  | Immigration Diversity Lottery...You Can Lose Even If You Win
To allow people to emigrate to the U.S. from countries with low rates of immigration, the Diversity Lottery program was started. The program randomly selects from among the applicants those who can apply to get a green card. Since no ties to relatives in the U.S. are required, the program is intended to allow a more diverse group of people to qualify for permanent residence.
For the next few years,(unless eliminated by new laws), the lottery program will be run to select the lucky winners. (We shall see that being selected does not always mean getting a green card.) The fiscal year for the U.S. government is from October of one year to September of the next year. Lottery applications are usually accepted in October between specifically announced dates. (The DV 2001 program has been announced. The application period for DV-2001 is from 04 October 1999 to 03 November 1999. Applications received before or after the announced dates are rejected. About 3 to 5 million people apply for the lottery.
The selections are made and announced within 6 months following the application period by a written notice sent to the applicant or the attorney at the address in the application. Those selected are considered for the fiscal year which begins the following October 1st.. Any visas not issued by the end of the next fiscal year (September 30), are voided. A new application is needed for each year. The names of those selected are not published or available to the public.
A number is assigned to each selected person in order. The first selected people will have lower rank numbers. More people are notified than there are visas available so those with lower rank numbers have a better chance of actually getting a green card. The diversity visas are limited according to the area of the world (Europe, Africa, and others) and also by country. After a while, visas may run out for a particular world area or country.
Each month the Department of State publishes a list showing the rank cut-off number. Only people with rank numbers below the cut-off can apply. Applications can be made at a consulate or at the INS if the person is in legal status in the U.S. The rank number must be below the cut-off when applying for the lottery visa and also at the time the visa is issued or when the adjustment of status takes place which could be several months later.
Sometimes during the year, additional rank numbers may become available allowing people with higher rank numbers to apply. Before the processing can be completed, the cut-off numbers may drop down again. If this happens, some of the higher number applicants who may have been interviewed and paid fees to the US Consul or the INS, will not able to get the green card. Because of the way the process works, some "winners" may never get a green card.
There was an incident in a past lottery where the person who received the green card was suspected of not being the person who sent the application to the lottery. To prevent substitution and fraud, the rules now require the applicant to sign the application letter and attach a photo. If another person signs the application, the green card will not be issued.
Some people believe that because of the way the program is run with notices going to more people than can be accommodated and with the other problems mentioned above, that the Diversity Program is more of a trick than a lottery. The US Congress has discussed changing or eliminating the Diversity Lottery program. (What Congress gives, Congress can take away.)
There is a now a serious problem for lottery selectees who are the US in unauthorized status. The law which allowed out of status people to apply for the DV green card here (Section 245i of the Immigation law) is no longer in effect. The DV "winner" who is out of status can no longer apply in the US for the green card. If they go back home to apply, they will be subject to the 3 year and 10 year bar to re-entry if they were out of status for more 6 months or more. They cannot get the green card here and they cannot get it at home. The DV lottery has become unavailable for those out of status in the US for 6 months or more.
The program does give hope to people in most countries of the world who have no other way of getting a green card. Even with its problems, the lottery program allows 50,000 new permanent residents to enter the U.S. each year. They are the lucky winners.
You can look at our Easy-To-Read Visa Bulletin which gives the diversity visa allocations by area of the world and the cut-off numbers for Diversity Visas. The DV rules are also posted. |
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