“Much as the prospectus that came into my hands earlier this year, offering Korean investors the promise of U.S. visa status in return for putting money into a project in the CNMI,” said Sablan, “this most recent proposition promises investors in mainland China that ‘the U.S. will issue green cards to all foreign personnel on the islands, i.e., an amnesty.’ This is just not true.”
In addition, he said, “the apparently growing problem of these investment/immigration scams is an embarrassment to the people of the commonwealth.”
Sablan said this kind of incident also compounds the difficulties he faces in the U.S. Congress in trying to open minds to the idea of a delay of federal control of the borders in the Northern Marianas.
“How can I convince those who have worked so long to end the scams and abuses in the Northern Marianas to allow another year of local control, when the scams continue?”
Sablan said he is urging the local government to show that action is being taken to thwart the scams.
“I was very glad when the governor announced that he would contact the responsible parties and stop publication of the Korean prospectus that promised U.S. visa status in return for a small investment. That publication had a welcoming letter from the governor and his picture, so it seemed like a direct endorsement by the commonwealth.
“The Chinese prospectus that has more recently come into my hands does not have any message from the governor.
“The CNMI government must be aware of these scams and should put measures in place to block them. Because the first step in the scam is to obtain a CNMI investor visa, and that is something that the local government controls.”
The invitation to invest and promise of a green card, which Sablan obtained in Mandarin and was translated by the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, asks for investors to put $100,000 plus another $20,000 “government tax” into a hotel project on Saipan.
In return investors will achieve “quick returns…no risk of being unable to recover capital,” and qualification to apply for a U.S. green card.
The CNMI does have investor visas that require a $100,000 investment. It is not clear who would be the recipient of the $20,000 “government tax.”
Investors are also promised “U.S. nationality for children born overseas.”
Sablan has provided a copy of the Chinese prospectus to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for investigation. The U.S. attorney has already written to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano in the ongoing investigation of the Korean investment proposal.
Federalization does offer legitimate opportunities for investors in the commonwealth. U.S. investor visas will be available to investors in the Northern Marianas, and some U.S. investment visas may lead to permanent residency — but generally, only investors with investments of $1,000,000 or more may be eligible for green cards.
The E-2 visa, a commonwealth only investor visa that is the subject of recent Department of Homeland Security regulations, does not, however, lead to green card eligibility.
