02.06.2026. 2:52 p.m
The prosecutor’s office and the police are checking whether Montenegrin students were deceived after they paid thousands of euros to the agency “Atic Plus” to go on the Work and Travel program to the United States of America (USA), but, as they claim, instead of a trip, a job and a visa, they only received promises, the portal Parents.me reported.
“Vijesti” tried to contact the Atic Plus agency on all available phone numbers, but the voicemail was answered, while the last known personal phone number of JB, who is the director of the agency, received a notification that it does not exist.
The aticplus.me website is not available at the moment either.
The Basic State Prosecutor’s Office (ODT) in Podgorica opened a case regarding suspicions of possible fraud in the implementation of the Work and Travel student program. From December 2025 to Friday, May 29, 12 citizen reports were submitted to the Podgorica Security Department – the Criminal Police Station for the Suppression of Economic Crime against JB, the executive director of the “@tic +” agency, i.e. Atic Plus, as well as against that legal entity, due to suspected fraud.
According to Parents.me, the students applied for the program, signed contracts and paid large sums of money, but in return, what would enable them to go to America was not completed. According to them, the date of departure is so close that they have lost almost all hopes of traveling, and they fear that they will not get back the money they paid to the agency.
While the competent institutions are collecting documentation and verifying the allegations from the reports, parents and students claim that the number of potentially injured is much higher than what has been recorded so far.
Work and Travel is a student exchange program that allows students to work and live in the US during the summer with a J-1 visa. The rules of the program are determined by the State Department, while American sponsors issue the necessary documentation and monitor the implementation of the program.
Local agencies in Montenegro and the region act as mediators between students and American sponsors, that is, they help with application, finding a job and organizing the trip.
“After payment, he stops answering calls and messages”
The mother of one of the students told Parents.me that a large number of students, including her son, faced constant pressure for payments, even though the job was not previously secured.
“After that, additional payments were requested for the visa, which was never realized. It is a large amount of money per student. During the entire process, numerous promises were made that were ultimately not fulfilled. After the payments were made, the owner of the agency stops answering calls and messages, and students and parents are blocked,” she told the portal.
She called on everyone who had a similar experience to inform themselves about their rights and to be careful when choosing Work and Travel agencies and making payments in advance, without clear guarantees and documentation.
Police: We are acting according to the order of the prosecution
The Police Administration said that the Basic State Prosecutor’s Office in Podgorica was informed of the content of the submitted reports.
“Proceedings based on the complaints in question are ongoing, and police officers are taking all necessary measures and actions in coordination with the orders of the prosecutor’s office. The necessary notifications and documentation are being collected, in accordance with the orders of the acting state prosecutors. After the completion of all official measures and actions, and after the assessment of the competent state prosecutor’s office, the applicants and the public will be informed in a timely manner of the outcome of the proceedings, and the possible qualification of the crime,” the Police Administration announced, responding to questions from the Parents.me portal.
The Basic State Prosecutor’s Office in Podgorica said that the case regarding this case was formed on May 29.
“The matter is under investigation. In order to protect the interests of the proceedings, it is not possible to announce more details for now,” stated the ODT.
Paid up to 3,000 euros
Students who claim to have had a similar experience with JB, i.e. his agency, have gathered in a Viber group with about sixty members, writes Parents.me.
A large number of them claim that they paid up to 3,000 euros to that agency for the Work and Travel program. Many, as they state, took out loans beforehand, planning to pay them back after returning from America, with the money they would earn there.
One of the students told Parents.me that he paid more than 2,700 euros to the Atic Plus agency.
“I lost all hopes of leaving on June 10, when I was supposed to,” he said.
As he claims, he paid the money in several installments for the program, plane ticket and visa fee.
“And nothing was completed, absolutely nothing. I never even received a signed copy of the contract. With constant pressure and promises that the ticket must be bought as soon as possible, that he found a favorable option, that we may run out of seats and such opportunities if we do not pay the money urgently… I agreed to pay him the money. In return, he sent me a fake ticket, and when I told him that it was fake, his threats began,” said the student.
The mother of one of the students told Parents.me that her son paid the money he earned working seasonally to the same agency in January, in order to complete all the formalities and apply for an American visa on time.
She said that at the first meeting with the executive director of the agency, everything looked “very attractive” – the program, she claims, provided for a trip to a small tourist town near Boston, a job in a hotel, provided accommodation, food and help with additional employment.
“After paying the amount of 1,600 euros, my son signed a contract with the agency, but he did not receive his copy at the time. In March, an interview was organized for him, from this perspective I am inclined to believe the alleged employer, who passes by and the agency informs him that he got the job. It all takes longer than it seems to us, but we are patient,” she said.
According to her, in mid-April, the director of the agency called with a suggestion to buy a plane ticket for 900 euros through his agency, with the promise that the money would be refunded in full if the student does not get a visa.
“It was strange to me that the ticket was bought before getting the visa, but I agreed to pay 500 euros according to the agreement with him. Well, from then on, the ‘party’ started. After a short time, JB started to pressurize and call his son almost every day, and sometimes several times a day, and ask for the rest of 400 euros. Of course, we were ready to pay it, but only when he got the appointment for the visa, because every day it became clearer to us that something was wrong,” she said.
She added that JB then, as he claims, sent a message in which he stated that he was “shocked” by their behavior because he allegedly gave his 400 euros to buy a plane ticket.
“On that, my son makes it clear to him that he will not get the money until he informs him about the appointment for the visa, because he has our 2,200 euros for which he has done nothing. There has been no sign of JB since then,” said the student’s mother.
She said that it remains to be seen whether the students will be able to recover the money.
Ministry: We are not responsible for commercial agencies
Although the beneficiaries of the Work and Travel program are higher education students, the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MPNI) has no jurisdiction in this case, nor, as they said, were students approached about it.
“The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation is not responsible for the work of commercial agencies that organize Work and Travel programs. Consequently, neither students nor parents addressed the Ministry with complaints related to the work of the Atic Plus agency or other commercial agencies that mediate in the implementation of these programs,” stated the MPNI.
They explained that they have no competence in relation to licensing, work control or keeping records of commercial agencies that organize or mediate in the implementation of the Work and Travel program.
“The tasks of registration, supervision and control of the work of such economic entities are not within the scope of work of this Ministry, but of other competent institutions, in accordance with the current regulations. Given that the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation does not have jurisdiction in the field of work of commercial agencies that organize Work and Travel programs, it does not prescribe or implement protection mechanisms for the users of the services of those agencies. In case of possible disputes, irregularities or suspicions of illegal behavior, students can exercise their rights before the institutions that are responsible for supervising the work of economic entities and proceeding with citizens’ applications”, the Ministry concluded.
The Student Parliament of the University of Montenegro did not respond to the Parents.me portal as to whether they were aware of this case.
Parents.me announced that the Atic Plus agency did not want to comment on the accusations of alleged fraud and submitted reports, even though the questions were submitted to them four days earlier.
The US Embassy in Montenegro told that portal that they will do their best to respond as soon as possible to questions regarding suspected abuses in the implementation of this program.
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