In these Rules, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or
context, —
(1) “Act” means the Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act 2012;
(2) “rescuing officer” means a police officer or an officer of any government or nongovernment agency or any person directly rescuing a victim of human-trafficking;
(3) “National Authority” means the National Anti-Human-Trafficking Authority established under section 42 of Act;
(11) “human-trafficking victim” or “victim” means any victim of human trafficking under these Rules including the legal guardian or legal representatives of that person;

For the purpose of preventing human trafficking, the National Authority shall, in order to be informed of the nature, breadth, and tendency of unlawful activities and movements concerning human-trafficking, collect necessary information on, among others, the following issues, namely-
(a) risks of human-trafficking;
(b) internal and cross-border routes and strategies of human-trafficking;
(c) unlawful crossing of border and documents used for migration;
(d) transportation and accommodation network used for trafficking in human beings;
(e) network of organised human-traffickers, and list, permanent and temporary addresses and the role of masterminds, pimps, and shelter-givers involved in human-trafficking;
(f) activities and movements of human-traffickers released after serving their punishment as well of the accused persons released upon bail; and
(g) any house, establishment, or place where victims of human- trafficking are kept or detained.

(1) For the purpose of preventing human trafficking, there shall be a register in every Union Council.
(2) Any person wishing to move to somewhere else within the country or migrate overseas for work, whether of his own volition or at the advice of any other person, or having been influenced by words or proposal of that person, shall apply to the Union Council for registration, providing the following information, namely –
(a) information relating to the place or the country to which he is moving and the addresses of the office of employment;
(b) details of the person through or with whom he is so moving;
(c) information, as far as possible, relating to the work or the purpose for which he is moving out’;
(d) where applicable, the details of the passport.
(3) For the purpose of monitoring the registration of information under sub-rule (2) and preventing human trafficking locally, there shall be established a local counter-trafficking committee in every Union, Paurashava and Ward of City Corporations, as the case may be.
(4) The Ministry of Home Affairs shall, by a notification and in consultation with the National Authority, determine the constitution and functions of the committees mentioned in sub-rule.

(1) The police and other law-enforcing agencies shall work, on a continuous basis, to identify victims of human-trafficking that may remain both at home and abroad, based on information derived from the mass media or from the victim’s relatives, neighbours, friends or colleagues, or from any nongovernment organisation or any victim of human-trafficking rescued.
(2) As soon as the police and other law-enforcing agencies come to know about any incident of human-trafficking or the location of the victim, they shall commence a drive or initiate measures to rescue the concerned victim and shall always keep the concerned police station, the Monitoring Cell, and the Authority informed about the progress of such rescue process.

(1) For the purpose of fulfilling the objective of section 33 of the Act, the concerned Bangladesh Embassy or Mission shall solicit assistance of the National Authority and, if necessary, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, other government agencies connected with the matter, non-government organisations, and the appropriate authorities of the concerned country in order to identify, rescue, and repatriate victims of human-trafficking who are Bangladeshi citizens.

(1) Upon the rescue of the victim of human-trafficking, the rescuing officer shall register the victim’s personal information in Form 1 of Schedule A.
(2) In the first eight hours after the rescue, no question can be posed to the victim nor shall he be interrogated, other than the questions and interrogations necessary for recording his personal information.
(3) The time for the recording of information under sub-rule (2) shall be not less than eight hours:
Provided that, before handing over the victim to the police in accordance with sub-rule (4), he may, for the purpose of physical or psychological treatment, be kept in the custody of the rescuer for no more than twelve hours.
(4) If any a victim of human-trafficking is rescued by any rescuing officer other than the police, the rescuing officer shall, with the assistance of the probation officer when necessary, make over the victim to the police, and shall send a copy of the Form mentioned in sub-rule (1) along with the hand-over note to the police station concerned, the Monitoring Cell and the National Authority.
(5) If a case has not already been filed, the concerned officer shall as soon as possible after rescuing the victim record the complaints and initiate a criminal case for the offence of trafficking, and shall send the information relating thereto to the central monitoring cell and the national Authority.
(6) Upon the rescue of the victim, the provisions of section 36 of the Act shall, as far as possible, have to be followed.
(7) If the rescued victim is a foreign citizen, legal procedures to be followed with regard to him shall be those as provided in sub-section (4) of section 33 of the Act.

(1) For the purpose of fulfilling the objective of section 36 of the Act, the police or the concerned officer shall undertake measures to help the victim of human-trafficking Human-trafficking Rules 2017 rescued from within the country to return to family or integrate into society as soon as possible.
(2) For the purposes of sub-rule (1) and in order to trace the family of the victim or to determine his appropriate custody, the police may, by filling out Form 2 of Schedule A, obtain assistance from the social welfare officer or probation officer, concerned local government body, local counter-trafficking committee and any non-government organisation.
(3) If social-integration of a victim under sub rule (1) is not possible or if he refuses to return to his family, the victim shall, after taking his will into consideration and by following the appropriate procedure and with the help of the concerned social welfare or probation officer, be placed in the custody of any government or non-government shelter home or any appropriate person.
(4) If it is not impossible to send the victim of human-trafficking to the custody of any government or non-government shelter home or any appropriate person under the provisions of sub-rule (3), the concerned police officer shall, within twenty-four hours, apply to the Tribunal or the competent magistrate under section 22 of the Act for an order of custody of the said victim:
Provided that the victim shall, at all times including the time when presenting him before the Tribunal or Magistrate, be kept separate from the accused persons, and be treated sympathetically and humanely.
(5) Any person or the responsible officer of any shelter home taking custody of the victim of human trafficking under sub rule (1) shall record the information relating to the receipt of the victim and his personal information in Form 1 of Schedule A, and shall send a copy thereof to the concerned police station and the National Authority within 3 (three) working days.
(6) No government or non-government shelter home or rehabilitation centre shall refuse a request to accept any victim of human-trafficking except for a reasonable cause to be shown in writing.

(1) If any Bangladeshi citizen is rescued in a foreign country as a victim of human trafficking under section 41, to be read with section 33, of the Act, the Standard Operating Procedures provided in Schedule B shall have to be followed in dealing with matters relating to his return, repatriation, integration into family, and rehabilitation:
Provided that if there is any treaty or standard operating procedure signed between Bangladesh and any other country, that treaty or procedure shall have to be followed.
(2) In matters relating to the return or repatriation, integration into family, and rehabilitation of Bangladeshi victims rescued from a foreign country under sub-rule (1), provisions of rule 11, as far as possible, shall have to be followed.

While repatriating or rehabilitating any foreign victim of human-trafficking rescued in Bangladesh or reintegrating him into his family or society, the provisions of sub-section (4) of section 33 of the Act and the Standard Operating Procedure provided in Schedule B shall have to be followed subject to their being not incompatible with any treaty or standard operating procedure, if any, between Bangladesh and any other country.

(1) Beginning from the filing of a case and until the submission of investigation report, the authorities of the police station concerned shall, at least once in a month, inform the victim or his representatives about the measures taken against the human-traffickers and the progress of the case by using Form 3 of Schedule A.
(2) Beginning from the time the investigation report is submitted and until the judgment in the concerned case or appeal, as the case may be, is delivered, the concerned Special Prosecutor shall, at least once in a month, inform the victim or his representatives about the progress of the case and the next following measures to be taken, by using Form 3 of Schedule A.
(3) In intimating the victim or his representatives any information under sub-rules (1) and (2), the Police or the Special Prosecutor, as the case may be, may receive assistance from any non-government organisation.
(4) Following the lodgment of a case, the police shall ensure the security of the informant or complainant of the case, witnesses, the victim, and the members of family or the representatives of the victim pursuant to an application made through Form 4 of Schedule A, and shall keep the name, photo, and address of the victim confidential.
(5) No information about the victim of human-trafficking may be disclosed, transmitted, or given to any other person except with the permission of the Tribunal.