posted by lawyersofmelbourne.com.au admin on Dec 3
In the Kingdom of Thailand, and around the world, there are so-called “visa agents,” “lawyers,” and “Immigration Advisors,” making ridiculous claims regarding how they can facilitate visa issuance for the Thai fiances, husbands, and wives of Lawful Permanent Residents and Citizens of the United States of America. One of the most outlandish claims is the notion that one of these operators can guarantee that a visa will be issued. Throughout the World Wide Web there are consultants and visa companies making these claims and they dupe otherwise innocent consumers into believing that a visa can be guaranteed. One issue should be fully understood: No one can guarantee that a US visa will be granted. No qualified attorney will assert, with 100% certainty, that a visa will be issued. USCIS adjudicators evaluate the facts of every Immigration petition and make their decision based upon the unique set of circumstances present in the case before them. The Consular staff at US Embassies and Consulates overseas make more factual findings in order to decide if a US visa should be issued. An attorney acts as an advocate for visa issuance. Also, an American Immigration attorney can provide advice and assistance to clients regarding the type of visa that they should apply for. A competent Immigration attorney will do everything ethical to be certain that a visa is issued.
If one looks at the fine print of most of these so-called “guarantees” one will see that many of these guarantors only guarantee “USCIS approval” which is only one component of the US visa process and not the same thing as visa issuance.
Where an attorney enters their appearance, they are also required to represent their client for the duration of the case, or to the point agreed to by the client. Another common practice of unlicensed and unqualified visa agents is to abandon clients when a case becomes too complicated or time consuming.
There are many unlicensed “visa companies” operating outside of the United States of America. According to USCIS regulations no one is allowed to take money in exchange for providing advice regarding United States Immigration Law unless they are a licensed attorney in one of the 50 US States or a territory of the United States. Thus, unless a client is dealing with a qualified US lawyer they should not be remitting fees for the services of a “visa agent,” or “lawyer” who cannot provide proof of proper licensure. If dealing with one claiming to be a lawyer ask to see their US state or Federal license to practice law. If they cannot produce such documentation then there is a strong reason to believe that they are not entitled by law to represent clients before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS).
For more information please see: my thai fiancee..