Emigration tale of a car turns to immigration story of a mechanic

This 2022 episode from Planet Money will 100% keep you entertained on your commute.

It’s an emigration story about a car. Seriously. Podcaster Scott Gurian approached Planet Money with a story about a new-looking white Lexus SUV from New Jersey that he happened to stumble across in a mechanic’s parking lot in Turkmenistan. When Gurian talked to the English-speaking (! yes ! in Turkmenistan!) mechanic, Oraz, he learned that a lot of damaged U.S. cars end up in overseas.

The podcast largely focuses on the Lexus itself: How did it end up in Turkmenistan? Who’d it belong to? And why did they get rid of this almost new car?

Those questions are answered. And they are interesting.

But the show also has an immigration twist. The mechanic, Oraz, applied for an won a diversity visa. Gurian, the podcaster, became his immigration sponsor. And Oraz, his wife, and three kids now live in NJ themselves. Oraz has a job in an auto body shop but dreams of getting into the damaged car market, selling and shipping cars to Turkmenistan.

A great diversity visa example for class, should you need one. A great way to go through the elements of INA § 203(c)(2) requirements of education/work experience.

-KitJ