Your Checklist as a Student in Preventing Immigration Fraud

Mistakes and history can be interlinked. Many times we talk about this aspect or have heard of it from others. However, the problem arises when we do not learn either from mistakes or from history. This phenomenon is often observed in the immigration industry, where faith weighs so high that we make decisions keeping aside logic. The case of Prinjal highlights this issue of the global immigration landscape.

The case of Prinjal is a repeat story wherein the student sought the service of an immigration agent to apply for a student visa. All the financial transactions, including tuition fees, were made in the agent’s account. The student/client did everything as directed by the agent, just like every other client does. Unfortunately, one fine day they find out that the agent’s office has been closed.

This incident is not stand-alone, for such occurrences are heard or read at regular intervals. These incidents highlight the need for clients to be more logical.

A Rotten Apple in the Basket Full of Fresh Apples

With time, this incident will be forgotten, but for the family in the incident, the wounds will take time to heal. Belonging to a lower middle class, the family raised loans putting in all they had, their farming land. What about the future? Another such incident may become a newspaper headline in times to come.?

Such incidents hurt not only the families that fall victim but also those immigration agents who poured in years of hard work to earn the right name and reputation. There are immigration agents who have earned their credibility not only among clients but also among overseas universities and embassies of different countries. The entire fraternity of immigration agents bears the brunt of the wrong-doings of a single agent that crops up every three months or so.

Five Pointer Checklist to Prevent Becoming a Victim

Whose mistake is it anyway? Should we blame the clients who trusted blindfolded or the immigration agents? In place of trusting without any question and then repenting later on, it is better to make a checklist that can prevent us from becoming the next victim. Prevention is better than cure. You can reduce your chance of becoming a victim by following these pointers.

The immigration agent should be an authorised representative of the university or the college that is being presented before you. Since this industry is very big, it may not be possible for an agent to become a representative of every university or college overseas. Here, agents need to be transparent and clearly state if they are a direct representative or a partner consultant of an authorised representative. With this, we move on to the number two factor which is transparency in the process.

Unfortunately, the majority of times, clients are not looking for transparency, but they are looking for convenience. They don’t want to face calls from the university or try to avoid interviews from the embassy or consulate. They just want to spend money and leave everything in the hands of the immigration agent. This is where we give a chance to the consultant to exploit us as much as possible.

Follow Your Responsibility as a Client

As a client, it is your responsibility to find out details about the immigration agent. A lot can be found on the university's website, and it is mentioned specifically for prospective students applying from overseas. They have mentioned the name of the agent not to make them feel proud but for the clients who are applying through these agents. Continue to seek service only if you are satisfied with the information.?

A third important factor is how the money transaction is taking place. Is the consultant asking you to deposit the money in their bank account or to bring cash to their office? You should cross-check if you are asked to bring cash or deposit money into the consultant's account. In any case, university fees are not deposited in cash, and if you are asked to do so, something may not be right.

Assess your current academic standing before consulting an immigration advisor; this is the fourth important factor. Almost all universities globally have detailed admission requirements for every programme they offer. You should apply only if your profile fulfils the requirements. If you are applying just for the sake of trying out your luck, you may be inviting problems for yourself.

The fifth and most important factor is communication between you and the university where you want to pursue your education. Even if you are applying for a visa from an immigration consultant, you should receive an email or other communication from the university. In case you have not received any communication from the university, it should raise an alarm bell for you. Also, you must ensure that your email address and contact details are correct.

As a word of caution, you should not rely completely on the immigration consultant, whom you have met only two or three times in your life. It is not about challenging their credibility, but of involving yourself actively in the process of attaining a visa. The responsibility of attaining a study visa is as much of yours as it is of the immigration consultant.?

You can ask to look at the form and/or the SOP that the agent is sending on your behalf. A genuine immigration consultant will appreciate your involvement and will not shy away from being transparent. Talk freely to immigration consultants in Chandigarh to delve deeper into the matter.

Also Read: Five Tips To Avoid International Scams In Your Study Abroad Journey

The Takeaway

Stopping immigration fraud, to a greater extent, is in the hands of the clients themselves. How and what you communicate with the immigration consultant is important. It’s a good idea to stay involved with the consultant and ask questions instead of just going along with everything.