Brian S. Weiss Immigration Law Blog on Lawyers.com

BEWARE OF THE DV LOTTERY SCAM!

Friday, March 4, 2011 by Brian S. Weiss

For many foreign nationals who wish to become green card holders in the U.S., the Diversity Visa (DV) program is the only avenue to obtain such status. Often referred to as the Green Card Lottery, DV applicants hope that their entry forms will be selected affording them an opportunity in most cases to apply for lawful permanent resident status. Although no money is received for being selected by the DV program, the benefit to some far outweighs the monetary value of a winning state-run lottery ticket. At the very least, the excitement of having a “winning ticket” in the DV lottery usually evokes the same or similar emotions in the winner as does the standard lottery system.

The United States Citizenship and Immigrations Services (USCIS) recently released an alert informing DV applicants about fraudsters who pose as the U.S. Department of State or other government agencies and claim that DV applicants entries have been selected for this year’s DV program. These fraudulent emails often request that the recipient transfer or wire money online as part of standard processing fees. Moreover, these scammers use fake email addresses and government logos to look more official.

Please do not fall for the scam and do not transfer money to those who claim that you won the DV lottery or have been selected for a green card. For more information on the DV program, including seeing if you are a winner of the current years DV lottery, please visit the U.S. Department of State’s website for further instructions. It could save you serious money in the long run, and will avoid your perceived jackpot becoming instead a liability.

This article has been provided courtesy of the NY immigration lawyers at Garganigo, Goldsmith & Weiss, (646) 233-2774, www.ggw.com.

Posted at 10:24 AM
Topic: Immigration
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