Exploiting Visa-on-Arrival: How ‘Donkey Routes’ Aid Illegal Immigration

Last updated on July 18th, 2024 at 08:40 am

Visa-on-Arrival Abused for Illegal Immigration

The visa-on-arrival (VoA) services offered by multiple countries to Indian citizens are being squandered by illegal immigration agents. Delhi Police, the Bureau of Immigration  and other security agencies have revealed a disturbing trend in their recent investigations: agents are using these services to create ‘donkey routes’ – a series of interconnected travel paths to help people enter the United States and Canada illegally.

How Agents Exploit VoA Policies

An old and common scheme is used to create these donkey routes which involves sending Indian passengers to countries like Azerbaijan or Kazakhstan, where VoA is granted, by using fake Schengen visas. The travelers are channeled through Central America or the Caribbean from these countries to their final destination, the USA. DCP of IGI Airport, Usha Rangnani, stated that “these routes, intended for legitimate tourists, are being misused to facilitate illegal entry.

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Recent Arrests and Cases

The Delhi Police have arrested more than 108 agents so far in 2024, in response to rising incidents of Visa and passport frauds. Among the arrested were the agents who helped a passenger who actually helped an individual reach the USA using an intricate ‘donkey route’. This person paid almost Rs 20 lakhs for this, traveling through Dubai, Cuba, Peru, Nicaragua, Mexico and finally their destination USA. Despite all his efforts and hardships, which included hunger and sleepless nights, he was deported in 2023 after being convicted in prison for nine months in Chicago for being an illegal immigrant.

Illegal Routes to Asia

The exploitation of VoA is not limited to only North America. A Rajasthan based agent in another case, arranged an individual’s journey from India to Thailand on a tourist visa. Once he reached Thailand, the agents arranged that person’s illegal entry into Malaysia by misusing its weak borders. A fake Thailand immigration stamp was used to make the entry look genuine and legitimate. However the passenger was not lucky enough and got caught up on returning to India when immigration officers discovered the forged VoA stamp, dated October 2022, while the passport was issued in May 2023.

The misuse of visa-on-arrival policies through ‘donkey routes’ underscores the crucial security concerns. The Delhi Police’s recent actions emphasized the need for more rigorous controls to avoid such exploitation and ensure that Visa services are not abused for illegal migration.