We like to believe no.
P.S. sweetliewynn:
It's not necessary to have a lawyer to pay a bribe.
We're supposed to navigate the law. Bribes are illegal.
The stories I hear in Saigon usally go like this:
1. For $--- someone (not working for the consulate but who is related to
or friends with someone working inside the consulate ) can speed up the processing.
If you don't pay this someone - your case will be stuck for years.
2. The consular officers just sign off on anything the Vietnamese employees
put in front of them. It's the Vietnamese clerks who are really making the
decisions at the consulate. Someone has a friend or a family member who has a friend
who works at the consulate. The friend will take care of everything. You just need
to pay $--- to someone who doesn't work at the consulate.
3. A certain VN lawyer is allowed to attend interviews and translate for beneficiaries.
If his or her name is on your paperwork - your case will sail through. To have his name
on your paperwork costs $----.
4. I've even heard that if you put $--- inside your passport, the translator or the
officer will pocket the money and approve your visa.
5. A certain travel agency will get your tourist visa approved. It has a relationship
with the consular officer. It pays him or her $---for every visa.
____________
Suckers pay their money and end up with nothing or worse than nothing.
I heard of one poor lady who believed number 4. Now she's inadmissible to the US
for life. Attempting to bribe or conspiring to bribe a Federal law enforcement officer
is a felony. 18 USC Ch.11 Sec. 201link