The visas will be apportioned among six geographic regions. (Africa, Asia, Europe, Central-South America/Carribean, Oceania, North America) A greater number of visas will go to those regions that have lower immigration rates and no visas may be issued to countries that have sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States during the previous five years.
No one country can receive more than seven percent of the available diversity visas in any one year.
Visa allotments for each region are determined by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) each year according to a formula specified in section 203(c) of the immigration and nationality act.
[Index]
[Compiled by Law Offices of Rajiv S Khanna]
Persons born in "high admission" countries are, in most instances, not eligible for the program.
"High admission" countries are defined as those from which the United States has received more than 50,000 immigrants during the last five years in the immediate relative, family and employment preference categories.
When are entries for the DV program accepted each year?
A3
The month-long application period will be held each fall beginning at noon on the first Monday in October. This gives millions of applicants and our embassies and consulates overseas a full fiscal year (fiscal year begins on October 1 and ends on September 30, next year) to process the necessary immigrant visas.
Is it necessary to use an outside attorney or consultant?
A4
The decision to hire an attorney or consultant is entirely up to the applicant. Procedures for entering the diversity lottery can be completed without assistance following simple instructions. However, if applicants prefer to use outside assistance, that is their choice. There are many legitimate attorneys and immigration consultants assisting applicants for reasonable fees, or in some cases for free. The selection of winners is made at random and no outside service can improve an applicant's chances of being chosen or guarantee an entry will win. Any service that claims it can improve an applicant's odds would be promising something it cannot deliver. Persons who think they have been cheated by a U.S.. company or consultant in connection with the DV lottery may wish to contact their local consumer affairs office or the federal trade commission (FTC). The Internet address for using the online complaint form is: http://www.ftc.gov.
The FTC can also be contacted by telephone, toll free at 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357) or (202) 382-4357 or TDD: (202) 326-2502.
The mailing address is: Consumer Response Center, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. (The FTC telephone number is only to report fraud and not to obtain information about application procedures for the DV lottery.)
Only successful applicants will be notified by mail by the Kentucky consular center at the address listed on their entry. The notifications will be sent between April and July next year along with instructions on how to apply for an immigrant visa. Applicants must meet all eligibility requirements under U.S. law to be issued a visa.
Being selected in the DV lottery does not automatically guarantee being issued a visa because the number of applicants selected is greater than the number of immigrant visas available. Those selected will therefore need to act quickly on their immigrant visa applications. Applicants who are physically present in the United States may be eligible to apply to the BCIS (INS) for adjustment of status to permanent resident. However, such applicants must ensure that BCIS (INS) can complete action on their cases before September 30. Once all available visas have been issued, the DV program will end. In any event, all DV visas must, by law, be issued by September 30.
Where can one receive instructions to enter the lottery?
A6
Interested persons may call (202) 331-7199, which describes the various means to obtain further details on entering the DV program. Applicants overseas may contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate for instructions on the DV lottery. DV information is also available in the "Visa Bulletin" on the Internet at http://travel.state.gov or via the consular affairs automated fax at (202) 647-3000 (code 1550). Calls to the automated fax service must be made from a fax machine using the receiver or voice option of the caller's fax equipment.
