VZCZCXRO6699
PP RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHGH RUEHNEH
DE RUEHCG #0008/01 0131140
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131140Z JAN 10
FM AMCONSUL CHENNAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2590
INFO RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 3961
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 5435
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 1159
RUEHNEH/AMCONSUL HYDERABAD
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 0008
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 2549
RUEHML/AMEMBASSY MANILA 0244
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 1467

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CHENNAI 000008 
 
CA/FPP FOR JILL NYSTROM 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KFRD CVIS ASEC IN
SUBJECT: Seamen Return to Chennai:  A C1/D Validation Study 
 
Ref: A) 09 Mumbai 151, B) 09 New Delhi 1429 
 
¶1. Summary:  In a world full of visa risks, South Indian sailors are 
a pretty good one.  Unless, to paraphrase the theme song from The 
Jeffersons, they are "frying beans in the kitchen", in which case 
they may do "a whole lotta trying just to get up that hill" and into 
the U.S. for a long term stay.  Echoing the results of other recent 
C1/D studies in India (reftels), Consulate General Chennai's 
validation study for C1/D visas issued to South Indian sailors has 
confirmed an overstay rate of only 1.4 percent, with the majority of 
those overstaying being employed as cooks or kitchen helpers.  This 
cable will explain that study, discuss the various types of crew 
members, and provide an overview of the shipping industry for use by 
posts in South Asia.  End summary. 
 
Methodology and Results 
 
¶2. Post selected a random sample of 1000 C1/D visas issued from 
January 1, 2007 to December 31, 2008 to track overstay rates.  This 
amount was drawn from a total of 6443 issuances during that time 
period and represents over 15 percent of post's total C1/D 
issuances.  Chennai's refusal rate for C1/D visas for that time 
frame was 8.5 percent.  The sample was then checked against entry 
and exit data from the Department of Homeland Security ADIS 
database.  For cases without exit data, Post contacted or met with 
shipping companies to review their records and called the 
applicants' last known addresses.  Only 14 of the 6,443 C1/D 
issuances are confirmed or probable overstays. 
 
¶3. The sample of 1000 C1/D visa holders included 138 officers,  283 
engineers, 92 ordinary seamen (OS), 43 able-bodied seamen (AB),  157 
deck cadets,  142 cooks/kitchen workers and 132 in other categories 
such as wipers, cleaners, oilers and motormen.  Of the 14 visa 
holders who overstayed, eight were cooks, kitchen assistants or 
stewards.  The remaining six included two individuals who obtained 
their visas but were subsequently found medically ineligible to 
serve, one retired engineer, one without a job listed and two 
seafaring laborers (one cleaner and one fitter). 
 
Officers and Engineers 
 
¶4. With the myriad difficult decisions made every day on the NIV 
line in Chennai, one of the more certain ones should be issuing a 
C1/D to an officer or engineer.   The only overstay in this 
category, out of a total pool of 421 issuances for officers or 
engineers, was by an engineer who had retired with a still valid 
C1/D.  Gainfully employed officers and engineers who overstay their 
visas are, quite simply, an aberration.  To become an officer, a 
candidate has to complete 12 months of training at a merchant marine 
academy and 12-18 months of at sea training.  Engineers typically 
have four year bachelor degrees before their training.  These are 
difficult routes to take for someone intending to travel to the U.S. 
with the intention of violating the terms of their visa. 
Deck Cadets 
 
¶5. In order to secure a seaman's book from the appropriate 
governmental authority (known as a CDC), a deck cadet (officer 
trainee) has to complete one year of training.  One hundred and 
fifty seven cadets were among the sample of C1/D holders in this 
validation study.  Only one cadet overstayed his visa.  This cadet 
was found medically unfit to join ship after receiving the visa and 
apparently used the visa to gain entry to the U.S. for a purpose 
other than to join ship. 
Ordinary and Able-bodied Seamen 
 
¶6. In order to qualify as an Ordinary Seaman (OS), which is the 
equivalent of the enlisted ranks, a person must have five 
certificates for general ship operation which can be obtained in as 
little as one month.  After two or three cruises, and based on the 
recommendation of the Masters (Captains) under whom they have 
served, qualified OS can be promoted to the level of Able-bodied 
(AB) seaman.  Thereafter based upon their experience and reviews ABs 
can attain the highest enlisted rank of Bosun.   Interestingly, 
despite a much shorter path to a C1/D visa (one month as opposed to 
one year for deck cadets) there was only one overstay by either an 
OS or AB seaman out of 135 visa holders in those categories.  The AB 
seaman in question, like the deck cadet discussed above, was found 
medically unfit for service after obtaining his visa.  Life as a 
visa overstayer in the U.S. was apparently his recourse after losing 
eligibility to work at sea. 
 
Seafaring Laborers 
 
 
CHENNAI 00000008  002 OF 003 
 
 
¶7. Requiring a bit more scrutiny are those candidates who fill more 
labor-intensive jobs.  These seamen include wipers, motormen, 
greasers, cleaners, fitters and oilers.  Of the 132 C1/D holders who 
fell into these categories, two overstayed.  Unlike the engineer and 
the cadet discussed above, these two visa-holders were actively 
employed and medically fit for service.  These jobs tend to pay 
significantly less than those for officers.  Some of them, such as 
wipers, are more temporary jobs which are not covered by long-term 
employment contracts, making the allure of work in the U.S. more 
attractive.  Even considering the low pay and lack of employment 
security, the overstay rate for the lower-skilled seafarers is still 
only 1.51 percent. 
 
Cooks, Kitchen Workers and Stewards 
 
¶8. The most problematic category, by far, is for cooks, kitchen 
workers and stewards.  They accounted for eight of 14 overstays. 
Their overstay rate equates to 5.63 percent, which represents eight 
overstays out of a total of 142 C1/D issuances in those categories. 
Many of those who apply for jobs in the kitchen or room steward 
fields do not have CDCs and undergo little training, if any, to 
prepare them for life at sea.  They have highly transportable skills 
which are as useful on land as they are at sea.  The incentive to 
"jump ship" for what is perceived as a more lucrative or easier life 
appears to be greater than for any other category of C1/D applicant. 
 
 
¶9. During the course of this study, Post identified a larger fraud 
pattern of applicants securing visas as cooks by using phony 
Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) employment letters.  Of the fourteen 
overstays, only the three NCL cooks submitted fraudulent documents. 
Using text search, Post identified twelve additional NCL applicants, 
not originally included in the random sample, who were also 
confirmed to have submitted fraudulent documents.  According to ADIS 
entry/exit records, seven of those individuals are still in the U.S. 
and have overstayed their visas.  Post has requested prudential 
revocation of those seven visas and has already revoked the eight 
visas of those not present in the United States.  The high level of 
fraud and refusals for cooks underscores the need for closer 
scrutiny, especially those who do not have CDCs or significant 
experience on ship. 
 
Overview of Shipping Companies in South India 
 
¶10. Conoff met with the seven largest shipping companies which have 
offices in Chennai to discuss their recruitment, retention of 
officers and current status of the shipping industry.  These 
companies range in size from fleets of 52 ships (managed by Univan) 
to 1200 ships (Vships) and have between 1500 (Wilhelmsen Ship 
Management) and 8000 (VShips) employees in India to man those ships. 
 The retention rate for employees was from 75 to 92 percent for the 
largest company, VShips.   Each of these companies maintains agents 
on board ship to facilitate seaman signing off and on to the ships. 
Most indicated that they have the agents accompany C1/D holders to 
the airport if they sign off in a U.S. port because, according to 
Ebony Ship Management's director, the current insurance regulations 
make the company responsible for their employees until they return 
to India even if they sign off abroad.  Parenthetically, all 
shipping companies permit the top four officers 
(Chief/Master/Captain, 2nd officer, Chief engineer and 2nd engineer) 
to take family members on board ship.  One, Ebony Ship Management, 
will allow 3rd officers or 3rd engineers who have been with the 
company for many years to take family members on board. 
 
¶11. Most company representatives with whom Conoff spoke said that 
they had experienced either a slowing of growth or a decline in 
their shipping business over the last year.  Ebony Ship Management, 
for example, indicated that their volume is down approximately 10 
percent from this time last year, while Wilhelmsen Ship Management 
has lost ships under contract.  They told Conoff that they have lost 
35 ships this year, while VShips told Conoff that they have taken 
over 70 ships from Wilhelmsen this year.  Both AET and Executive 
Ship Management told Conoff that they have had no effect from the 
economic slowdown, but ESM expects a lower number of ships in 2010 
after the effects of ship order cancellations are felt.  The only 
company which has experienced growth because of the downturn is the 
largest, VShips, which has gained market share as ship owners look 
for stability in a larger management company. 
 
Conclusion 
 
¶12. The job of a seafarer is difficult but, apparently, satisfying 
for sailors from South India, as there were essentially no overstays 
 
CHENNAI 00000008  003 OF 003 
 
 
among actively employed, medically qualified professional seamen. 
The only caveat is for unskilled help, kitchen employees and 
stewards.  Such applicants should be given greater scrutiny during 
the interview than the OS or AB seaman.  In addition to providing 
insights useful to future adjudications, this study led us to 
discover a batch of linked fraud cases, illustrating another 
significant benefit of conducting validation studies. 
 
SIMKIN