CCCS sanctions immigration consultancy firms over misleading tactics

The case centres on three firms Paul, VED, and SAVA Immigrations.

The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) has obtained court orders against several immigration consultancy businesses due to unfair trade practices.

The case centres on Paul Immigrations, VED Immigrations, and SAVA Immigrations, ran by the same person.

According to the CCCS, all three firms misled consumers about the urgency of applying for Singapore permanent residency (PR) and falsely guaranteed successful applications.

The probe began after the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) received multiple complaints about Paul Immigrations’ sales practices.

Investigators later found that the business was shut down, but continued the same tactics through VED Immigrations and later through SAVA Immigrations.

All three firms used online forms claiming to assess PR eligibility, but instead of providing results, staff would call respondents to arrange “free consultations.”

During these sessions, CCCS says, sales staff made unfounded claims about tightening PR rules and high competition and promised guaranteed approval if clients paid for their services.

Customers were charged up to $10,000.

The court found no evidence to support the claims and has ordered Cheng and the firms to stop such practices, publicise the court orders online and in national newspapers, inform potential customers about the ruling before signing contracts, and notify CCCS of any changes to their business operations or the mastermind’s role.