We have written repeatedly about pervasive, pernicious false rumors and outright frauds in the immigration context. People seeking admission to the United States are an especially vulnerable group. Like women seeking enhanced beauty and men seeking greater potency, they are seeking something that is difficult and often impossible to attain. They are susceptible to the unscrupulous who would divest them of their money with false promises that they are eager to believe. The old adage remains useful: if something sounds too good to be true, it’s probably false. The latest immigration scam that has come to our attention is visa lottery fraud.
How visa lottery fraud works
A long time client, for whom we had gotten a green card and who is petitioning her alien husband for the same, called us recently. She was so excited. “I have great news,” she said. “My husband applied for visa lottery and we just got an email that he won. As soon as he sends them money, he will get a green card and he can sponsor his entire family. I just wanted to give you the good news.” I told her I was happy for her but to not send any money until I checked it out because I suspected it might be a scam. I also asked her for the email address of the notification.
It turns out that this is a very popular fraud. A company, pretending to be a U.S. government entity, contacts you by email and tells you that you have a great opportunity to sign up for a visa lottery. There is no charge to sign up. Sometime later, they contact you by email to inform you of your good fortune: You have won! Now all you need to do is send a certain amount of money and your green card will be processed. Send more money, and your entire family gets a visa. Break out the champagne!
Or not. This is a fraud, pure and simple. The only purpose of this “notification” is to get as much money out of you as possible before you finally wake up to the sad fact that you have been had. There is very little you can do to make this right or to get your money back. Internet scams are very difficult for the U.S. government to prosecute; these companies set up in various countries and the scammers are very hard to find. The whole field of criminal prosecutions for Internet offenses is unsettled.
How you can identify visa fraud
The first thing you need to look for is the email address. Official U.S. government websites always have email addresses that end in the domain suffix “.gov.” Some useful U.S. government websites include:
-U.S. Embassy and Consulates: http://www.usembassy.gov/
-Department of State, Travel: http://www.travel.state.gov/
-Diversity Visa Lottery: http://www.dvlottery.state.gov
-Department of Homeland Security: http://www.dhs.gov
-Citizenship & Immigration Services: http://www.uscis.gov
-Customs and Border Protection: http://www.cbp.gov
-Immigration & Customs Enforcement: http://www.ice.gov
-Department of Labor: http://www.doleta.gov
You need to be suspicious of any email communication you receive from a purported U.S. government agency that does not end in the suffix “.gov” especially if it involves assistance with visas to enter or obtain status in the United States. Many of these websites look very genuine and official and will feature one of the following: the American flag, the Statue of Liberty, the White House; U.S. Capitol. Be suspicious of anything that promises something of great value for free or for little money. If it claims to be from a government agency and the email address ends in “.com,” “.net” or “.org” or anything except “.gov,” you have most likely been targeted for a rip-off.
The U.S. Department of State maintains an excellent webpage titled “International Financial Scams” on the International Travel” tab at http://www.travel.state.gov/. This webpage has excellent up-to-date information on international financial frauds involving Internet dating, false inheritances, work permits, overpayment, and money laundering (“Nigerian scam”).
How the real U.S. Diversity Visa Program came about
The Diversity Visa Program is a government-operated lottery set up by statute to allocate 50,000 immigrant visas per year outside of the ordinary numerical limits for visas under the Immigration & Nationality Act. Historically, the majority of immigrants to the U.S. were from European countries. Until 1965, immigrant visas were granted to citizens of various countries in proportion to the national origins of the U.S. population in 1920. This policy continued to favor European immigration and maintained the prevailing European dominant ethnic mix of the U.S. population. The Immigration Act of 1965 revolutionized this process by making available up to 20,000 visas for every independent foreign state and demolishing the ethnic status quo. The door to to greatly increased immigration from countries in Asia, Africa, Central and South America was opened. Not surprisingly, there was a political backlash seeking to limit non-European immigration, led by those ethnic groups in America who lost the greatest share of the immigration pie under the new scheme.
As a compromise, Congress created the diversity lottery program, outside of the established yearly visa limits, to benefit immigrants from those countries that were most adversely affected by the new worldwide access to U.S. visas. The numbers and percentages available to each country change yearly, subject to a complex formula and determined by the attorney general. In addition, applicants must meet strict eligibility criteria, and the time and manner of application is rigorously controlled. Applying for the diversity lottery is not equivalent to purchasing a lottery ticket. Although the choosing of the winners is random, the pool of applicants is severely limited.
How to apply for the Diversity Lottery Program
Eligibility criteria
You must be a citizen of a country that the attorney general has determined is from a “low admission region.” In the most recent lottery, citizens of the following countries were deemed not eligible: Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. Detailed list of countries whose citizens are eligible are listed at http://travel.state.gov/pdf/1318-DV2012Instructions-ENGL.pdf.
You possess a high school diploma;
You must have at least two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience.
Application process
You must apply on-line according to instructions found at http://travel.state.gov/pdf/1318-DV2012Instructions-ENGL.pdf.
You must use the DV entry form available for download at http://www.dvlottery.state.gov.
You must apply by a specific date that will be stated on the website. Applications for 2012 closed on Nov. 3, 2010.
You will be able to track the status of your entry electronically. This will be the sole means of checking the status of your application.
When your status indicates that you have been selected, you will receive instructions on how to proceed. You will not receive email or mail notification of your selection.
What does this all mean for foreign residents of the CNMI?
First of all, it means that Diversity Visa Lottery is an unlikely path to U.S. immigration status for many foreign residents of the CNMI. Some of largest foreign groups, from the Philippines and from mainland China, are specifically excluded. Citizens of Bangladesh, Taiwan, Thailand, Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR are included. For those to whom the lottery is available, you must be very careful and make sure you follow the instructions on the government website. If you think you have been a target or a victim of a Diversity Visa Lottery scam you need to report it to one or more of the following: econsumer.gov website, hosted by the Federal Trade Commission, in cooperation with consumer-protection agencies from 17 nations (http://www.econsumer.gov/english/). You may also report fraud to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. To file a complaint about unsolicited email, visit the Department of Justice Contact Us page.
