A green card to visit the US?

[Essiesmom]

This has nothing to do with cruising, but I am desperate.  I have living with me a niece with no sense.  Not retarded or anything but poor judgment.  She is basically a parasite,  no job in 20 years, supported by her mother (my late sister) and I inherited her.  She got scammed out of her income and inheritance earlier this year by someone claiming to be an actor in Hallmark channel movies.  She finally has realized that was a scam.  But now she says she contacted the real actor and he wants to come and give her money.  But the first sum she needs from me to enable this was $10,000.  Hard no, another scam.  Tonight she needs $500 cash so she can get a green card for him so she can pick him up at the airport.???   What is this card?  Why would she have to pay for it, but he will get it.  Can someone tell me if it exists, what it is?  He is Canadian, we are in the US.  Thanks for listening to my rant.  EM

[Spudd]

If he's Canadian, there's no such thing needed to visit the US. All we need is a passport. Green cards exist but they're some kind of permanent resident card (for the US) so not needed just to visit. He's just scamming her, it sounds like.

[broberts]

16 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

This has nothing to do with cruising, but I am desperate.  I have living with me a niece with no sense.  Not retarded or anything but poor judgment.  She is basically a parasite,  no job in 20 years, supported by her mother (my late sister) and I inherited her.  She got scammed out of her income and inheritance earlier this year by someone claiming to be an actor in Hallmark channel movies.  She finally has realized that was a scam.  But now she says she contacted the real actor and he wants to come and give her money.  But the first sum she needs from me to enable this was $10,000.  Hard no, another scam.  Tonight she needs $500 cash so she can get a green card for him so she can pick him up at the airport.???   What is this card?  Why would she have to pay for it, but he will get it.  Can someone tell me if it exists, what it is?  He is Canadian, we are in the US.  Thanks for listening to my rant.  EM

 

Canadian citizens only need a valid passport to visit the US.

 

A "green card" generally refers to a permanent resident card which is issued by the United States to identify lawful permanent residents. I believe the process to get a green card is non trivial and involves fees well in excess of US$500. https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/how-to-apply-for-a-green-card

 

[Essiesmom]

Believe me, I know about green cards.  I paid for the renewal of a long expired one for a friend who was German.  With the lawyer fees it cost me $1450.  
 My niece now tells me it is a requirement from Hallmark.  Bull.  EM

[StudiousTraveller]

As a Canadian who once had a "green card" that enabled me to live in the US I would say for sure, 100%, this is a scam. 

 

First, as others have said, Canadians only need a passport to visit the US. We do not even need an ESTA to visit the US like people from other countries need. In case the scanner then tries to say this is the document they meant, an ESTA is only about $20, but again, Canadians don't need one anyway.

 

Second, a "green card" is a permanent resident card, not for visitors. The fees to get one are in excess of $500 and they can take YEARS to get. It took me, a Canadian, 9 months to get a visa to enter the US to marry and another 2.5 years to get my "green card". It is not a quick and simple process 

[*Miss G*]

14 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

now she says she contacted the real actor and he wants to come and give her money.  But the first sum she needs from me to enable this was $10,000.  Hard no, another scam.  Tonight she needs $500 cash so she can get a green card for him so she can pick him up at the airport.???   What is this card?  Why would she have to pay for it, but he will get it.  Can someone tell me if it exists, what it is?  He is Canadian, we are in the US.

 

He wants to come and give her money…. but first she needs to give him money so he can come. 🙄

 

As the others say, it is a long and expensive process.  I suppose there is a possibility that he is applying for an employment-based visa (EB-1) — since he is in the performing arts — and maybe is short the amount required.  Then there is the question of an affidavit of support, travel to a US Consulate for the interview (probably Montreal), and the adjustment of status once stateside.

 

Either the two of them are completely oblivious to the monetary requirements and process; she has fallen for another scam, or; she is scamming you.

 

 

Edited June 9 by *Miss G*

[bookbabe]

PayPal works for Canadians, so why couldn’t this “actor” just send her the money that way rather than during an in-person visit.  lol.  Scammer.  You should be reporting the scammer to the cops, maybe a visit from an officer would convince your niece that she’s being duped.

[Fouremco]

In your shoes, I'd be contacting the local police and asking them to look into this situation. 

[Essiesmom]

The problem is no matter that she has accepted her previous situation was a scam, they told me there is no charge as she voluntarily gave him the money.  At first it was he would come to meet her if she sent xxxx money, she would get it back.  Then there were circumstances that kept him from coming and he needed more money.  This one is starting the same way.  She is saying the employer, Hallmark, will not allow them to actually talk to each other.  And that the ‘card’ is part of the Hallmark requirements.  She is not scamming me, I’m too smart.  No cash from me.  EM

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, Essiesmom said:

they told me there is no charge as she voluntarily gave him the money.

No pun intended, but that sounds very much like a cop out by the police. Based on your original post, there's definitely fraud that led to her "voluntarily" giving him the money.

[broberts]

3 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

She is saying the employer, Hallmark, will not allow them to actually talk to each other.  And that the ‘card’ is part of the Hallmark requirements.

 

It seems obvious that your niece is unwilling to live in the real world. I imagine this is difficult to deal with. I'm not sure there is anything one can do to correct the situation but I hope you can find a solution that works for you.

[gold1953]

A sad situation and a scam for sure. I haven't heard the word 'retarded' for decades. Can you explain that her name is now known to scammers and more will target her as easy. Not quite the truth but worth a try

[mrgabriel]

On 6/9/2024 at 8:38 AM, Essiesmom said:

The problem is no matter that she has accepted her previous situation was a scam, they told me there is no charge as she voluntarily gave him the money.  At first it was he would come to meet her if she sent xxxx money, she would get it back.  Then there were circumstances that kept him from coming and he needed more money.  This one is starting the same way.  She is saying the employer, Hallmark, will not allow them to actually talk to each other.  And that the ‘card’ is part of the Hallmark requirements.  She is not scamming me, I’m too smart.  No cash from me.  EM

 

 

It's sad that she is so gullible.

 

If she's insistent, suggest that she do a bit of research herself. Research won't hurt anything. And IF he's hired by Hallmark, they would have to arrange for his Visa. What's the worst that could happen if she calls Hallmark corporate? 

 

And her scammy friend is neglecting to tell her that when you pay for the visa to come into the country, you pay the Government of the United States, not the business who is hiring you. Here's a link to the U.S. CIS website on fraud and U.S. Visas for those entering from Canada: https://ca.usembassy.gov/visas/report-fraud/

 

Another suggestion, look him up on IMDB. He may have a representative listed - an agent or manager. She could contact them. They'll likely tell her that it's a scam. If his own manager or agent says it's not him, maybe she'll believe them. 

Edited June 12 by mrgabriel