Green Card DV Lottery

Every Thing You Need to Know About Green Card DV Lottery

For starters, let’s explain what the green card DV lottery means. It is a United States government lottery program that’s administered by the Department of State under the Immigration and Nationality Act 1990. The purpose of the program is to grant green cards to eligible applicants, allowing them to live and work in the United States on a permanent basis.

What are your chances?

The green card DV lottery program issues 50,000 green cards to applicants annually. The green cards are apportioned to citizens of countries who have historically low rates of immigration to the U.S. Hence, one of the prominent eligibility requirements is the country an applicant was born and the country they currently reside. Millions of people apply for the lottery out of which only tens of thousands are approved by the immigration team for the drawing which is 100% random

What are the eligibility requirements?

Before applying, you should determine if you’re eligible using the following requirements:

  • Country: The lottery is not open to all countries, especially countries that have a high immigration rate to the U.S. You should do your research to find out the current list of countries that are eligible.
  • Education or work experience: You must meet certain educational or work experience criteria to boost the chances of getting approved. You can confirm this information from the U.S. Department of Labour online database.
  • Ways of registering: You must apply either through a direct family member who is a U.S. citizen or through a job or investment. Refugees and asylees can also apply.

Where and how to register

The registration for the green card DV lottery is strictly online but you must make sure you apply only through the official websites as there are many fake sites hoping to defraud prospective applicants. When you log onto the website, fill out the form by providing the correct details, documentation, photos and so on. It’s also important to note that entering the green card DV lottery is free. After you submit the form, your unique reference number will be displayed on the screen. Copy the number and keep it safe as you will need it to check the status of your application, starting from May 1st the following year.

What happens if you win?

If your application is approved for the lottery and you’re eventually picked during the drawing, you will be directly notified of your winning. You will then be assisted in filing the Visa Application Form with the U.S. Consulate. You will be interviewed at your local United States Consulate and then issued a temporary travel visa to enter the USA. All things being equal, you should get your green card in your mail 3-4 weeks after you arrive at the U.S. address you provided.

Conclusion

The green card DV lottery is a program that issues thousands of green cards to people who want to live and work in the USA. Most applications don’t scale through the initial evaluation phase due to wrongly filled forms. If you want to avoid costly mistakes during your registration for the lottery, consider hiring the services of green card lottery experts.

Read More:
How to obtain a Green Card
Read More About Green Card Organization