The 2023 Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery program began on October 6 and is open until November 9 at 12 noon EST. The DV Lottery permits natives of low immigration countries to apply for the immigrant visa (Green Card) program, a program that was designed to help diversify the pool of immigrants coming to the U.S. each year. There are some 55,000 visas allotted to the program each year. Visas become available in October 2022 and must be issued by September 30, 2023. Most foreign nationals are eligible to apply except for those from high-immigrating countries. This year, foreign nationals of the following 19 countries are excluded from entering the DV-2023 Lottery program:
Note that United Kingdom includes the following dependent areas: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn, St. Helena, and Turks and Caicos Islands. Northern Ireland, however, does qualify.
Persons born in the Gaza Strip are chargeable to Egypt for the DV 2023 Lottery. Persons born in Macau SAR and Taiwan are also eligible to enter the Lottery.
Foreign nationals from all other countries may register for the DV 2023 Lottery. However, applicants who were born in a nonqualifying DV Lottery country may still qualify based on the country of birth of his or her parents or spouse. For example, if you were born in a country whose natives are ineligible to enter the lottery, but your spouse was born in a country whose natives are eligible to enter the lottery, you can claim your spouse’s country of birth as your country of eligibility. In other words, you may claim chargeability to the country where your derivative spouse was born, provided that both you and your spouse are on the selected lottery application, but you will not be issued a diversity visa Green Card unless your spouse is also eligible for and issued a diversity visa Green Card, and both of you must enter the United States together with the diversity visa Green Cards. (Example: If you were born in Canada, whose natives are ineligible to enter the lottery, but your spouse was born in Spain, whose natives are eligible to enter the lottery, you can claim your spouse’s country of birth (Spain) as your country of eligibility as long as you include your spouse on your lottery application.) In a similar manner, a minor dependent child can be “charged” to a parent’s country of birth.
Finally, if you were born in a country not eligible to participate in this year’s DV program, you can be “charged” to the country of birth of either of your parents as long as neither parent was a resident of your country of birth at the time of your birth. For example, your parents might have lived temporarily in the ineligible country because of their jobs. In general, people are not considered residents of a country in which they were not born or legally naturalized if they are only visiting the country, studying in the country temporarily, or stationed in the country for business or professional reasons on behalf of a company or government.
If you claim alternate chargeability, you must indicate such information on the Diversity Lottery entry form that you must complete after you have registered successfully, under country of eligibility. Be aware that listing an incorrect country of eligibility or chargeability (i.e., one to which you cannot establish a valid claim) may disqualify your entry.
The DV Lottery Program requires the principal DV applicant to have a high school education, or its equivalent, or two years of qualifying work experience as defined under provisions of U.S. law. Applicants who do not have either the required education or qualifying work experience are not eligible for a diversity visa. (Only the principal applicant, must meet this requirement; spouses and children do not have to meet this requirement.) A high school education means successful completion of a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to a 12-year course in the United States. Only formal courses of study meet this requirement; equivalency certificates (such as the G.E.D.) are not acceptable. To qualify with work experience, the applicant must have two years of experience in the last five years, in an occupation which, by U.S. Department of Labor definitions, requires at least two years of training or experience that is designated as such.
Individuals who submit more than one entry during registration are disqualified; however, spouses can each apply individually.
Filing a registration has no consequences on a subsequent visa application, as it is merely a registration and does not demonstrate immigrant intent. DV Lottery applicants will be selected in May 2022 for visas that become available in October 2022.
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