The Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) have warned those seeking asylum here that some ‘customers’ of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) have been contacted by telephone by a person purporting to be from INIS.
The GNIB say the caller tells the person that they are the subject of a Deportation Order from the authorities in their country of origin and that they face deportation that day.
They are then told that the INIS is acting on behalf of their own Government to recoup an administration payment which will prevent their immediate deportation.
According to the Garda Bureau, this payment is requested to be made to an account in their country of origin. The potential for those within the asylum process to be scammed is high as the caller I.D. number that displays is a real INIS number and the caller directs people to the website address and indeed the number will appear, on the face of it, to be legitimate.
The GNIB have cautioned asylum applicant that the INIS “does not and will not contact applicants by telephone in relation to any such payments to accounts abroad. INIS does not under any circumstances request payment for its services over the telephone. Furthermore, any persons facing deportation from the State will have been involved in a detailed process and would be notified in writing by registered post in advance of any planned deportation.”