card.
Validity of the Freelancers ID
Once an application is approved and a virtual Freelancer ID card is issued, it will be valid for 12 months. The applicant may choose to update the card information (for example income information) within this 12 month’s period. Any update request will be considered as a new application and it must go through the same verification process. Update request has the same processing fee as new application.
After 12 months of card being issued, the applicant will be prompted to update their information. The new update request will be considered as a new application and it must go through the same verification process. Update request has the same processing fee as new application.
Who Can Apply for Freelancers ID
- Individual Freelancer – A freelancer or online worker who works by his/her own
- Freelancer Team Owner – An individual who owns/operates a small team (upto 15 members) of freelancers.
- Freelancer Team Member – An individual who is a member of a Freelancer Team. Before applying; his/her team owner must have an approved Freelancer ID.
Who Can View My Information
Your privacy is a top priority and you are in complete control of who can access your information. Here are the entities who can access your information
- You
- 3rd Party Entities (Bank/Insurance Providers etc) only when you allow them access via using one time password (OTP) code
- Government agencies for security and survey purposes. Only provided upon written request
- Application Assessor for verification purpose
The Freelancers ID Card and Freelancer ID Profile
The Freelancer ID card is a virtual card which will contain information such as – Freelancer’s image, Name, Expertise, FID Number, Issue Year, Address, Date of Birth and QR code which will contain a link to the Freelancer’s ID Profile.
The freelancer ID Profile will have all verified information submitted during the application process. This profile will only be visible when logged into the Freelancer portal or when QR code is scanned and an OTP is entered which has been sent to applicant’s designated phone number. Under any circumstances the freelancer ID Profile is not publicly visible unless approved by the freelancer himself/herself.
Income Assessment
Based on the information provided during the application our assessor will verify all freelance and online work related earnings from the last 12 months. Each earning source needs to be backed by verifiable proof. On the freelancer profile an accumulation of earning from different sources will be visible. So for example if you have earned $12000 from Upwork and $8000 from Fiverr then your total earnings will be shown as $20000.
Earnings from direct clients need to be validated by contracts and proof of transaction such as bank statements, payoneer statements etc.
Skill Assessment
A freelancer’s skill level will be assessed based on reviews and ratings received from marketplace and non marketplace sources. On the freelancer profile an accumulation of average rating from different sources will be visible. Recent training on relevant skills will also be considered during the skill assessment process.