Tips to identify Scam in Work on Cruises

It is impossible to know about all types of cruise job scams. Unfortunately it is not until a few unknown job seekers are stripped of their money that finally someone reports them and the scammer can be added to the list provided by cruise lines. Here are some tips to help you avoid falling as a victim of the cruise work scam.

  1. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t. How quickly you find a job on a cruise depends on the positions available on board. Therefore when someone or an agency says that you will get the job as fast as you send the payment, that should be a red alert that that is not correct.
  2. Legitimate selection agencies do not request money from those who apply. This is one of the rules to understand if the agency is a scammer or not. Those who hire and other legitimate selection agencies do not take commission from those who apply to be considered for a cruise job. Nor do they ask for money in advance for uniforms and medical exam expenses.
  3. Reliable agencies do not send emails offering a job before the application is completed. In some job scams, an initial email is sent by the scammers offering a cruise job. Once the potential crew member responds to this offer, they are asked to complete the application. This fake application searches for private information on the background of the potential employee that will be used for criminal purposes.
  4. Those who apply do not need an immigration lawyer or a Green Card. Scammers can provide the applicant with a false “employment contract” or “an employment letter.” Then, in subsequent correspondence, they expect the applicant to send a copy of their passport plus $$$ USD for the services of an immigration lawyer to process a work permit. This is not required nor is it legal.
  5. Scam websites for cruise jobs are not professional. A test in itself is the website. Obvious errors in writing and grammar, poor English and punctuation errors indicate that the page and the agency are not legitimate. Also, is the page plagued with Google ads? Are the photos used on the site of poor quality or outdated? These are alerts.
  6. Understand that email account can be fraudulent. You do not want to send your resume and personal information through an account used by a scammer. To prevent this mistake, you should know that the email addresses ending in Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, AOL or any other free email account are not used by companies or agencies that have their own domains and email accounts.
  7. Become familiar with the official contracting agencies of the cruise lines. Many scammers of fraudulent cruise jobs use a name or email address that is similar to the cruise line. They still use the names of agencies that are similar to that of the contracting agency. Pay attention to those details when you receive correspondence. Better yet, contact agencies or use authorized email addresses by lines and cruises so that you are in trouble.

The end result is this. Please use the selection agencies that are listed as authorized by the same cruise lines. Do not accept a job offer from an agency that fraudulently submits a cruise line. And, just send your CV and personal information through a secure online application that is sent to a legitimate email address.