The Diversity Visa Program – A Green Card Lottery

The Immigration Act of 1990 created the Diversity Visa lottery (a green card lottery) as a dedicated way for individuals and families who otherwise would not have any way to immigrate to the U.S. to get a green card legally. The lottery is administered by the U.S. Department of State (DOS). Each year 55,000 visas are allocated randomly to nationals from countries that have sent less than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. in the previous five years. Of the 55,000 visas, up to 5,000 are made available for use under the NACARA program; thus, reducing the actual annual limit to 50,000. Every year, the Diversity Visa program allows 50,000 randomly selected people (only from countries that do not send many immigrants to the U.S.) to obtain a green card. Eligible countries are grouped into six geographic regions: (1) Europe; (2) Asia; (3) Africa; (4) Oceania; (5) North America (excluding Mexico); and (6) South America, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.

Entering the Diversity Visa lottery involves filling out a free simple form online. Individuals can enter the lottery every year from early October through early November. Eligible applicants are limited to only one entry per registration period and will be disqualified for submitting multiple entries. The winners are selected at random by a computer program, with a certain number of visas allocated to each region of the world and no one country receiving more than seven percent of the Diversity Visas available in any given year.

To be eligible for a diversity visa, an individual must have at least a high-school education (or its equivalent) or have, within the past five years, a minimum of two years working in a profession which requires at least two years of training or experience, as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor. An individual also must have been born in a country that qualify for the diversity visa program (a country that sent less than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the past five years (there is some yearly variation in the eligible countries, but Mexico, India, China, Canada, and the United Kingdom never make a list because these countries send a large number of immigrants to the U.S.). Besides, an eligible applicant must be admissible to the U.S. under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Spouses and unmarried minor children of the principal applicant may also enter as dependents.

Winners of the green card lottery and their dependents have a short period of time to file the necessary paperwork and undergo thorough screening before a visa is issued. The screening includes identity confirmations using biometrics, criminal and security background checks, cross checks with various watch-lists, and in-person interviews. These requirements and security procedures also apply for any family members (spouses and minor children) whom the lottery winner petitions to bring to the U.S. Certain types of criminal records and medical conditions could make it difficult or even impossible to get a green card.

How to enter the lottery?

Participating in the lottery is free and relatively easy. Unfortunately, the Diversity Visa lottery is often abused by scammers who defraud applicants. Thus it is very important to remember: the DOS does not collect any fee for entering the lottery — it is free of charge for all applicants; the DOS does not notify lottery winners, and the only way to find out whether the applicant has been selected is to check the application using Entrant Status Check.

To enter the lottery, the applicant needs to fill out a form on the State Department’s website (https://dvlottery.state.gov) while it is available from early October through early November. Most of the questions in the form are easy to understand; however, there are a few questions where the following suggestions may be beneficial:

For “country of birth,” the applicant needs to enter the country where he/she was born in, regardless of where the applicant currently lives. If the country has a different name now than it did when the applicant was born, the country’s current name should be listed.

For “country of eligibility,” the applicant should list either his/her country of birth or, if the applicant qualifies to use his/her spouse’s or parents’ birth countries, the applicant should list that country. For example, if the applicant’s native country is not eligible to enter the lottery that year, there are still two ways an individual could qualify for the Diversity Visa. (1) If the applicant’s spouse was born in an eligible country, the applicant can apply with his/her spouse and choose the spouse’s birth country on the application. (2) If neither of the applicant’s parents was legal residents in the applicant’s own country of birth, the applicant might choose his/her mother or father’s country of birth. The country the applicant currently lives in is irrelevant for the “country of eligibility” question.

“Your spouse”: The applicant must list his/her spouse, even if the spouse does not live with the applicant and even if the spouse does not intend to immigrate.

Your children: The applicant must list all of his/her biological children, all adopted children, no matter how old they are, and all step-children under age 21, even if the applicant is no longer married to their parent.

Once the applicant submits the application, it is important to keep a confirmation number, because that number is the only way to know if the applicant has been selected or not. The status of the application can be checked in early May the year following their application. To check the status, the applicant should use only the Entrant Status Check link on the Diversity Visa webpage (https://dvlottery.state.gov) by entering his/her confirmation number.

Every layout comes with the latest social features built in. Readers will be able to easily share posts on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, view how many people have liked a post, made comments and more. With the Wix, building your online community has never been easier.

What happens if the applicant is selected in the green card lottery?

The winning applicant will get a numerical rank, which will tell him/her when to apply for the visa. At the end of July, applicants can check the State Department’s visa bulletin (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin.html) to see when they can submit their application. The first visas are available on October 1, the first day of the U.S. government’s fiscal year, but applicants can submit their applications up to ninety days ahead of time. It is essential to start the process of applying for a green card as soon as possible. There are two reasons to act fast: the most important reason is that the application must be processed and the visa must be issued by the end of the fiscal year for which the applicant was selected. Furthermore, there are more people selected for the Diversity Visa than there are available visas, and so if the applicant waits until the last month, there may not be any visas left.

If the winning applicant is outside the U.S., he/she will apply for a green card through the U.S. consulate in the home country by submitting form DS-260 with the National Visa Center. Once the application is processed, it will be forwarded to the U.S. consulate, which will schedule a visa interview. If all the requirements are met, the applicant may be approved for the immigrant visa at the interview.

If the winning applicant is legally in the U.S. in a non-immigrant status, he/she will apply for a green card through United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) by filing Form I-485.

It is almost always worthwhile to apply for the Diversity Visa lottery. Good luck!