VZCZCXRO6760
RR RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHMS #1000/01 2720939
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 290938Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY MUSCAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0810
RUEHPNH/NVC PORTSMOUTH 0001
INFO ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 0053

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MUSCAT 001000 
 
SIPDIS 
DEPT ALSO PASS TO KCC 
POSTS FOR FRAUD PREVENTION MANAGERS 
ATHENS FOR DHS/ICE AND DHS/CIS 
ROME FOR DHS/ICE, DHS/CIS AND DHS/CBP 
DHS FOR CIS/FDNS 
CA/FPP FOR S. SEXTON 
CAIRO FOR RCO ROWAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS KFRD CPAS CMGT ASEC
SUBJECT: FRAUD SUMMARY - MUSCAT 
 
REF: (A) 09 STATE 57623 
 
¶A. (U) COUNTRY CONDITIONS:  Oman's population is estimated to be 
3.3 million including 900,000 expatriates according to the State 
Department's 2009 Human Rights report.   The CIA World Factbook 
estimates Oman's population to be 3,418,085, which includes 577,293 
non-nationals in its latest on-line update (July 2009 estimate). 
 
 
 
Oman's long history of trading between the east coast of Africa and 
the Indian subcontinent has produced considerable ethnic, 
linguistic, and cultural diversity in the population, although a 
majority of Omani citizens are ethnically Arab. Arabic is the 
official and most widely spoken language. English, Hindi, Urdu, 
Swahili, Baluchi, Loti, Telagu, Malayalam, and local dialects are 
also used. Many government officials and most merchants dealing 
with the expatriate community speak English. 
 
 
 
Like other countries in the region, Oman relies on imported labor 
to support and carry out its development plans. With ambitious 
public works, tourism, and industrial projects begun throughout the 
Sultanate, the last two years have seen a rapid increase in the 
number of expatriates working in the Sultanate. According to the 
most recent Omani Central Bank figures, the expatriate workforce 
was approximately 680,100 in March 2008, up from 511,000 in 2006. 
While a substantial increase, indications from several sources 
suggest the official number of expatriate workers in the Sultanate 
is understated. Americans hold a handful of positions in the 
private sector, mostly in the oil, education and banking sectors, 
but technical advisers and managers are mostly from Europe and the 
Indian subcontinent.  Although the majority of third country 
nationals come to Oman to work, some transit illegally to other 
countries. 
 
 
 
The majority of third country national (TCN) NIV applicants are 
from Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, 
Morocco, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sudan, and Syria. 
 
 
 
The overall level of fraud at post is low. 
 
 
 
¶B. (U) NIV FRAUD:  Post adjudicated approximately 3,415 
non-immigrant visas from March 2009 to August 2009.  Fifty eight 
percent of these were B1/B2 applications from Omanis and Indians 
traveling to the U.S. as visitors or for business and training 
sponsored by employers in Oman.  The refusal rate for all 
applicants was 23 percent.  The refusal rate for Omani NIV 
applicants was 0.80 percent.  Post encounters little or no fraud 
with citizens of Oman. Among the expatriate community, the fraud 
generally appears to be unsophisticated. Consular officers continue 
to depend on both interviewing techniques and document examination 
to adjudicate NIV applicants. 
 
 
 
Occasionally, the consular section receives reports of visa 
applicants who have been duped into paying large sums of money to 
individuals claiming to represent the United States Citizenship and 
Immigration Service (USCIS), the National Visa Center (NVC), or 
another visa office. During this quarter, at least four such cases 
came to the consular section's attention. In one case, a visa 
applicant told post he paid approximately USD 1,150 to a 
London-based USCIS office and wanted to verify its authenticity. 
Post contacted Embassy London's Fraud Prevention Unit (FPU), and it 
asked the London community police to investigate the office's 
address and phone number. In another similar case, an Omani 
national reported that he paid for three green cards he hoped to 
sell to expatriate workers registered under his sponsorship. As a 
result of the increase in incidents of these scams, Embassy Muscat 
issued a press release warning the public about possible scams and 
reminding them that visa forms are free. Both English and Arabic 
 
MUSCAT 00001000  002 OF 003 
 
 
language dailies in Muscat published the information. 
 
 
 
Consistent with the William Wilberforce Anti-Trafficking Victims 
Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, Post continues to adhere to 
the Department's policy of requiring a signed contract between 
employers and their domestic employees in both English and a 
language that the employee reads and understands.  Interviewing 
consular officers question employers and employees to determine 
whether they met past contractual obligations. They also ask them 
to provide proof of past payment.  Post refused one A3 case under 
Section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when 
the consular officer learned that the domestic employee may have 
received wages far below what was agreed upon in the contract. 
When the consular officer raised the issue with the diplomat 
employer, he abruptly left the interview and later complained to 
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).  The case is still refused 
pending documentation. The Consular Chief and the Deputy Chief of 
Mission met with officials at the Omani MFA to explain the USG 
commitment to combating human trafficking and labor rights 
violations. The Consular Chief provided the MFA with the 
Wilberforce brochure and a non-paper on the subject. In addition, 
the consulate has created a contract template, which is currently 
in the clearance process. 
 
 
 
Post also scrutinizes domestic visa applications, especially for A3 
and B1 domestic employees, to ensure that the employer and employee 
are in compliance with Wilberforce.  All employment category 
non-immigrants are provided with the Wilberforce brochure prior to 
their interviews. During the interview, consular officers ask 
employees whether they have read the brochure and ask them a few 
questions to ensure that they have understood it. Often consular 
officers find it necessary to explain the main points of the 
brochure. In several cases, consular officers arranged verbal 
translation of the brochure to ensure the applicants understood its 
contents. 
 
 
 
¶C. (U) IV FRAUD: Post processed 30 immigrant visa (IV) petitions 
during this reporting period.  All of the applicants were long term 
residents of Oman in the immediate relative and family-based 
categories. 
 
 
 
¶D. (U) DV FRAUD:  During this period, a total of 13 diversity visas 
(DVs) were processed and issued to TCNs from Sudan, Burma and Sri 
Lanka. One incident of fraud was encountered. A Bangladeshi male 
applied for a Diversity Visa for himself and his family. Upon 
examination of the application, it became apparent that the photos 
were of different individuals. When questioned as to why the 
pictures did not match, he responded, "Please help me."  To combat 
a spate of reports regarding DV visa scams in Oman, post issued a 
press release on July 11, 2009, reminding citizens and residents of 
Oman to use caution when being asked to pay for forms or processing 
fees. 
 
 
 
¶E. (U) ACS AND US PASSPORT FRAUD: The American Citizen Services 
unit did not encounter any incidents of ACS fraud. 
 
 
 
¶F. (U) ADOPTION FRAUD: None. Post received no adoption applications 
during this period.  Only Muslims are permitted to adopt in Oman. 
 
 
 
¶G. (U) USE OF DNA TESTING:  Post did not recommend any cases for 
DNA testing during this period. 
 
 
 
¶H. (U) ASYLUM AND OTHER DHS BENEFIT FRAUD:  Post did not process 
 
MUSCAT 00001000  003 OF 003 
 
 
any cases during this period. 
 
 
 
¶I. (U) ALIEN SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING, ORGANIZED CRIME, TERRORIST 
TRAVEL: No cases were reported for the period. 
 
 
 
¶J. (U) DS CRIMINAL FRAUD INVESTIGATION: No cases were investigated 
during this period. 
 
 
 
¶K. (U) HOST COUNTRY PASSPORT IDENTITY DOCUMENTS, AND CIVIL 
REGISTRY: Oman maintains a national identity card for both Omani 
citizens and expatriates. The issuance of both the ID card and the 
passport are tightly controlled. In addition, as a result of the 
computerization and centralization of civil documents in Oman, 
birth, death, marriage, and divorce records are easily verifiable 
and under close and constant control. Post has occasionally seen 
different birthdates for the same individual in different Omani 
passports. Post believes the incidence of these different 
birthdates relates more to data entry than fraud. In addition, many 
older Omanis born before 1970 do not have birth certificates and 
are often unsure of their exact birthdate.  Post is not aware of 
any fraud related to host country passport identity documents or 
any civil registry fraud. 
 
 
 
Post has encountered two instances of children born out of wedlock 
to non-Omani couples. Although this is strictly illegal in Oman, 
both couples were assumed to be married when attending doctor's 
appointments and entering the hospital for the birth of the 
children. 
 
 
 
¶L. (U) COOPERATION WITH HOST GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES: The embassy 
has excellent relations with the Royal Oman Police (ROP) and the 
consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). The 
ROP and MFA communicate with the embassy whenever they encounter 
fraud that impacts the embassy's operations. 
 
 
 
¶M. (U) AREAS OF PARTICULAR CONCERN: None. 
 
 
 
¶N. (U) STAFFING AND TRAINING: The Fraud Prevention Manager is Vice 
Consul Stephen F. Ibelli. The consular section has sent one Omani 
staff member to fraud prevention training in Washington and hopes 
to send another in the near future. 
Schmierer