US officers being put under pressure to fast track visas, it is claimed

An investigation is to be held next month in the United States into claims that immigration officers are being put under pressure to fast track visa applications without regard for fraud and security.

It comes after a 40 page report drafted by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General which was not intended for public release became public.

It claims that up to a quarter of the immigration officers questions claimed they had been urged to approve questionable cases and even that one individual was demoted for denying too many applications.

A spokesman for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services denied that any employee would face retaliation for denying visa applications.

‘The agency takes seriously the responsibility to safeguard the integrity of America’s immigration system,’ the spokesman added.

Other issues are being criticised in public including the way visas are granted on a country by country basis. Not many people are aware that there is a cap on visas for each country. For example China which has a population of over 1.5 billion people has an allocation of 3,000 visas annual while Greenland with a population of just 56,000, has the same allocation.

Another issue up for debate is that not enough visas are being granted to skilled workers.

A bill to relax the current restriction on employment visas made it through the US House of Representatives in November with an overwhelming majority before being blocked in the Senate for ‘tactical reasons’ by a Republican Representative.

However, proposals have already been put forward by members of both political parties to ‘staple’ green cards to the diplomas of foreign students who successfully graduate from US universities.

However, with immigration such a touchy subject, it is unlikely that any radical reforms will take place during an election year.