The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released its instructions for the Diversity Immigrant Visa “Green Card” Lottery Program (DV-2024) for the fiscal year 2024 (October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024). This blog will cover all the details you need to know, from applying to winning a green card.
What is the Green Card Lottery?
Each year the U.S. Department of State (DOS) issues 55,000 green cards to individuals from countries with low immigration rates to the United States. The Green Card Lottery is a program where such individuals can apply for them via online procedures and stand a chance to win the green card, given that they fulfill all the requirements.
The lottery program for green cards will be open for only 34 days, from October 5, at noon to November 8, 12:00 PM.
Eligibility Criteria for the Green Card Lottery Program 2024
To be eligible for this program, any individual needs to fulfill the following requirements:
- You, your spouse, or your parents belong to a county listed as eligible on the official DOS website.
- You must have a high school certificate or equivalent.
- Given that you do not possess a high school certificate, it can be substituted with some school plus two years of work experience within the last five years.
- Children over 18 can apply for themselves, further increasing the immigration chances of the whole family.
Registration Procedure for the Green Card Lottery Program
The entries for the DV-2024 Lottery Program must be submitted electronically from October 5, 12:00 PM to November 8, 12:00 PM. The DOS will not accept entries which exceed the deadline or any mail-in entries.
You must register an electronic diversity entry available at www.dvlottery.state.gov during the registration period. Each person is only allowed one entry during each registration period. Any person who receives more than one entry will be disqualified from registering, regardless of the entry’s source.
How to Submit an entry in the DV-2024 Lottery Program
To submit your entry in the DV-2024 Lottery Program, visit the official government website and fill out the electronic diversity entry form, which will be available at www.dvlottery.state.gov during the registration period.
Prepare ahead of time with all your family passports and all the required photographs in the correct format, scanned and saved on the computer or on a disc that you can plug in when you are applying so that you have everything in one place at the same time.
The entry form will ask the applicant to submit the following information:
- Full name (as shown on the passport)
- Date of Birth
- Gender
- City/Town and country of birth
- Country of eligibility
- A photograph
- Current mailing address
- Country where you currently live
- Phone number (optional)
- E-mail address
- Highest level of education completed
- Marital Status
- Information on children that are unmarried and under the age of 21 years of age
- Spouse’s information
Processing of Entries by DOS
After submitting the entry, the applicant will receive an electronic confirmation notice of receipt of a completed entry form. Applicants will be selected randomly via computer software.
To check if you are selected, keep your e-mail updated regularly. In case of selection, you will receive a confirmation e-mail containing all the necessary instructions for the process after that, including a case number and how to apply further to get yourself to a counselor interview for an immigrant visa.
Only 55,000 immigrant visas would be granted, meaning only some selected will win a green card. The chances of winning depend on but are not limited to the case number issued to you. A low number relates to a higher chance of winning.
Some Important Dates to Remember
Remember that if you apply today, you will probably get to know if you are selected by June 2023, and the process of issuing visas will begin after October 2023. Thus, a lowercase number would mean that you will probably hear from the officials by the end of 2023 or early 2024.
However, if you have a higher case number, you need some luck in your favor to get interviewed before the end of September 2024 since that is when the fiscal year ends and, with it, the process of applicants’ interviews.
Wrapping Up
We hope this blog has answered all your questions regarding the Green Card Lottery Program 2022. Again, ensure you submit your entry before November 8, 12:00 PM, to stand a chance to win an immigrant visa.
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