Dominicans falsify “all types of documents” to apply for visas to the US

Santo Domingo.- The United States Embassy in the Dominican Republic faces a significant challenge of dealing with frequent forgeries in visa applications, especially in cases of non-immigrant or tourist visas. Greg Segas, the United States consul in the Dominican Republic, disclosed that the embassy has a dedicated team for document review due to the daily discovery of falsified documents.

These fraudulent documents not only create issues for the visa application process but can also have legal consequences. Segas emphasized that presenting false documents in a visa application can result in a lifetime ban from entering the United States. In some cases, the embassy has taken legal action against visa applicants who have submitted false documents, as such actions constitute a crime.

The embassy employs a team of experts responsible for detecting altered documents, but the process starts with the consular interview. Visa officers conducting interviews are trained to recognize suspicious or inconsistent information provided by applicants.

In response to inquiries about the methods used to detect fraud, Segas mentioned that those involved in such activities closely monitor the embassy’s publications, making it challenging to reveal specific strategies.

Overall, the United States Embassy in the Dominican Republic takes document fraud seriously and is committed to minimizing such cases to maintain the integrity of the visa application process.