United States Diversity Lottery, Explained 2024
Deprecated: preg_split(): Passing null to parameter #3 ($limit) of type int is deprecated in /home3/uniquhn4/public_html/wp-content/themes/jannah/framework/functions/post-functions.php on line 805
The Diversity Immigrant Visa program is controlled by the Department of State as a method for expanding the variety of the foreigners coming to live in the United States. Every year, the Diversity Visa program permits 50,000 haphazardly chosen individuals — just from nations that don’t send numerous foreigners to the United States — to acquire long-lasting residency (usually called a “green card”). A way for people and families in any case wouldn’t have some approach to lawfully move to the United States to get a green card. Entering the Diversity Visa lottery (otherwise known as green card lottery) includes finishing up a basic structure on the web, and it costs nothing. You can enter the lottery consistently from early October through early November. The victors are chosen indiscriminately by a PC, and they and their close families get green cards.
Avoiding Scams
Unfortunately, the Diversity Visa program is sometimes abused by scammers as a way to defraud hopeful immigrants. Here are a couple of tips to avoid common scams related to the Diversity Visa:
- Entering the Diversity Visa lottery is free. Anyone claiming to collect a fee on the Department of State’s behalf is scamming aspiring immigrants.
- The Department of State does not notify winners either by mail or by email; the only way to know if you’ve been selected is to check your application using Entrant Status Check.
Entering the Diversity Visa lottery is like entering any other lottery—the odds of winning aren’t high—but if you’re lucky, it can be a way to come to the United States even if you don’t have any family or employment contacts. If you’re married to a U.S. citizen, though, applying for a marriage green card is almost certainly the better option.
Diversity Visa Eligibility:
There are two main requirements when applying for a Diversity Visa:
1. COUNTRY OF BIRTH
To be qualified for the Diversity Visa, you probably been brought into the world in a country that sent under 50,000 settlers to the United States throughout recent years. There is some yearly variety in the nations that are qualified, however Canada, China, India, Mexico, and the United Kingdom never make the rundown, on the grounds that these nations all send an enormous number of foreigners to the United States. For the 2024 application time frame, nationals from the accompanying nations were not qualified to apply:
- Bangladesh
- Brazil
- Canada
- China (including Hong Kong SAR)
- Colombia
- Dominican Republic
- El Salvador
- Haiti
- Honduras
- India
- Jamaica
- Mexico
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- South Korea
- United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories
- Venezuela
- Vietnam
For more information, the State Department provides a list of all eligible countries. If your native country is not eligible, there are still two ways you could qualify for the Diversity Visa:
- If your spouse was born in an eligible country, you can apply with your spouse and choose your spouse’s birth country on your application.
- If neither of your parents were legal residents in your own country of birth, you can choose your mother or father’s country of birth.
2. EDUCATION
The second major requirement for Diversity Visa applicants is that you must have at least a high school degree, or at least two years of work experience within the past five years in a profession that requires at least two years of training, as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Diversity Visa Timeline
The winners of the green card lottery are typically notified 7 months after submitting their entry. Once selected, it can take up to 14 months to be scheduled for your interview and receive your visa, depending on how soon you apply for your visa. For example, if you applied for the 2023 green card lottery during the registration period (Oct-Nov 2021), the winners would be announced sometime in May 2022. You would only be allowed to apply for your visa during fiscal year 2024, which is from Oct. 1, 2023 through Sept. 30, 2024. The sooner you apply during that year, the sooner you will be scheduled for your visa interview and be issued your visa. Once you have your visa, you must enter the United States on or before the expiration date printed on your visa. A Diversity Visa is typically valid for up to 6 months from the date of it was issued.
Diversity Visa Cost
There is no fee to enter the green card lottery. However, if you’re selected and choose to apply for a Diversity Visa, you’ll need to pay the mandatory green card application fees. Once selected, you’ll receive information and details of the required fees on the Diversity Visa website at dvprogram.state.gov.
How to Enter the Green Card Lottery
Participating in the lottery is relatively easy. You fill out a form on the State Department’s website while it is available, from early October through early November. Most of the questions are easy to understand; however, there are a few places where these extra suggestions may be helpful:
- For “country of birth,” list the country you were born in, regardless of where you currently live. If the country has a different name now than it did when you were born, use the country’s current name.
- For “country of eligibility,” list either your country of birth, or—if you qualify to use your spouse’s or your parents’ birth countries—list that country. The country you currently live in is irrelevant for this question.
- Your spouse: You must list your spouse, even if he or she doesn’t live with you and does not intend to immigrate with you.
- Your children: You must list all of your biological children and all of your adopted children, no matter how old they are. You should also list all of your step-children under age 21, even if you are no longer married to their parent.
You’ll also need to include a recent photo (taken within the past 6 months) of you, your spouse, and your children. Follow the same photo requirements as for a green card application. Once you submit your application, it’s essential to keep your confirmation number, because this is the only way to know if you’ve been selected
How do I apply for a Green Card in the Diversity Visa Lottery ?
Applications for the USA Green Card Lottery are accepted online only. In the past, paper applications with signatures and attached passport photos were accepted. In 2003, this process was changed by the United States Government and applicants may only apply online now. We have streamlined the online registration process, making it a fast, secure and reliable three step registration process that takes around 15 minutes for each applicant.
The Online USA Green Card Lottery Application Process:
- Check if you qualify
- Pay the administrative fee for our services
- Receive registration number and password to your account
- Log into to your account to complete/change your information
- Provide/upload photos of yourself and any co-applicant
- We will crop and resize your photos so that they meet the diversity visa lottery requirements
- We will submit your complete and error free application
- Check online, if you won your Diversity Visa Green Card
- Winners are notified by email
- Winners receive advice on how to file the formal visa application, at no additional cost
- Winners receive interview preparation advice, at no additional cost
- We Accept Registration 365 Days a Year
- Free Online Support by our USA Immigration Experts
USA Diversity Lottery Guarantees:
The Diversity Visa Lottery Program is the most generous immigrant visa program in the world, with up to 55,000 Permanent Resident Cards allocated yearly. If a person is unable to qualify for family, refugee or employment visa in the United States, this is the only option they have to immigrate to the United States of America. While luck is certainly a key factor in the initial draw, many important factors that affect the applicant’s chances of winning a Permanent Resident Card can be controlled. These include speed and a precise adherence to the programs rules and regulations. To ensure your success, our USA Immigration Experts have detailed knowledge of the strategies and regulations of this program and pay close attention to the potential legal vulnerabilities of all applicants. Let us help you reach your dream of becoming an American resident today!
Selection and Notification
The winners of the Diversity Visa lottery are chosen 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 7% of the Diversity Visas available in any given year.
Although the exact dates vary, people who have entered the Diversity Visa lottery can check the status of their application beginning in early May the year following their application, by using the Entrant Status Check link on the Diversity Visa webpage. This is why it’s so important to save that confirmation number: Without it, you won’t be able to see if you’ve been selected or not.
If you’re selected in the green card lottery, you and your family members will have to meet the same requirements as any other U.S. green card applicant. Certain types of criminal records could make you ineligible for a green card. There are also some medical conditions that could make it difficult or impossible to get a green card.
Deprecated: preg_split(): Passing null to parameter #3 ($limit) of type int is deprecated in /home3/uniquhn4/public_html/wp-content/themes/jannah/framework/functions/post-functions.php on line 805
