Winning the visa lottery would be the equivalent to some as winning a multi million dollar jackpot. Just with any other type of lottery though, as the saying goes, “you gotta play to win…”

Find out about how to apply for the 2009 visa lottery.

The visa lottery is formally known as the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program. The U.S. government makes available up to a maximum of 55,000 diversity green cards annually. 5000 of these visas are reserved for a visa program for certain Central American nationals, leaving 50,000 visas available to be drawn at random from a pool of applicants that meet specific criteria. The main requirements are:

Country of Origin

The applicant must be from a country with low rates of immigration to the U.S. If a country has sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the previous five years, that country’s nationals will not be eligible. For the 2009 Diversity Visa program for example, South Korea, Philippines, Vietnam, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland born), India, and Mexico are NOT eligible. In contrast, applicants from Thailand, Japan, Burma, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Singapore, Taiwan, France, Norway, Spain, Turkey ARE eligible.

In most cases the country of birth is what is taken into account, but there are some exceptions. You may be able to claim your spouse’s country of birth if you meet certain further requirements even if you on your own would not be eligible.  You may also be able to claim the country of birth of one of your parents as long as that parent was not a resident of the country in which you were born.

Education or Work Experience

The applicant must have:

1) A high school education or its equivalent; OR

2) Two years work experience in a job requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform.

Deadlines & Other Important Information

1) Your application must be submitted no later than Sunday, December 2, 2007; 12 noon Eastern Standard Time;

2) You may only submit your application electronically;

3) There is NO fee to apply for the diversity visa (but you will have to pay the normal immigrant visa fees and diversity visa processing fee if you are selected);

4) Winners are notified by mail by the Department of State;

5) Simple mistakes may disqualify you for the green card even if you are selected in the lottery. You would not want to be selected, only to find out at the green card interview that you are ineligible because of a mistake, especially after you have paid the filing fee for the green card which is non-refundable. Make sure to read all directions carefully and answer the questions accurately;

6) Even if you are selected in the lottery, in order to qualify to get a green card, you must meet the eligibility requirements for a green card. So, if you would be barred from entering the U.S. because of a previous overstay, or you have been out of status for more than 180 days, or if you fail to meet standards for good moral character such as a criminal history, you may not be issued a green card even if your name is drawn in the lottery.

Fraud Warning

As stated, there is no fee to download the diversity visa application and submit your application electronically. Beware of non-official websites that look like the official U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website as there have been instances of fraud. The official website is at: USCIS.gov

For detailed info on the visa lottery at the Department of State:
Official Visa Lottery Info

If you need any assistance or have any questions about this type of visa, please contact us.