A former colleague of mine (“John”) reached out to ask if I could write a letter confirming his residence in the US while we worked together. He has a child recently born overseas, and getting his kid US citizenship is proving a challenge.
John became a US citizen about 10 years ago and moved abroad soon after becoming a citizen. He married while overseas and was planning on moving back to the US with his wife before their child was born, but through a set of circumstances his wife wasn’t able to move here before giving birth. Now in order to get citizenship for his kid, John must demonstrate that he lived in the US for at least five years before the kid was born. He asked if I would write a letter confirming that he worked from the US-based office during his tenure (which he did, there’s nothing shady going on here).
He already asked our former employer for a letter, but for whatever reason, they will only provide a letter confirming dates of employment, not whether John was physically in the office. He asked an old landlord for a letter, but the landlord was unwilling to provide anything. Because his residence was more than 10 years ago, he can’t find records from utilities or other businesses that could confirm his residence.
If I do this, it would be a notarized letter going to the US Embassy overseas. John would take care of the notary and provide the template, so it’s very little work on my part. John is a good guy, this isn’t some weird scam.
So my first thought was, of course I’ll do it. But I’m second guessing myself - why are these other people hesitant to do it? Is it just general paranoia around anything immigration-related, or am I missing some way this could come back to bit me?
IANAL, but I’m not sure that working in a US-based office and having US residency are the same thing. Maybe just be careful about the contents of whatever letter you send; be sure to only include the facts that you know.
If I understand you right, you’d be telling the truth. If we’ve got people terrified to tell the truth – and if enough people give in to this – you, and all of us, are in danger whether we tell the truth or try to hide under the bed. So I say go ahead and do it. You may be making a crucial difference in that child’s life, as well as in the lives of their parents.
This is critical.
.
I don’t know about citizenship applications for newborn children, but I do know a bit about a similar issue:
In some countries, the US Embassy is overburdened with locals applying for visas to enter and work in the US, often by claiming marriage to a US citizen.. The embassy employees interview the applicants face to face, and get very up close and personal. If they suspect anything shady, they have absolute authority to deny permission to anybody. Their decision is final and cannot be appealed. They never give any reasons for the denial (officially they claim that it’s to protect the privacy of the applicant. In reality, it is a power trip by the embassy staff.).
Your friend is a US citizen, so I’m guessing that he should have more rights and be less at the mercy of the bureaucrats.
But it is absolutely critical to be totally honest and accurate. In your letter, be specific, and be sure you can back up and document any claims you make..
This is what gives me slight pause. Yes, I will be 100% truthful and accurate. But what does it mean to be sure I can document and back up everything I say? Am I going to find myself in the same position as him, having to document my employment and residence?
I’m not scared to tell the truth, but I am a little nervous about what lengths I might have to go to if I’m forced to prove it’s the truth.
Liability, nothing else. Not even actual or likely liability, just possible liability. More trouble than it’s worth (to them, the rats).
OP, did you work closely enough with this person that you saw him in the office on a regular basis during the time in question? If you can honestly say that, I think it would help a lot. Also, it is hardly something you could be asked to prove, except maybe to explain the locations of where each of you worked.
In any case, I agree that you should write the letter as long as it contains only what you know to be true of your own personal knowledge (not what you have been told by someone else). If you have any corroborating evidence to offer, offer it. I know it’s easy for me, an internet stranger, to say this, but I hope you will.
I’m guessing here:
The two “other people” are hesitant simply because it’s not part of their regular routine, they have nothing to gain by being a nice guy. Unlike you, they don’t know John, and they don’t care.
1.The “old landlord” you mention may be a large corporation, and the clerk who received John’s letter asking for information from 10 years ago has no authority to write such a letter, He may just think that John is a Nigerian scammer or something..
2.The previous employer is probably unable to provide a letter of residence, because it violates corporate policy. Most companies are desperate to avoid lawsuits from ex-employees, so they never state cause of dismissal, etc.. Their legal department probably requires that all letters about ex-employees state nothing except the dates of employment. Changing that form letter would mean John’s ex-boss would have to go to his legal dept and get permission to violate written policy. Again…the boss has nothing to gain from doing John a favor, and a lot to lose by violating rules set by his own boss.
Even if a small renter: they may not be the same people as whoever owned the place 10 years ago, and they may not have the records; or even if they have them, the records may be hard to find and they don’t want to bother.
Yeah. The whole recommendation process has gone rotten and useless because the standard advice is never to say anything at all, either good or bad, because the company might conceivably get sued over it – and if they give a glowing recommendation for one employee, might get sued for not giving a glowing recommendation for somebody else.
Don’t surrender pre-emptively. That only makes your chances worse in the long run.
Do it. The other people won’t do it for the same reason grocery stores throw out expired food and even water–irrational fear of liability and litigation.
I agree - these people aren’t hesitant because they are afraid of ICE. There aren’t willing to do it because it’s not part of their normal routine ( that’s why the employer will confirm employment but nothing more* ) and because they gain nothing from it, not even the satisfaction of helping a friend.
* They very possibly could confirm more , for example that he worked five days a week in person in NYC or some other place that would not allow daily commuting over a national border.
Submitting such a letter will maybe cause your name to bubble towards the top on some idiot Trump enemies list, but you only live once. Go with your gut.
(I would probably do it.)