Diversity Visa Lottery

The Diversity Immigrant Visa Lottery is a United States Congressionally-mandated program for obtaining a United States Permanent Resident Card.  It is also known as the Green Card Lottery.  The lottery is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State to provide up to 55,000 diversity visas (DVs) drawn from random selection among all entries to persons who meet strict eligibility requirements from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.

To enter the lottery, you must have a high school education or skilled work experience.  To see the requirement to qualify based skilled work experiences please visit O*NET Online.

No fee is charged for entry! Entries for the GREEN CARD LOTTERY must be submitted electronically by accessing the Diversity Visa entry form at DV Lottery website during the registration period.  The entry submission period for DV-2013 is from 12:00PM EDT (GMT -4) on October 4, 2011 to 12:00PM EDT (GMT -4) on November 5, 2011.

A successfully registered entry will result in a confirmation screen containing your name and a unique confirmation number. You must print this confirmation screen for your records using the print function of your web browser and ensure that you retain your confirmation number.  Starting May 1, 2012, you will be able to check the status of your DV-2013 entry by returning to DV Lottery website Entrant Status Check and entering your unique confirmation number and personal information. 

Entrant Status Check will be the sole means of informing you of your selection for DV-2013, providing instructions to you on how to proceed with your application, and notifying you of your appointment for your immigrant visa interview.  Therefore, it is essential you retain your confirmation number.  The U.S. Department of State is unable to provide your entry confirmation number if it is lost.

FRAUD WARNING: Fraudulent websites are posing as official U.S. government sites. Some companies posing as the U.S. government have sought money in order to "complete" DV entry forms. There is no charge to download and complete the Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form. To learn more, see the Department of State Warning and the Federal Trade Commission Warning.

The Department of State does NOT notify successful DV applicants by letter or email. Entrants can check the status of their entries, as explained below, by returning to the website at DV Lottery website to find out if their entry was or was not selected.

Entrants may submit only ONE ENTRY PER PERSON.  Submitting more than one entry will results in disqualifications.  Two separates applications are allowed per married couple per year.