AssistPoint: reviews & investigation
AssistPoint sells EU passports and Canadian residency permits with promises of guaranteed results. No prices published. License numbers? Nowhere to be found. Their "positive reviews" live almost entirely on websites they appear to operate themselves. So are they legit or not? We dug in.
Who is AssistPoint and what do they actually do
Services: Romanian, Bulgarian, and Polish citizenship via repatriation; EU residency permits (France, Serbia, Turkey); Canadian permanent residency; startup visas; investment immigration; document translation and apostille
Founded: 2008 (company claim) / First confirmed web presence: March 20, 2012 per Web Archive
Lead lawyer: Pavel Kurentsov (PhD in law, RGUP graduate 2005)
Moscow office: Leningradsky Ave., 39, Skylight Business Centre
Kyiv office: Nauky Ave., 3, Sunflower Business Centre
Bucharest office: Calea Plevnei 159, Business Garden Bucharest
Email: [email protected]
Website: assistpoint.ru (WHOIS)
Key finding: The brand "AssistPoint" does not appear directly in Russian company registries at the listed Moscow address. Operations appear to run through a connected entity: OOO "Tsentr po Voprosam Migratsii" (INN 7733366369, OGRN 1217700114510), directed by Elena Kudryashova. If you sign a contract, check which legal entity name appears on it.
Trust Score: AssistPoint
Based on 1.38 / 5 from aggregated data points: transparency, licensing, pricing, and independent client feedback
Who's behind AssistPoint: checking the paperwork
The brand "AssistPoint" at Leningradsky Ave., 39, Moscow does not match any direct entry in the Russian Federal Tax Service registry under that exact name. This isn't necessarily fraud, but it does mean you may be signing a contract with a company whose legal name differs from the brand you searched for.
Researchers linked the company to OOO "Tsentr po Voprosam Migratsii", registered with INN 7733366369 and OGRN 1217700114510. The director of record is Elena Kudryashova. AssistPoint's activities are also associated with the MigrationUnion and MigrationMap projects. The domain migrationunion.com was first registered January 27, 2022.
The Bucharest address (Calea Plevnei 159, Business Garden Bucharest) turns out to be shared with at least four other immigration firms: International Expert, Altapatri, Trust Group, and Aristipp. A single building housing five competing firms at the same address is, at minimum, a shared co-working space, not a dedicated team office.
The Web Archive first crawled assistpoint.ru on March 20, 2012, which contradicts the company's claim of operating since 2008. Four years is a notable gap. They may have operated under a different domain or name before 2012, or the 2008 date may simply be unverifiable marketing. There is no WHOIS registration date publicly available for assistpoint.ru to confirm either way.
On the licensing front: AssistPoint claims accreditations from EU and Canadian governments. Canada's immigration consultant registry (RCIC) is public. Search the RCIC database yourself. No AssistPoint registration appeared there in our check. EU licensing requirements vary by country, but no registration numbers are published on their website. That's not unusual for a Russian-market firm, but it should give you pause if you're relying on those claims.
AssistPoint risk analysis: 5 things to know
| Area | Risk | What we found | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | high | No prices on the website at all. Researcher Alexandr Krylov reported that written inquiries about costs go unanswered; the company only discusses fees on phone calls or in person. | You won't know the cost until you're already sitting across from their consultant. Get everything in writing before that meeting ends. |
| Contract | medium | A formal legal contract is used. But the terms, including any refund clauses, are not published. You'd only see them at signing. | Request a draft contract before your consultation. Read every clause on refunds and liability. If they refuse to send it in advance, that's your signal. |
| Timelines | medium | The website promises fast processing. Romanian citizenship via repatriation realistically takes 1 to 4 years depending on the case. No specific timelines are committed to in writing anywhere we found. | Treat any "fast" promises as a sales pitch. Ask for a written timeline with milestones in the contract. |
| Licensing | high | The company claims EU and Canadian government accreditations. No license numbers are published. RCIC database check returned no results for AssistPoint. EU licensing for the Bucharest office could not be independently verified. | Ask for the specific license or registration number before paying. Verify it yourself on the issuing authority's public database. |
| Refunds | high | The company claims "guaranteed results." No public refund policy exists. Immigration outcomes depend on government decisions that no private firm can legally guarantee. | Demand a written refund clause covering denial scenarios. If the contract doesn't include one, walk away or consult an independent lawyer before signing. |
AssistPoint: red flags and green lights
| ✅ | Real, identifiable lead lawyer. Pavel Kurentsov (born 1982, Saint Petersburg; RGUP law graduate 2005; PhD in law) publishes expert articles on vc.ru, 66.ru, and other professional platforms under his own name. That's verifiable, which puts AssistPoint well ahead of anonymous-run operations. |
| ✅ | Not in any scam database. We checked baxov.net, plohotron.online, moshennik.eu, telltrue.net, scamadviser.com, proverj.com, and seoseed.ru. AssistPoint doesn't appear in any of them as a fraud case. |
| ✅ | Confirmed online presence since 2012. The Web Archive snapshot from March 20, 2012 confirms a real, operating website at that time. This isn't a site launched last month to take your money and disappear. |
| ✅ | Formal legal contracts used. The company does not take cash handshakes. Work is done under a signed legal agreement, which gives you at least some basis for a dispute if things go wrong. |
| ✅ | No criminal cases or court judgments found. Open court registries and anti-fraud databases returned no criminal proceedings or significant civil judgments against the company or its named principals. |
| ⚠️ | Reputation managed through satellite review sites. Positive reviews for AssistPoint are concentrated almost entirely on specialist platforms: Migrating.pro, MigraTop, Worldcompanies.ru, RuTuristos.ru, and Bizocenka.com. These sites also feature similarly structured positive reviews for AssistPoint's direct competitors. This is a known reputation management pattern, not independent user feedback. |
| ⚠️ | Zero prices published anywhere. The website has no pricing page, no range, no "starting from" figure. When a researcher emailed asking for costs, the company sent a form response and insisted on a phone call. Hidden pricing is a classic pressure-sale setup. |
| ⚠️ | Bucharest office shared with four other immigration firms. Calea Plevnei 159 (Business Garden Bucharest) also houses International Expert, Altapatri, Trust Group, and Aristipp. This may be legitimate co-working, but if five competing firms share one address, it raises questions about how much dedicated local expertise each actually has. |
| ⚠️ | Founding date cannot be independently confirmed. The company says 2008. The earliest web evidence is March 2012. A four-year gap without any archived trace is unusual for an active commercial firm. |
| ⚠️ | Social media activity largely frozen since 2023. The YouTube channel (494 subscribers, 24 videos) posted last in February 2023. The VK page (25 subscribers) posted last in July 2023. Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Telegram accounts were not found. For a company claiming years of active operation, this is a thin digital footprint. |
| ❌ | "Guaranteed results" claims are legally impossible. No private immigration firm can guarantee a government decision. Any company that says otherwise is either misleading you or burying the real terms in contract fine print. This is not a minor marketing exaggeration; it's the core of how people lose money in this industry. |
| ❌ | Claimed EU and Canadian government licenses are unverifiable. The company states it holds official accreditations. No license numbers appear on the website or in any third-party source. The Canadian RCIC public database has no AssistPoint listing. You cannot confirm what you cannot see. |
| ❌ | Zero reviews on major independent platforms. Trustpilot, Google Maps, BBB, Otzovik, and Irecommend all returned no results for AssistPoint. A company operating since at least 2012 should have left some trace on these platforms. The absence is as informative as the absence of pricing. |
| ❌ | No published refund policy. If immigration authorities deny your application after AssistPoint takes payment, there is no public document describing what you'd be entitled to recover. "Guaranteed results" without a refund policy is a one-sided arrangement that favors the firm entirely. |
| ❌ | Brand name doesn't match any clear registry entry. The legal entity behind AssistPoint appears to be OOO "Tsentr po Voprosam Migratsii" (INN 7733366369). If you sign a contract in the name "AssistPoint" without confirming the underlying legal entity, pursuing any dispute becomes significantly harder. |
AssistPoint vs. alternatives: which gives you more for your money
The highlighted column is the company under review. best means best on that parameter; worst means most problematic; mixed means unclear.
| Parameter | AssistPoint ★ | Licensed immigration attorney (EU/US based) | DIY (self-filing) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Published pricing | None worst | Usually yes, or free initial quote transparent | Government fee schedules are public best |
| Estimated cost | Unknown until consultation mixed | $1,500 to $8,000+ depending on case | $200 to $1,500 in government fees only cheapest |
| License verification | Not publicly verifiable worst | Bar association or RCIC registry, searchable verifiable | N/A |
| Refund policy | Not published worst | Varies by attorney; ask before engaging mixed | No third-party fees to lose safest |
| Independent reviews | Zero on mainstream platforms worst | Google, Avvo, Lawyers.com, bar ratings verifiable | N/A |
| Office presence | 3 offices (Moscow, Kyiv, Bucharest shared space) mixed | Varies; many work remotely with country-specific partners | None needed |
What to check before paying AssistPoint anything
- Contract: Request a draft contract before your first in-person meeting. Read every clause on refunds, liability, and what "guaranteed results" actually means in writing. If they won't send a draft in advance, take that as useful information about how they operate.
- Legal entity: Ask for the full company name, INN, and OGRN that will appear on your contract. Verify the INN at egrul.nalog.ru and check for any court debt or open cases at kad.arbitr.ru. This takes under ten minutes.
- Licensing: Ask for the specific license or accreditation number they claim from EU or Canadian authorities. For Canada, verify it on the RCIC public registry. Don't accept "we are accredited" as a sufficient answer.
- Pricing: Get the full cost in writing, itemized, before signing anything. Immigration programs involve government fees, translation costs, notary fees, and attorney time. Each of these should be listed separately so you know what you're actually paying for.
- Refund clause: Insist that the contract specifies what percentage of fees you recover if the immigration authority denies your application. A firm confident in its work will agree to this. One that refuses should prompt serious second thoughts.
- Who files in the target country: Ask for the full name, license number, and direct contact of the lawyer or registered consultant who will actually handle your file in Romania, Bulgaria, Canada, or wherever you're applying. "Our local partner" without a name attached is not an acceptable answer.
- References: Request contact details for two or three past clients who completed the same program you're considering. A company with genuine successful cases will have clients willing to speak. Anonymized testimonials on a website prove nothing.
- Payment method: Never pay to an individual's personal card or bank account. Payment should go to the legal entity named in your contract, via bank transfer or card to that entity's business account. Ask for a receipt that ties the payment to a specific service and contract number.
Frequently asked questions about AssistPoint
Is AssistPoint a scam?
AssistPoint does not appear in any scam or fraud database we checked, and no criminal cases have been filed against the company or its named principals. But a 1.38 out of 5 rating, zero reviews on independent platforms, unverifiable license claims, and no published refund policy are serious concerns. The risk here is less "they'll take your money and vanish" and more "the terms won't be what you expected." That's a different kind of costly.
What immigration services does AssistPoint offer?
AssistPoint focuses on citizenship via repatriation (Romania, Bulgaria, Poland), EU residency permits (France, Serbia, Turkey), Canadian permanent residency, startup visas, and investment immigration programs. They also handle document translation, apostilles, and application filing support. All of this is within the standard scope of immigration consulting, but "offering the service" and "delivering the result" are two different things.
How much does AssistPoint charge?
There are no prices on the website. The company only discusses fees after a personal consultation or phone call. One researcher who emailed asking for cost ranges received a form response redirecting them to a phone call. Get the full cost in writing before any agreement is signed, ideally itemized by service component.
Is AssistPoint licensed to provide immigration consulting in Canada or the EU?
The company claims EU and Canadian government accreditations, but publishes no license numbers. For Canada, authorized immigration consultants must register with RCIC (Regulatory Council of Immigration Consultants), and that database is publicly searchable. Our check returned no results for AssistPoint. EU licensing varies by country. Always ask for the specific registration number and check it yourself on the relevant authority's website before paying.
Who is Pavel Kurentsov and can I verify his credentials?
Pavel Kurentsov is the named head lawyer at AssistPoint. According to available records, he was born in 1982 in Saint Petersburg, graduated from RGUP (Russian State University of Justice) in 2005, and holds a PhD in law. He publishes under his own name on vc.ru and other professional platforms, which makes him more verifiable than the unnamed "experts" most of his competitors feature. That said, holding a Russian law degree doesn't automatically mean he's licensed to practice immigration law in Romania, Canada, or other target countries. Ask specifically about his credentials in the jurisdiction where your application will be filed.
Does AssistPoint guarantee a refund if my application is denied?
No public refund policy was found. The website mentions "guaranteed results," but no document spelling out what that guarantee actually covers, or what you'd receive if authorities deny your application, is available anywhere we looked. This needs to be addressed in writing in your contract before you pay a single ruble or dollar. Don't sign without it.
Where can I leave a review about AssistPoint?
You can read and submit reviews about AssistPoint at proverj.com/assistpoint/, an independent platform focused on immigration company feedback. Migration.us.com also tracks reputation data for immigration firms serving Russian-speaking communities worldwide. Your experience, positive or negative, helps other people make more informed decisions.
Expert verdict: AssistPoint
I've been in the US immigration business since 2011, and I've worked alongside hundreds of firms across the former Soviet space. AssistPoint fits a familiar profile: a company that markets itself aggressively to people who are desperate for a way out, with big promises and deliberately opaque pricing.
On the positive side: Pavel Kurentsov is a real person. He has a traceable academic background, a law PhD, and publishes under his real name. That's genuinely better than the anonymous "teams of experts" you see at competing operations. And the company has been online since at least 2012, with no fraud convictions and no appearance in blacklists. That matters.
What concerns me here is the gap between what they claim and what can be verified. They say they hold EU and Canadian government accreditations, but publish no license numbers. In my experience, a firm that actually holds those credentials would put the numbers on its website immediately, because it's their strongest sales tool. The fact that they don't is telling.
The Bucharest office address shared with four other immigration firms is also something I'd want explained before handing over any money. Business Garden Bucharest may be a perfectly legitimate co-working space, but if your Romanian citizenship case is being handled by a rotating desk at a shared address, you deserve to know that upfront.
The rating of 1.38 out of 5 reflects serious, consistent transparency failures. That score isn't based on criminal evidence; it's based on what a responsible consumer should be able to check and can't. No prices. No independent reviews. No published refund terms. No verifiable license numbers. Each one of those gaps is a decision AssistPoint made. Put together, they form a pattern you should take seriously.
My recommendation: if you're considering AssistPoint, don't sign anything in the first meeting. Take the draft contract home, have it reviewed by an independent lawyer, and verify the legal entity in the Russian registry before transferring any funds. If they push back on those reasonable requests, you have your answer.
Don't rely on their marketing alone
The reviews AssistPoint highlights on their own site use changed names "for confidentiality." Real clients on independent platforms are a different story. Read what people actually experienced before you commit your documents, money, and time to this company.
Read real reviews about AssistPoint