There have been quite a few posts in relation to schemes in the US which attract punters due to the ability to get turbo prop time. Whilst some appear to give you exactly what they state others appear to have fine print which in some cases can exclude you from getting your hands on that nice big turbo prop. The usual tricks I have read about are you not achieving certain marks or having favourable reports from instructors or as you say some sort of immigration/visa pitfall.
Since you would have usually paid a premium to attend these schools in the first place with the bonus being TP time then you could be left out of pocket compared to going to any zillion number of US FTO's.
This would be my suggestion:
- Since you know the name of the FTO you are looking at do a search and see what pops up. Search also on TP time and hour building etc etc. There are also loads of posts on working for free which you should read
- Check JAA FCL for the aircraft that the school says you will fly in and make sure if qualifies as multi crew
- Get hold of the contract (if any) that you will sign up to with the school and make sure there is no fine print in relation to the TP time etc. Also what if they change the TP midway through to something which is not JAA multi crew approved?
- Find out if you have to pay up front or can make progress payments throughout - this will minimise any loss to you should the TP time turn out to be a scam
There you go. Some thoughts for what it is worth.