Diversity Visa Lottery Program for American Green Card Holders (DV Lottery)
Every year, the DOS grants 55,000 "green cards" to citizens of nations with low immigration rates to the US. A computer-generated random lottery is used to choose Diversity Visa applicants. Only online will the DOS inform a participant of their choice. To find out if they were chosen, applicants can use Entry Status Verify at www.dvprogram.state.gov to verify the status of their registration.
Additionally, Entry Status Check will confirm visa interview appointments, contact chosen participants, and give them instructions on the application process. To find out if they have been chosen to take part in the lottery, all entrants must use the Entry Status Check on the DOS website. The only way that entrants will be informed of their selection is through the Entry Status Check. The DOS will not send an email or mail any correspondence to the chosen applicants. Additionally, the only method chosen applicants will receive additional guidance on immigrant visa procedures is through the Entry Status Check.
Citizens of nations that have sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the US in the previous five years are not eligible for the Diversity Visa "green cards." No nation may obtain more than 7% of the Diversity Visa "green cards" that are available within each region in a single year.
Nations Not Allowed to Take Part in the DV-2025 Lottery Program.
Natives of the following nations are unable to qualify for the DV-2025 Lottery Program since they are the main source countries for Family-Sponsored and Employment-Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, the People's Republic of China (including those born on the mainland and in Hong Kong), Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea (South Korea), Venezuela, and Vietnam are examples of "high admission" countries. Taiwanese and Macau SAR natives are qualified.
NOTE: If your spouse was born in an eligible country and you are applying for the visa together, or if one of your parents was either born in or a legal resident of an eligible country at the time of your birth, you may still be eligible for a Diversity Visa even if you were born in one of the ineligible countries.
Registration Protocols.
The DV-2025 Lottery Program entry requirements are as follows:
Content of the Entry Form. During the registration period, the DOS will only accept completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Forms that are electronically submitted at www.dvprogram.state.gov. Regardless of who submitted the entry, all entries submitted by an application will be invalidated if multiple entries are received. The following details will be requested of the candidate on the entry form:
Content of the Entry Form. During the registration period, the DOS will only accept completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Forms that are electronically submitted at www.dvprogram.state.gov. Regardless of who submitted the entry, all entries submitted by an application will be invalidated if multiple entries are received. The following details will be requested of the candidate on the entry form:
.Full name (as it appears on your passport); birthdate; gender;
.City/town and birthplace;
.Nation where eligibility or chargeability is applicable;
.Photograph in compliance with the guidelines outlined here;
.Postal address in use;
.The nation where you now reside;
.Phone number (optional); email address; highest degree of education attained;
.City/town and birthplace;
.Nation where eligibility or chargeability is applicable;
.Photograph in compliance with the guidelines outlined here;
.Postal address in use;
.The nation where you now reside;
.Phone number (optional); email address; highest degree of education attained;
.Marital status; the number of unmarried children under the age of 21 and each child's details, including name, date of birth, gender, city/town of birth, country of birth, and photograph that satisfies the previously mentioned requirements (failing to list all eligible children will result in disqualification of the principal applicant and refusal of all visas in the case at the time of the visa interview); and the spouse's details, including name, date of birth, gender, city/town of birth, country of birth, and spouse's photograph that satisfies the previously mentioned requirements.
Photo Requirements.
Photographs of the applicant, his or her spouse, and every child under the age of 21 (including all natural children as well as legally adopted and stepchildren, except for a child who is already a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States), even if the child no longer resides with the applicant and has no intention of immigrating under the Lottery Program, must be submitted in order for the entry to be accepted. Together with the submission form, the photos must be uploaded electronically. Photos of families or groups won't be accepted. Every member of the family needs to have their own picture. Therefore, a computer file including each applicant's digital photo must be uploaded online together with the entrance form, along with the applicant's spouse and any children. You can either take a fresh digital photo or use a digital scanner to scan a photographic print to create the image file. The following requirements must be met by the digital photos that are submitted:
New Image in Digital:
1. The image must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format;
2. The image must be colour, with 24 bits per pixel (black and white or 8-bit images will not be accepted);
3. The maximum image size that can be accepted is 240 kilobytes (240KB);
4. The minimum dimensions that can be accepted are 600 pixels in width by 600 pixels in height, with the height and width being equal.
Scanning a Picture That Has Been Sent in:
1. The image must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format;
2. The scanner resolution must be at least 300 dots per inch (dpi);
3. A maximum image file size of 240 kilobytes (240KB) is permitted;
3. A maximum image file size of 240 kilobytes (240KB) is permitted;
4. A 600 by 600 pixel image resolution is required;
5. Colour photos with 24 bits per pixel are required; 8-bit or black-and-white photographs will not be allowed.
5. Colour photos with 24 bits per pixel are required; 8-bit or black-and-white photographs will not be allowed.
Extra Details:
1. The candidate, spouse, or child needs to be facing the camera;
2. The subject of the photo must have their head facing the camera and not cocked to the side, up, or down;
3. The head needs to occupy roughly half of the picture;
4. The subject of the photo should be in front of a light-colored, neutral background (photos with a very dark or patterned background will not be allowed);
5. Images where the subject's face is out of focus will not be approved.
6. Pictures of subjects wearing sunglasses or other accessories that obscure their faces will not be approved; and
2. The subject of the photo must have their head facing the camera and not cocked to the side, up, or down;
3. The head needs to occupy roughly half of the picture;
4. The subject of the photo should be in front of a light-colored, neutral background (photos with a very dark or patterned background will not be allowed);
5. Images where the subject's face is out of focus will not be approved.
6. Pictures of subjects wearing sunglasses or other accessories that obscure their faces will not be approved; and
7. Only due to religious convictions are photos of candidates wearing hats or head coverings permissible; however, the applicant's face cannot be obscured in any way.
Required Education or Work Experience.
To be eligible for a "green card" under the Diversity Visa Lottery Program, an applicant must either have completed high school or its equivalent or have worked for two years in a field requiring at least two years of training during the previous five years. The successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education in the United States or the successful completion of a formal course of elementary and secondary education in another country that is comparable to a high school education in the United States constitutes a high school education or its equivalent. Evidence of educational work experience should be presented to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officer or consular representative at the time of the visa or adjustment of status interview, not with the lottery entry. Definitions from the Department of Labour's (DOL) O*Net On-Line database will be utilised to assess eligibility based on work experience.
There is no fee to enter the DV Lottery Program with DOS.
The yearly DV Lottery Program is free to enter. The program is run by the DOS without the use of private services or outside consultants. The computer at the DOS Kentucky Consular Centre has an identical chance of selecting a qualified entry that is supplied electronically by the applicant directly or through a paid intermediary who completes the entry on their behalf. However, an applicant or a paid middleman will be eliminated from the program if they submit more than one entry. People who "win" the lottery and are processed for a "green card" based on the lottery scheme will eventually have to pay a specific DV Lottery Case processing fee to the DOS.