Ecuadorians in New York couldn’t believe their luck. They were told the US government was going to make green cards available to churches, and a church in Queens was going to be one of the recipients. An immigrant could reserve one of the cards for $8,000. It was a lot of money, but it seemed like a good deal for people desperate to reside and work in the US legally, a good enough deal to justify depleting savings accounts and borrowing money from relatives. They were promised they’d have their green cards within a month, but months passed without any green cards. Immigrants who complained were told they’d be reported to authorities and deported. Nevertheless, some immigrants called the district attorney’s office. Scam artist Gregorio Gonzales was arrested. He had defrauded at least 120 immigrants out of a grand total of almost $1,000,000.
Immigration fraud is very common, and often victims fear deportation and are therefore reluctant to report it.
As a result, there’s a vast underground built around taking advantage of immigrants. One example is the legion of phony immigration consultants, or notarios, who pose as experts on the immigration process. A favorite fraud is to convince the victim to pay thousands of dollars to apply for asylum and then do nothing about it. The American Bar Association has information about notario fraud, including resources for victims.
Phone scams are also very common. If someone calls claiming to be from the government and asking for social security numbers or credit card information, the caller is a scammer. USCIS does not ask for personal information or payment information via phone.
There are also many “businesses” that claim they have an insider track on getting a green card. These are all fraudulent, as there is no “inside track” available.
Then there are the many, many flourishing website scams that charge immigrants fees to download forms which are available for free elsewhere. Many sites claim to be associated with USCIS, but have no affiliation with it. The USCIS website should be considered the authority, and it’s a good resource for accurate information about required fees and forms.
Finally, the visa lottery is another major target for scammers. Some sites claim to make it easier to enter the lottery or to make it easier to win. In this case, it’s the Department of State website that’s the ultimate authority on the visa lottery. It has reliable information, unlike many of the sites that claim to provide an “inside track.”
Immigration is a complicated legal process, and we want to help. Contact us today to learn more – and please don’t fall victim to any of these common immigration scams!
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