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So, you ask, what is the Diversity Visa Lottery? And how does it work?
In the most general sense, the diversity lottery is really just that—a lottery. But unlike the “WIN A MILLION DOLLARS” type of lottery, the diversity visa lottery doesn’t allow just anyone to enter. And even if you do “win” the diversity visa lottery, you should expect that it won’t be an instant rags-to-immigration-riches process. Hopefully the post below will demystify the process enough to answer your basic questions.
This year’s lottery opens October 2, 2008 and closes December 1, 2008. The annual visa lottery program makes immigrant visas (ie., “green cards” or legal permanent residency) available to persons meeting the strict but simple eligibility requirements. Once the applicant has met the surface level eligibility criteria, then a computer-generated random lottery drawing chooses selecteees for diversity visas.
As I mentioned, not everyone is eligible to enter this lottery. In fact, while 55,000 “green cards” are made available each year through the diversity lottery, only natives from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States are eligible to enter. Please note: for immigration purposes, being a “native” of a country usually means that you were born in that country. There are exceptions to the native rule, but if you find that you were born in a country that seems to render you ineligible for the diversity visa lottery (and you don't have other immigration avenues), you should probably your explore options with an attorney.
The visas are distributed among six geographic regions with a greater number of visas going to regions with lower rates of immigration, and with no visas going to nationals of countries sending more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the period of the past five years.
OK--so let's get down to brass tacks-- for this year's diversity lottery (ie., DV 2010) natives of the following countries are NOT eligible to participate in the diversity lottery:
BRAZIL, CANADA, CHINA (mainland), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, ECUADOR, EL SALVADOR, GUATEMALA, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, PAKISTAN, PHILIPPINES, PERU, POLAND, 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.
So, if you were NOT born in one of the above-listed countries, then you ARE eligible. And yes, for this year's lottery people from Russia and Kosovo are again eligible to apply.
Once you’ve determined that you are a native of an eligible country, you’ve only cleared the first hurdle. In addition to satisfying the native country element of the equation, in order to be eligible to enter the lottery you must also have EITHER a high school education (defined as successful completion of a 12 year course of elementary and secondary education) OR two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. The question of whether your educational or job history qualifies you to enter the lottery is probably a question that should be directed to your lawyer.
Finally, readers should realize that winning the diversity lottery is really a three step process. First an applicant has to meet the initial eligibility criteria (ie., be a native of an eligible country AND have a high school education or sufficient job experience). Second, the applicant must be chosen by the government’s random computer-generated selection process. If the applicant is randomly selected, the government will send the applicant written notification (by mail, NOT email). Unfortunately the government’s current policy is to NOT send notice to those whose applications were NOT selected. Please note, however, that being selected by the computer is not the final step in the process. As the third step, the selected applicant must then go forward and prove that they are eligible to adjust status here in the U.S. or at a consulate abroad by submitting the necessary supporting evidence and presenting it to the appropriate authorities.
In summary, the diversity visa lottery presents a great opportunity to immigrate to the United States, but it shouldn't be associated with the instant gratification attributed to the money lottery programs you see advertised on television. If the other avenues of immigration (family, asylum, refuge, employment, investor) are closed off to you, then the visa lottery system might be your only option. But the program also has a supplemental strategic quality to it. If for instance, you are on an H-1B visa but your employer hasn't yet sponsored you for your permanent residency, you can take matters into your own hands and apply for the diversity lottery (assuming you otherwise qualify). Plus, if you aren't selected this year, there's nothing stopping you from applying again next year.
Every once in a while a client will call to request a meeting about a mysterious and as of yet unnamed subject that can’t be discussed over the phone. They’ll come to the 