New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection is cracking down on employment agencies that charged job seekers illegal upfront fees for work that never materialized, the agency said, following 2023 reporting by City Limits that documented the practice among newly arrived immigrants and asylum seekers.

Thousands of local job hunters in recent years have paid illegal upfront fees to employment agencies, or received only partial refunds for what they paid despite not landing work, according to the city. Those affected were disproportionately low-income residents who are not native English speakers, the city said.