The U.S. government offers a U.S. Green Card Lottery Program, which allows people to win permanent legal residency in the U.S. Many people understand how a regular lottery works: you enter a drawing and if you are selected at random, you win a prize. Lotteries allow some lucky winners to win prizes such as cars. Most states have cash lotteries as well, but the Green Card lottery is not like one of those lotteries.
The U.S. Green Card Lottery Program is officially known as the Diversity Visa Lottery Program or the DV Lottery Program. Each year, this program allows 55,000 applicants to receive Green Cards (legal permanent residency in the U.S.) as part of a random lottery selection process. If you apply for the program, you might be able to secure one of these Green Cards.
USAGreencardlottery.org helps you confirm your eligibility to participate in the program and also helps you prepare your entry. Upon successfully completing your application, the website will submit your entry on the official DV Lottery website during the submission period. You won’t need to worry about a slow internet, too much traffic to the official site, rejected photos, or any such problem that could keep you from being able to submit your entry successfully.
The 1996 Immigration Act created the Immigrant Diversity Visa Lottery Program in order to create greater diversity in immigration. Many U.S. immigrants come from a few geographic regions and in many cases these regions remain the same year after year. The DV Lottery Program is designed to allow immigrants from other regions to have a chance to immigrate to the U.S.
The 55,000 Green Cards available as part of the DV Lottery Program are distributed among six different world geographic areas, with more Green Cards going to those areas where little immigration to the U.S. takes place. Any country that has sent at least 55,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the past five years is not eligible for the lottery program. No country may receive more than 7% of the 55,000 green cards slated for one year. Green Cards offered through the Diversity Visa Lottery Program are awarded through a random computer draw.
To qualify for the Diversity Visa Lottery Program, you must live in a qualifying country. You must also meet either a training requirement or an education requirement. If you have two years of training or work experience or a high school education, you may meet this requirement in most fields of work. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website has a detailed list of eligibility requirements as well as more details about the program.
You will need to apply online for the DV Lottery Program on the official U.S. Department of State website. The U.S. Department of State is the organization that oversees the DV Lottery Program. Applications for the Diversity Visa Lottery Program are only accepted at specific times of the year – usually between October and December. You can check the U.S. Department of State website to learn when the next Lottery Program will take place.
Applying for the Diversity Visa Lottery Program is free and can be completed online. No paper or post office applications are accepted. To apply, you must complete an online form. If you have dependents (such as children or a spouse) who will travel with you to the U.S. in the event that you are awarded a Green Card, you will need to list their names on your application. If you win a visa through the Diversity Visa Lottery Program, you and your children and spouse would be eligible to live and work permanently in the U.S.
Since so many Green Card applicants hope to secure a visa through the Diversity Visa Lottery Program, it is not surprising Green Card Lottery fraud has become a serious problem. Many companies charge fees claiming that they can increase one’s chances of getting a Green Card through the DV Lottery Program. The program is completely random and Green Cards are awarded through a random computer selection, so there is no way to influence the selection process. Those who are worried about attaining a Green Card through the DV Lottery Program should remember that there are many ways to secure a Green Card. This article lists the ways through which one can secure a Green Card.
