Immigration scams are on the rise in the US. Here’s what you should know

Last week, one of our clients received a phone call from a woman claiming to be an immigration officer. Her caller ID showed that she was calling from a government agency. She threatened that a warrant had been issued because our client’s paperwork had not been updated. She also insisted that our client stay on the phone and not disconnect because the call was being “recorded.” If the call were to be terminated, the officer could no longer help. She could fix the problem if payments were made immediately through online gift cards. She was so convincing that even our worldly-wise, super-intelligent client was frightened.

Our client surreptitiously emailed me and included me on a three-way call without the knowledge of this woman. It took me about fifteen seconds to establish that the “immigration officer” was an obvious fraud. Getting rid of her was really easy after that.

When I posted this scam alert on social media, hundreds of similar cases were revealed. These scams take different forms, but the central ideas are the same: you are in serious trouble with local, state, or federal law; the problem can be fixed by payment of money (no checks); and the call must not be terminated.

USCIS has noted amongst their alerts, specifically for India:

Beware of emails supposedly sent by the USCIS New Delhi Field Office or the Department of State in India. These emails may contain attachments, claim you have been approved for a visa to the U.S., or request money for visa…