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KeriVit · Dec 10, 2005, 12:29 PM

I have a friend who is from India. He is currently working in Iraq for a year away from his family.

He wants to come to America with his family as a nurse.

He is asking about the legitimacy of this organization and if he should try.

http://usafis.org/

I don't know what to tell him, but thought I'd ask you guys if you know anything...

Any thoughts?

Mastrap · Dec 10, 2005, 02:13 PM

I don't know about this particular website, but most immigration help sites do nothing that the individual can't do him/herself.

goMac · Dec 10, 2005, 02:39 PM

I sent this link to my father who works for the Federal Government and he says it's a known phishing site.

Official info on the lottery here:
http://state.gov/

The Godfather · Dec 10, 2005, 02:49 PM

Stay away from it.

goMac · Dec 10, 2005, 02:54 PM

Even better:
http://www.dvlottery.state.gov/

el chupacabra · Dec 10, 2005, 04:39 PM

unless hes from mexico and carrying a machine gun and drugs, he has to come here the hard way.
Maybe have to wait 10 years.
I know... coming here the legal way aint easy.

Doofy · Dec 10, 2005, 05:16 PM

http://www.workpermit.com/us/us.htm

The Godfather · Dec 10, 2005, 06:04 PM

Originally Posted by el chupacabra

unless hes from mexico and carrying a machine gun and drugs, he has to come here the hard way.
Maybe have to wait 10 years.
I know... coming here the legal way aint easy.

So, if he's not from Mexico but carries drugs and bombs, it's ok to enter the easy way?

Spliffdaddy · Dec 10, 2005, 06:09 PM

Seriously.

Just enter the USA on a regular tourist visa.

And stay here.

Nobody will seek you out and make you leave. We don't employ anybody in that capacity.

KeriVit · Dec 10, 2005, 07:02 PM

I see. Thanks for the input- according to the official site, residents of India are not eligible for the 2005, 2--6 or 2007 lottery.

I will discuss this with my friend, Joshi. I'm not sure what else to tell him.

Thanks again.

Spliffdaddy · Dec 10, 2005, 07:10 PM

Just forget about doing things the "legal way". Happiness is never achieved without taking chances.

Fly his ass into the USA - and let him disappear into the population. He'll blend right in, and won't anybody question how he got here. I'm being totally serious. Hell, we're all from somewhere else.

There's room for folks who *want* to be here. Don't let anybody tell you there isn't.

Worst case: he'll get a paid airline ticket back to India. It isn't (really) a criminal offense.

The Godfather · Dec 10, 2005, 07:12 PM

There's good reason for that. A lot more Indians than average have entered the U.S. in the last decade. Notice how Canada and Mexico are not in the DV list either.

The Godfather · Dec 10, 2005, 07:18 PM

Originally Posted by Spliffdaddy

Just forget about doing things the "legal way". Happiness is never achieved without taking chances.

Fly his ass into the USA - and let him disappear into the population. He'll blend right in, and won't anybody question how he got here. I'm being totally serious. Hell, we're all from somewhere else.

There's room for folks who *want* to be here. Don't let anybody tell you there isn't.

Worst case: he'll get a paid airline ticket back to India.

He and his family will be totally miserable: janitor job, studio apartment, no health insurance, $500 car, Walmart shopping, and totally inexistent illegal Indian population (unlike Mexican mojados community).
Illegal immigration is for people who can't find jobs where they are. His nurse job is better than whatever he'll find in the U.S.

Spliffdaddy · Dec 10, 2005, 07:22 PM

But he'll be in America - with a janitor job, studio apartment, no health insurance, $500 car, Walmart shopping, and totally inexistent illegal Indian population.

Dude. Life could be so much worse. And pretty easily, at that.

KeriVit · Dec 10, 2005, 07:34 PM

OK, so seriously... his choices are visitor or work visa, correct?

goMac · Dec 10, 2005, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by Spliffdaddy

But he'll be in America - with a janitor job, studio apartment, no health insurance, $500 car, Walmart shopping, and totally inexistent illegal Indian population.

Uhhhh... hate to break it to you, but if he's working in Iraq right now, he could probably go back to India and live a lot nicer than he does in the US. You'd be surprised how inexpensive the cost of living in India is.

Spliffdaddy · Dec 10, 2005, 07:50 PM

If "living nice" in India was his goal - he wouldn't have an interest in living in America.

I'm sure a lot of places have a low cost of living. But that shouldn't dictate where a person *wants* to live

goMac · Dec 10, 2005, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by Spliffdaddy

If "living nice" in India was his goal - he wouldn't have an interest in living in America.

I'm sure a lot of places have a low cost of living. But that shouldn't dictate where a person *wants* to live

You're right, but things could be much worse than not being able to live in America.

With regard to this person getting into America, he needs to go through all normal channels. Don't try anything illegal. Ever since 9/11 they have been running more and more background checks. If he comes in illegally he might eventually run into trouble if he became nationalized and wanted to ever do something like get a US passport.

Spliffdaddy · Dec 10, 2005, 08:12 PM

Common sense would lead a person to believe that is true. However, reality leans more towards the possibilty that living here illegally will result in some sort of "amnesty" in the near future. "If you're already here, it's OK....."

KeriVit · Dec 10, 2005, 09:50 PM

Honestly, I don't know why people want to come here so bad. But yes, he is making decent money in Iraq. But they do take advantage of the third country nationals. They are not paid like Americans are. To them, it is good money, but it is not what Americans make. Regardless, Joshi lost several family members in the recent crises in India and is ready to move on. He is a nurse (generally, the women are the doctors in India), he was in the Indian Air Force for 20 years as a medic.

There are no plans for anything illegal, did I imply that? However, there are many organizations taking advantage of foreign individuals and I would like to know what advice to give him, that's all. He has been in Iraq for nearly a year, he misses his wife and children, he doesn't know if going home will be the best thing for his family.

They are very loyal people. He would do anything for his family and just wants to do what is best. In his mind, he would have greater opportunities in US than in India.

The Godfather · Dec 10, 2005, 09:59 PM

Did he research the H1-B way? He can apply to jobs and write your home address in his resume. When he gets an interview, he flies from Iraq to U.S. on a tourist visa.

effgee · Dec 10, 2005, 10:05 PM

KeriVit,

Go to MurthyForum (and/or send your friend this link), quite a bit of immigration info there. This thread might be of special interest (unless it's your friend who started it - you never know).

Originally Posted by MurthyForum

original post:
"I am a registered nurse in India and I have job offer from a nurse recruiter in India. Is it possible to get a green card to work in the U.S. as a nurse?"

attorney's reply:
"It is possible to get a green card to work as a registered nurse in the US. Generally, a nurse is required to obtain a CGFNS Certificate as a starting point. The CGFNS Certificate consists of three parts: 1)a credentials review; 2)a one-day Qualifying Exam of nursing knowledge (called the CGFNS Exam); and 3)an English language proficiency exam. Many states require the CGFNS Certificate to obtain a state license. Interested nurses can download an application for the CGFNS Certificate from the CGFNS web site at www.cgfns.org.
The nurse's US employer sponsors the nurse for the employmnet based visa, and the nurse obtains the visa abroad by a procedure known as consular processing."

HTH & good luck to your friend

goMac · Dec 10, 2005, 10:07 PM

Originally Posted by Spliffdaddy

Common sense would lead a person to believe that is true. However, reality leans more towards the possibilty that living here illegally will result in some sort of "amnesty" in the near future. "If you're already here, it's OK....."

That's a joke right?

I'm not saying he'd run into trouble with the real estate agent. I'm saying he'd run into trouble whenever he tried to get anything through the Fed's. Say like any sort of identification. Like a passport.

Post-9/11 it's a very good idea to follow all the rules.

ghporter · Dec 10, 2005, 10:19 PM

Originally Posted by Spliffdaddy

Just forget about doing things the "legal way". Happiness is never achieved without taking chances.

Fly his ass into the USA - and let him disappear into the population. He'll blend right in, and won't anybody question how he got here. I'm being totally serious. Hell, we're all from somewhere else.

There's room for folks who *want* to be here. Don't let anybody tell you there isn't.

Worst case: he'll get a paid airline ticket back to India. It isn't (really) a criminal offense.

If the guy wants to work as a nurse, he cannot "hide" here. He'll have to get licensed and that involves a background check. Instant deportation without a work visa or green card. ANY job that requires ANY form of surety, bond, license, etc. will work this way.

But as there IS a nursing shortage here, if the guy's diploma is honored here, there should be some hospital or HMO that would sponsor him.