VZCZCXYZ0008
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAM #1260/01 1551218
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 041218Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5221
INFO RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0010

UNCLAS AMMAN 001260 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR CA/FPP; DEPT ALSO PASS TO KCC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KFRD CVIS CPAS CMGT ASEC JO
SUBJECT:  FRAUD SUMMARY - JORDAN 
 
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COUNTRY CONDITIONS 
------------------ 
 
¶1. (U) Jordan is a developing country with a per capita income of 
$5,000 and a population of nearly 6.3 million.  Almost one third of 
the population lives in the capital city of Amman and about thirty 
percent of Jordanians are younger than 14.  The service sector 
comprises over 77 percent of the economy, industry covers 20 
percent, and the remaining three percent is agriculture-based. 
Although Jordan's official unemployment rate is 12.9 percent, 
unofficial estimates put this figure substantially higher at 30 
percent.  Scarce natural resources, poverty, inflation and 
unemployment are significant problems in Jordan, but over the past 
ten years, the government has enacted broad economic reforms to 
improve the standard of living. 
 
¶2. (U) Jordan is host to a significant number of Iraqi refugees who 
fled Iraq for security and economic reasons over the several years. 
In May of 2008, the Government of Jordan imposed a visa regime for 
Iraqis which limited the number of Iraqis arriving in Jordan.  The 
continually-improving security situation in Iraq permits Iraqis to 
once again have access to a broad range of consular services at the 
U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.  These two factors have resulted in a 
decrease of Iraqis interviewing in Amman. Over the past six months 
of this reporting period, October through March, Iraqi applicants in 
Amman represented six percent of post's visa workload. 
 
¶3. (U) Although Jordanian-related document fraud is minimal, post 
detects a significantly higher rate of fraud related to Iraqi 
applications.  Jordanian documents contain many fraud-resistant 
features and the issuing authorities are considered reliable.  These 
factors permit an easy verification of civil documents.  Post 
detects a low fraud rate of Jordanian primary identity documents, 
most likely due to the integrity of the issuing process. 
 
¶4.  (U) Iraqi documents lack Jordan's high standards of quality 
control for both issuance and verification of civil documents.  This 
situation, coupled by issues relating to security and 
infrastructure, result in a higher incidence of document fraud among 
Iraqi documents than what post typically sees from Jordanian 
applicants.  Iraqi document fraud also involves widespread 
counterfeiting of primary identification documents, namely 
passports, national IDs, and other civil documents. 
 
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NIV FRAUD 
--------- 
 
¶5.  (U) During this reporting period, Amman adjudicated 11,299 
Nonimmigrant Visas (NIV).  Of the 240 cases referred to the Fraud 
Prevention Unit for analysis, 172 contained at least one fraudulent 
document.  Most Jordanian cases of fraud are limited to poor-quality 
bank statements, employment letters and family registration books. 
But we occasionally see "stowaway" members of cultural groups who 
are included in the group visa interview for immigration purposes 
only; investigations reveal these people are not bona fide member of 
the group. 
 
¶6.  (U) The FPU confirmed fraud in approximately half of the Iraqi 
cases referred to the unit for review.  The fraud is a mixture of 
altered, counterfeit, and fraudulently-obtained documents. 
 
¶7. (U) The K1 fiance visa category is problematic because of the 
cultural prohibition against single women traveling alone.  To 
overcome the stigma, some K1 applicants marry before the interview 
and some even admit to being married during the interview.  Post has 
noted a trend whereby Jordanian couples will marry in Syria in an 
attempt to conceal the marriage.  Syria is nearby, and couples can 
avoid an official record of the marriage if the ceremony is not held 
in court.  If the couples marry in Jordan, there will be an official 
record of the union. 
 
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IV FRAUD AND DV FRAUD 
--------------------- 
 
¶8.  (U) Amman handled 2585 IV applications during this reporting 
period, with Iraqi cases representing five percent of the work load. 
 FPU detected fraud in more than 80 IV cases.  Most IV fraud 
perpetrated by Jordanians is based on marriages for immigration 
purposes.  One common scenario involves a Jordanian who presents a 
document for an apparently sham divorce in Jordan which then frees 
up the person to marry in America for immigration purposes.  In such 
cases, the FPU is able to obtain evidence dating from the period of 
the alleged divorce indicating the petitioner has maintained the 
family unit in Jordan through regular visits and the birth of 
additional children.  When the Jordanian naturalizes, s/he divorces 
the American, and remarries the original Jordanian spouse (who may 
not have known they were divorced several years earlier).  Then the 
petitioner files for the Jordanian family to emigrate to the United 
States. 
 
¶9. (U) Post also noted during this reporting period three separate 
cases of older American women on disability who petitioned for 
younger Jordanian spouses, a trend which contradicts several 
deeply-rooted cultural norms.  After extensive interviewing, post 
concluded the marriages were probably bona fide, but noted the 
difference in motivation.  Whereas the men were frank in their 
desire to obtain a green card and were willing to be a cordial 
companion of the older, disabled woman, the women appeared genuinely 
flattered by the attention and well-aware the marriage might be 
short-lived. 
 
¶10. (U) Iraqis often present fraudulent civil documents as mentioned 
in paragraph six.  FPU confirmed fraud in over half of the 180 IV 
cases referred to the unit and they range from high-quality 
counterfeit ID cards, to citizenship certificates, school 
transcripts, and civil documents - all of Iraqi origin. 
 
¶11. (U) Regarding diversity visas, fraud among Jordanian applicants 
is low.  On the other hand, diversity visa fraud among Iraqis is 
higher and often based on counterfeit documents, especially school 
transcripts.  FPU detected five sets of fraudulent documents 
reportedly issued by the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq 
during this reporting period. 
 
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ACS AND PASSPORT FRAUD 
---------------------- 
 
¶12.  (U) Citizenship-based fraud in Amman is very low.  We have only 
detected 3 instances where applicants have presented fraudulent tax 
and lease documents to bolster false claims of physical presence in 
America in order to justify their ability to transmit U.S. 
citizenship to a child.  FPU referred one case to USCIS involving a 
person who may have naturalized fraudulently while engaged in a 
bigamous marriage. 
 
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ADOPTION FRAUD 
-------------- 
 
¶13.  (U) Jordan is a Muslim country where Sharia law determines 
family matters.  To legally adopt a child in Jordan, both parents 
must be practicing Muslims.  Post did not detect any fraud in the 
two adoption visas issued during the last calendar year. 
 
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USE OF DNA TESTING 
------------------ 
 
¶14.  (U) Post processes about 5 immigrant visa cases a year 
adjudicated on the basis of DNA evidence.   Although post does not 
require DNA testing, some Iraqi applicants choose to submit DNA 
results as they are unable to provide timely-issued birth 
certificates to establish a parent-child relationship. 
 
---------------------------- 
ASYLUM AND DHS BENEFIT FRAUD 
---------------------------- 
 
¶15.  (U) USCIS has recently opened a Field Office in Amman 
(uscis.amman@dhs.gov).  During this reporting period, USCIS reviewed 
18 cases of suspected fraud and confirmed four.  One case involved a 
person who acquired asylee status as a Palestinian, but later 
presented evidence of full Jordanian citizenship when he appeared 
for his children's follow-to-join adjudication interviews.  DHS 
reports no cases of fraud relating to lost permanent resident cards. 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
ALIEN SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING, ORGANIZED CRIME, TERRORIST 
TRAVEL 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶16.  (U) Jordan is a major transit point in the Middle East for 
passengers heading to Europe and North America.  Passengers from 
around the world can select from 15 weekly direct flights to the 
United States.  Royal Jordanian Airlines flies straight to Chicago, 
Detroit, and New York. Delta Airlines began non-stop service from 
Amman to New York in June 2008. 
 
¶17.  (U)  Airline and immigration authorities at Amman's Queen Alia 
International Airport have intercepted altered, counterfeit and 
stolen blank passports from several EU countries, as well as from 
Turkey, South Africa, Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, Lesotho, Singapore, 
Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, and India.  Officials have also 
detected fraudulent European residency permits and visas.  Travelers 
presenting questionable documents hail from countries as diverse as 
Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Nigeria, 
Sri Lanka, China, Turkey, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Peru. 
 
-------------------------------- 
DS CRIMINAL FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶18.  (U) Post conducted no criminal fraud investigations during this 
reporting period.  Post is expecting the arrival of an A/RSO-I this 
summer. 
 
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HOST COUNTRY PASSPORT, IDENTITY DOCUMENTS, AND CIVIL REGISTRY 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶19.  (U) In July 2008, Jordan introduced a new K-series passport, 
similar to the J-series launched in May 2007. Previous passport 
versions remain valid until they expire.  The 2008 version is 
machine-readable with enhanced technical specifications, but lacks 
biometric features.  The new passport uses the same security film as 
the J-series, but with enhanced UV features.  The new document 
cannot be extended when it expires.  Although there are no reports 
of fraud involving counterfeit K-series passports, FPU has notified 
the Jordanian authorities regarding defects in the security film and 
photo security features.  They are addressing the issue. 
 
¶20.  (U) Children under 16 present birth certificates and family 
books to obtain a passport and adults present the national ID card. 
Passport validity is five years.  Adults pay USD28.50 and children 
are half price.  Authorities can provide same-day issuance for 
in-country applications, but outside of Jordan, the wait can exceed 
45 days at double the price. 
 
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COOPERATION WITH HOST GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶21.  (U) FPU maintains a strong relationship with Jordanian 
government and airport officials who routinely report fraud 
incidents and vulnerabilities to the embassy.  Similarly, Amman's 
Fraud Control Group, comprised of North American and European fraud 
prevention officials, shares information and trends on a monthly 
basis, primarily focussin on Iraqi-related fraud. 
 
--------------------------- 
AREAS OF PARTICULAR CONCERN 
--------------------------- 
 
¶22.  (U) Amman processes Special Immigrant Visas for Iraqis who have 
worked for the U.S. Government.  Applicants have admitted to 
purchasing fraudulently-issued documents in their true identity 
because of access and security issuesn they face in Iraq. 
 
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STAFFING AND TRAINING 
--------------------- 
 
¶23.  (U) The FPU is staffed by a Foreign Service Officer Fraud 
Prevention Manager and one full-time LES investigator.  The LES 
investigator has completed Department of State fraud prevention 
training in Washington and forensic document lab training sponsored 
by the Anti-Terrorism Assistance program.  The consular investigator 
trains all incoming consular personnel and he shares his expertise 
with Jordanian and other fraud prevention officials in Amman and the 
region. 
 
 
BEECROFT