Households in Bangladesh with family members working abroad celebrate remittances as alifeline with profound economic and social significance. They spend months oreven years assembling the resources needed to send earners overseas and mustwait for the first remittance to arrive. In communities that send migrants,such as Tangail, families gradually scrape together savings and loans tofinance recruitment costs, travel, and documentation.

One BURO member described how she liquidated a savings account she had built formore than 17 years to finance her son’s migration to Saudi Arabia. She chosesavings rather than a loan because loan repayment begins immediately, whileincome from migration can take time to stabilize.

Migration is often one of the largest financial and emotional investments a household makes. Yet financial systems tend to engage only after migrants begin to send money home. This raises an important question: What would financial services look like if they supported households before migration rather than after it?

Among BURO clients in Tangail, the decision to send someone abroad is often discussed as part of a broader household strategy. Migration offers the potential for higher income, but it also involves substantial uncertainty. The financial decision comes with an emotional cost. During fieldwork, we met many women whose husbands or sons could only return home once every two or even three years. Families are forced to navigate long periods of separation alongside the financial risks migration entails.

Families must assemble significant funds before departure to cover recruitment fees,travel costs, and documentation. The World Bank’s Migration and Development Brief estimates that remittance inflows to Bangladesh totaled around USD 23 billion in 2024. Yet behind these national figures lie thousands of household decisions about whether migration is financially possible and how the risks will be managed.

These decisions are rarely individual. In households, family members weigh risks and potential returns together. Savings frequently play a central role in these discussions,as households gradually accumulate funds that can support migration expenses or reduce reliance on borrowing.

Field observations among BURO members in Tangail suggest that  households rarely rely on a single financial source to fund migration.Instead, families assemble resources through a layered approach. Savings accumulated over many years often form the foundation. Long-term deposits allow households to gradually build lump sums that can be mobilized when migrationopportunities arise. These savings reduce the amount households need to borrow and provide a degree of financial flexibility during uncertain periods.

Households then layer loans on top to cover the remaining costs. For example, one BURO member described taking a loan of BDT 200,000 (USD 1,630) to support her son’s migration abroad, which is an example of how borrowing often complements existing savings rather than replacing them. Migration costs are higher than household income, so families often commit resources well before departure,without certainty about when migration income will begin.

How remittances reshape financial behavior

The flow of remittances is rarely smooth or predictable. Migrants often need time to secure stable employment, and transfers may arrive irregularly based on working conditions and payment arrangements. During this early phase,households continue to rely on savings to manage uncertainty.

Remittances also appear to shift financial behavior within some communities. In several BURO centers in Tangail, staff observed that households that receive regularremittances often rely less on loans and instead accumulate savings from these transfers. In one center, 13 of 16 households had family members workingoverseas, and women were saving remittance income through Deposit Pension Scheme (DPS)  accounts .

Field observations also showed how remittance income translated into tangiblehousehold investments over time. In these BURO centers, families used savingsfrom remittances to purchase land, improve housing, invest in livestock, andfinance vehicles, such as autorickshaws, which supported local incomegeneration.

In one household, regular remittances of around BDT 80,000–100,000 (USD 650-815) per month enabled repayment of a housing loan worth BDT 400,000 (USD 3,261) while the family continued to save through DPS accounts for children’s future education and security. Because many men work abroad, women often become the household's financial managers. They receive remittances, decide how much to save, and allocate funds for education, assets, or emergencies.

In some households, migration also becomes cyclical. Family members who migrateearlier help finance the departure of other family members to create repeatmigration pathways within the same household. Cleaner guidance on investmentoptions

The timing gap in migration finance

Migration decisions expose households to multiple risks long before any income begins to flow. Families must rely on recruitment intermediaries whose costs and reliability are often uncertain, commit to savings or loans without guaranteesabout employment conditions, and prepare for the possibility that wages may bedelayed or lower than expected after arrival. In some cases, migrants discoverthat jobs differ from what was promised or that living expenses abroad reducethe amount they can send home. During this period, households need to repaymigration-related loans even though remittance income has not yet begun.

At this stage, wrong decisions can have significant consequences. A Business Standard report shows that workers who travel under the apparently “free visa” arrangementslost an estimated BDT 30,000 crore (USD 25 million) in 2022 alone due toinflated recruitment costs and fraudulent intermediary practices. Migrationmonitoring by Andy Hall has also documented casesin which Bangladeshi workers paid large recruitment fees, only to arriveoverseas and find that promised jobs did not exist or wages were withheld formonths. As a result, families at home struggle to repay migration-related loanswithout remittance income.

This creates a timing gap. Financial systems tend to engage once remittances begin to arrive, which focuses on transfers and mobilizing savings. These services are valuable, but households need support when they prepare for migration and manage the risks that make migration possible in the first place.

This gap points to an opportunity to rethink how those services support migration.

Financial risks are the highest before departure. So, households can benefit from toolsthat combine savings, financing, and information. Structured savings productscould help families gradually accumulate migration funds, whilemigration-linked loans could bridge financing gaps through repayment structuresaligned with migration timelines. For example, a combination of savingsaccumulation with short grace periods or phased repayment schedules can reducefinancial strain on households before remittance income begins.

Once remittances begin, financial services can shift to help households manage theseflows effectively. Flexible savings tools and advisory services can helpfamilies convert remittance income into long-term financial resilience andproductive investments.

  Current efforts to support migrant households

Today,BURO Bangladesh is taking steps to strengthen how migrant households manage remittance income across different stages of the migration journey. Migrant families currently access financing through existing BURO product lines. These have helped meet some migration-related funding needs and highlighted the importance of more structured migration-linked solutions tailored to the timing of migration-related risks and income flows.

Moreover, BURO has initiated the “Remittance Management for Socioeconomic Stability of Migrant Families” initiative under the Safalprogram,supported by the UNCDF and the Swiss Embassy. This initiative is beingimplemented in selected branches in Tangail and Munshiganj. It strengthens howmigrant households plan, manage, and use remittance income effectively and represents an important step toward more lifecycle-oriented engagement withmigrant families.

While these efforts represent important progress, they also highlight the opportunity to expand structured financial support across the migration journey.

Designing for the realities households face

Households will continue to pursue migration with or without formal financial support. For many families, it represents a rare pathway to higher income and improved opportunities. The challenge is therefore not whether migration occurs, but how to reduce the risks surrounding it. Better financial preparation can help households avoid excessive debt, reduce exposure to fraudulent intermediaries, and manage the uncertainty that often accompanies the early stages of migration.

Migration is more than a story of labor or remittance. It is also a financial journey. Financial systems that engage before households take risks can help them prepare better and convert remittances into a secure pathway toward resilience and opportunity.

‍