Is the New Online Parole system Corrupt?

[marigold 0]

I keep hearing of individuals who paid immigration lawyers to fill out the I-134 forms on their behalf to sponsor someone (from Venezuela) and that person receives a visa in a month or so.  My understanding was that it was now a lottery system where everyone has an equal chance of getting selected.  However the frequency of the success rate when a lawyer is involved though makes me believe that it is not really a lottery, or a fair playing field, and there is corruption going on that some wheels are  getting greased somewhere.  

[Redro 4,611]

Who is telling you this information?

Lawyers?

The people getting parole?

The person sponsoring?

Second or third hand information online and you cannot confirm the story?

[marigold 0]

These are people we know - friends and acquaintances (at least 2 different people) who submitted the same online I-134 form repeatedly for multiple discrete family members.  They are also people who are not financially well-off and have limited means to support the individuals they are actually sponsoring.  Many only recently earned their own citizenship or residency. Only difference is that they paid someone $500 to help them file. I consider myself to be fairly educated and followed the process instructions to a tee.  I also  supllied ample information to demonstrate I have the resources to more than adequately support who we are sponsoring.  You tell me - is it rigged or not? I want to know if other people have had this same experience.  

[Dashinka 24,591]

I find it difficult to believe that it is rigged.  With anecdotal stories, maybe it was related to other things such as improperly filled out forms, or USCIS workload balancing.  There are always questions as to what will make the process faster for spousal visas, AOS, N400, etc., but to understand that just by using a lawyer to fill out and submit the forms is faster, there would need to be a more comprehensive study. 

[marigold 0]

Prior to the online submission of the I-134 form, there was a larger margin for pilot error.  But this is considerably less now that it is online as each part of the form is validated.  I submitted the form correctly the first time.  It's been almost 6 months and nothing other than the initial receipt I received for filing to know that it was in the system.  In that time, we have heard of numerous people filing through immigration lawyers who filed after we did already receiving their next steps within 1-2 months.  It's not possible that it's a coincidence.  So either the government is unfairling giving precedence to forms that were filed by a practitioner, or there is something else shady going on.  If you have had a similar experience, please reply to this thread.

[Chancy 6,241]

10 hours ago, marigold said:

I keep hearing of individuals who paid immigration lawyers to fill out the I-134 forms on their behalf to sponsor someone (from Venezuela) and that person receives a visa in a month or so.

 

I-134 does not result in a visa.  The visa process involves a lot more than filing an I-134.  You're probably referring to the travel authorization document.  It's an important distinction as family-based visa holders have a clearer path to LPR status, while parolees who entered with travel authorization may not necessarily have a path to a GC at all.

 

[beloved_dingo 1,979]

4 hours ago, marigold said:

Prior to the online submission of the I-134 form, there was a larger margin for pilot error.  But this is considerably less now that it is online as each part of the form is validated.  I submitted the form correctly the first time.  It's been almost 6 months and nothing other than the initial receipt I received for filing to know that it was in the system.  In that time, we have heard of numerous people filing through immigration lawyers who filed after we did already receiving their next steps within 1-2 months.  It's not possible that it's a coincidence.  So either the government is unfairling giving precedence to forms that were filed by a practitioner, or there is something else shady going on.  If you have had a similar experience, please reply to this thread.

It absolutely is possible that it's a coincidence.