Important Notices
On Wednesday, April 22, President Trump signed a proclamation suspending entry into the United States of certain immigrants who present risk to the U.S. labor market during the economic recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak. The proclamation was effective at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Thursday, April 23. It was continued by President Trump on June 22, and will expire on December 31, 2020, unless continued. Applicants for immigrant visas covered by the proclamation, including Diversity Visa 2020 (DV-2020) applicants, who have not been issued an immigrant visa as of April 23 are subject to the proclamation’s restrictions unless eligible for an exception. No valid visas will be revoked under this proclamation.
Green Card Lottery
The Green Card Lottery, officially called Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, is created for people who come from countries with a low immigration rate to the United States. Every year the United States Government issues thousands of Green Cards through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, the Green Card Lottery. Applicants are chosen randomly by a computer-generated drawing.
Whether you wish to enter Green Card Lottery, or want more information on any of the following: seeking information on Marriage to U.S. citizen, Green Card through Employment, Green Card through Investment, Green card as a Special Immigrant, or if you wish to Replace Green Card or update information, our partners can assist.
Program Overview
The Department of State annually administers the statutorily-mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa Program. Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provides for a class of immigrants known as “diversity immigrants” from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. For Fiscal Year 2021, 55,000 Diversity Visas (DVs) will be available. There is no cost to register for the DV program. Applicants who are selected in the program (selectees) must meet simple but strict eligibility requirements to qualify for a diversity visa. The Department of State determines selectees through a randomized computer drawing. The Department of State distributes diversity visas among six geographic regions, and no single country may receive more than seven percent of the available DVs in any one year. For DV-2021, natives of the following countries are not eligible to apply, because more than 50,000 natives of these countries immigrated to the United States in the previous five years:
- Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.
- Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible.
There is no cost to register for the DV Program. The official website for the State Department states they “strongly encouraged applicants” to complete the entry form yourself, without a “Visa Consultant,” “Visa Agent,” or other facilitator who offers to help. If somebody else helps you, you should be present when your entry is prepared so that you can provide the correct answers to the questions and retain the confirmation page and your unique confirmation number.
