American Embassy warns of visa fraud

The Embassy of the United States in Port-of-Spain would like to alert visa applicants that it has become aware of numerous recent cases of fraud being perpetrated on persons seeking visas to travel to the United States. The embassy has received credible reports that individuals claiming to be friends or associates of Embassy employees are telling visa seekers that visas can be obtained in exchange for cash payments.  In some cases, these individuals have used the names and/or business cards of embassy employees.  Potential visa applicants need to be aware that claims such as these are absolutely false, and those making the claims are committing criminal fraud. 

The Embassy issues many visas every day to qualified applicants and “visa consultants” take advantage of this fact by often promising visas to qualified candidates that would have obtained visas on their own.  In other cases, these perpetrators simply defraud people of their money, never to be seen again.  Trinidad and Tobago residents should be aware that assistance of a “visa consultant” is not necessary or helpful in obtaining a visa. The embassy would also like to warn visa applicants on the use of fraudulent job letters and financial statements.  The embassy has become aware of several cases where individuals have provided false letters of employment using the names of reputable companies operating in Trinidad and Tobago. 

In some cases, these letters have been sold to the applicants by third parties. It is important that all applicants understand that persons claiming to have “insider” knowledge on visa issuance practice, such as the ability to craft an application that ensures the issuance of a visa, are in no way connected to the embassy and in many cases are intentionally misleading applicants for profit. 

The use of a fraudulent job letter could prevent you from ever being issued a visa to the United States and could subject you to prosecution by the Trinidad and Tobago Fraud Squad. The embassy hopes that members of the public will remain alert to these visa “scams” and asks that anyone learning of such fraudulent activity contact the Embassy immediately. Your identity will be kept in confidence. It also notes that official US Government information on the visa process is available on the embassy website at http://usembassy.state.gov/trinidad.