Here we are again; it’s time for The Diversity Visa Lottery for fiscal year 2023 (“DV-2023”)! The online registration period for the DV-2023 Program began Wednesday, October 6, 2021, at 12:00 noon (EDT), and concludes on Tuesday, November 9, 2021, at 12:00 noon (EST). It is recommended that foreign nationals not wait until the end of the period to apply as heavy demand could cause delays on the website. Additionally, entries will not be accepted through the U.S. Postal Service. Submitting multiple applications will result in disqualification, and yes, “the Department of State uses sophisticated technology to detect multiple entries.”
The Diversity Visa Program
Established by the Immigration Act of 1990, and launched in 1995, The Department of State administers the Diversity Visa Program (“DV Program”) to improve the diversity of immigrants arriving in the United States. Commonly known as The Diversity Visa Lottery (“DV lottery”), the DV Program allows foreign nationals from countries with historically low rates of immigration to immigrate to the United States. Individuals and families who would otherwise be unable to legally come to the United States to reside permanently can apply for a green card through the DV lottery. Winners of the DV lottery and their immediate family members may apply for permanent residency in the United States.
Eligibility for DV Lottery
In the 2023 fiscal year, DV lottery will make 55,000 green cards available through a random computer-based selection process to natives of certain countries that have historically low rates of immigration to the United States.
Nationals from certain countries with high rates of immigration to the U.S. are not eligible to register. These include: 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, and Vietnam.
Foreign nationals born in Macau SAR and Taiwan are able participate in the lottery.
For those foreign nationals who cannot register because their own country of birth is in the excluded list above, they may still be able to participate through a qualifying spouse who was born in one of the countries that is eligible to participate or, in some cases, through a parent’s birth country.
The DV lottery also requires that the applicant meet its educational OR work requirement. To meet the educational requirement, the applicant must have completed, successfully, “a 12 year course of formal elementary and secondary school.” To meet the work requirement, the applicant must have at least two years of work experience within that last 5 years; that work experience must also be from an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. To determine qualifying experience, the government will use the Department of Labor’s O*Net Online database.
How To Apply
Trying your luck in the DV lottery does not cost anything and entering the DV lottery involves completion of an online application. The application period for the 2023 DV lottery has begun, foreign nationals wishing to apply may do so through their online portal until Tuesday, November 9, 2021, at 12:00 noon (EST). To aid foreign nationals with the application process, the State Department publishes a complete list of instructions on how to apply.
Applicants should use a new digital photograph or a digital scan of a recent (taken within the last six months) photograph, as long as it conforms to the compositional and technical specifications in the instructions. Applicants can test photos through the photo validation link on the State Department website. Applicants should not submit an old photograph. If they submit the same photograph from a prior year’s entry, a photograph that has been manipulated, or a photograph that does not meet the specifications in the instructions, the application will be disqualified.
Foreign nationals should note that the DV lottery is one of the most commonly targeted visa categories for fraud and foreign nationals are encouraged to apply only on the designated website. While we have previously reported on scammers targeting DV applicants, the DV lottery instructions themselves caution:
We strongly encourage you to complete the entry form yourself, without a “visa consultant,” “visa agent,” or other facilitator who offers to help. If someone helps you, you should be present when your entry is prepared so that you can provide the correct answers to the questions and retain your unique confirmation number and a printout of your confirmation screen. It is extremely important that you retain the printout of your confirmation page and unique confirmation number. Unscrupulous visa facilitators have been known to assist entrants with their entries, retain the confirmation page printout, and then demand more money in exchange for the confirmation number.
Foreign nationals should also note that while the State Department may send an email to remind entrants to check their status, they do not notify applicants via postal mail or email if they are selected in the lottery. Rather, applicants can only find out if they were selected by checking their status online through the DV program website. In order to check their status, applicants must enter their unique confirmation number, which they should keep in a safe place.
If Selected in the Lottery
If foreign nationals “win” the lottery, they will be assigned a confirmation number to access the Entrant Status Check which is available on the DV program website from May 8, 2022 through September 30, 2023. Entrant Status Check is the sole means by which the Department of State will notify you if you are selected, provide further instructions on your visa application, and notify you of your immigrant visa interview appointment date and time. Upon selection, foreign nationals will have to be vigilant about deadlines to apply and the full process must be completed by September 30, 2023, or the opportunity will be lost.
While the prospect of winning the diversity lottery and obtaining a Green Card is understandably thrilling for many, before applying foreign nationals should carefully consider whether they even want a Green Card. Foreign nationals in possession of a Green Card must intend to permanently reside in the US and may not use the Green Card solely to visit the US. If foreign nationals do not intend to move to the US and make it their home, it is not necessary to have a Green Card. Moving to the US permanently has a lot of implications, including tax obligations, and foreign nationals who have “won” the lottery or who are considering applying for a Green Card should seek advice from an immigration attorney to understand all these implications. Best of luck to all applicants!