Green Card Lottery
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Diversity Lottery registration opens on October 3, 2017 and will remain open until November 7, 2018.
WHAT IS IT?
The Diversity Lottery makes available 50,000 immigrant visas (green cards) through random selection. The immigrant visas made available are for individuals from countries with historically low immigration rates. According to the State Department, the diversity visas (DVs) are “distributed among six geographic regions and no single country may receive more than seven percent of the available DVs in any one year.”
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
Applicants from the eligible countries must submit an application during the entry period and must have:
- a high school education or its equivalent; or
- two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience.
This year, those born in the following countries are ineligible to register: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.
