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Media Note Office of the Spokesman Washington, DC September 29, 2004 2006 Diversity Visa Lottery Program Registration
The Department of State implemented the electronic
registration system last year for the 2005 Diversity Visa Lottery to
improve efficiency and make the process less prone to fraud, thus making
it less vulnerable to use by persons who may pose a threat to the security
interests of the United States.
The congressionally mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa
Program is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and
conducted under the terms of Section 203(c) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA). Section 131 of the Immigration Act of 1990 (Pub. L.
101-649) amended INA 203 to provide for a new class of immigrants known as
"diversity immigrants" (DV immigrants). The Act makes available 50,000
permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates
of immigration to the United States.
The annual DV program makes permanent residence visas
available to persons meeting the simple, but strict, eligibility
requirements. Diversity Visa entries are chosen by a computer-generated
random lottery drawing. The visas, however, are distributed among six
geographic regions with a greater number of visas going to regions with
lower rates of immigration, and with no visas going to citizens of
countries sending more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. in the past five
years. Within each region, no one country may receive more than seven
percent of the available Diversity Visas in any one year.
For DV-2006, natives of the following countries[1] are not
eligible to apply because they sent a total of more than 50,000 immigrants
to the U.S. in the previous five years:
CANADA, CHINA (mainland-born), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC, EL SALVADOR, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, PAKISTAN,
PHILIPPINES, RUSSIA, SOUTH KOREA, UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland)
and its dependent territories, and VIETNAM. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR,
Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. __________ REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRY
If the applicant cannot meet these requirements, he or
she should NOT submit an entry to the DV program.
Instructions for Submitting a Digital Photo (Image)
The image file must adhere to the following
compositional specifications and technical specifications and can be
produced in one of the following ways:
Compositional Specifications: The submitted digital
image must conform to the following compositional specifications or the
entry will be disqualified.
--Head Position --Background --Focus --Decorative Items --Head Coverings and Hats Technical Specifications: The submitted digital
photograph must conform to the following specifications or the system will
automatically reject the EDV Entry Form and notify the sender.
The photographic print must also meet the Compositional
Specifications. If the photographic print meets the Print Size, Print
Color, and Compositional Specifications, scan the print using the
following scanner specifications.
THE ENTRY
There is only one way to enter the DV-2006 lottery.
Applicants must submit an Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form (EDV Entry
Form), which is accessible only at http://www.dvlottery.state.gov/.
Failure to complete the form in its entirety will disqualify the
applicant’s entry. Applicants will be asked to submit the following
information on the EDV Entry Form.
2. DATE OF BIRTH - Day, Month, Year 3. GENDER - Male or Female 4. CITY/TOWN OF BIRTH 5. COUNTRY OF BIRTH - The name of the country
should be that which is currently in use for the place where the applicant
was born. 6. APPLICANT PHOTOGRAPH - See page 2 for
information on photo specifications. 7. MAILING ADDRESS - Address, City/Town,
District/Country/Province/State, Postal Code/Zip Code, Country 8. PHONE NUMBER (optional) 9. E-MAIL ADDRESS (optional) 10. COUNTRY OF ELIGIBILITY IF THE APPLICANT’S NATIVE
COUNTRY IS DIFFERENT FROM COUNTRY OF BIRTH - If the applicant is
claiming nativity in a country other than his/her place of birth, this
information must be indicated on the entry. 11. MARITAL STATUS - Unmarried, Married, Divorced,
Widowed, Legally Separated 12. NUMBER OF CHILDREN THAT ARE UNMARRIED AND UNDER 21
YEARS OF AGE – Except children that are either U.S. legal permanent
residents or American citizens. 13. SPOUSE INFORMATION -
Name, Date of Birth, Gender, City/Town of Birth, Country of Birth,
Photograph 14. CHILDREN INFORMATION -
Name, Date of Birth, Gender, City/Town of Birth, Country of Birth,
Photograph
In order to actually receive a visa,
applicants selected in the random drawing must meet ALL eligibility
requirements under U.S. law. Processing of entries and issuance of
diversity visas to successful applicants and their eligible family members
MUST occur by midnight on September 30, 2006. Under no circumstances can
diversity visas be issued or adjustments approved after this date, nor can
family members obtain diversity visas to follow to join the applicant in
the U.S. after this date.
Important Notice
No fee is charged to enter the annual DV program. The U.S.
Government employs no outside consultants or private services to operate
the DV program. Any intermediaries or others who offer assistance to
prepare DV casework for applicants do so without the authority or consent
of the U.S. Government. Use of any outside intermediary or assistance to
prepare a DV entry is entirely at the applicant's discretion. A qualified entry submitted electronically
directly by an applicant has an equal chance of being selected by the
computer at the Kentucky Consular Center as does an entry submitted
electronically through a paid intermediary who completes the entry for the
applicant. Every entry received during the lottery registration period
will have an equal random chance of being selected within its region.
However, receipt of more than one entry per person will disqualify the
person from registration, regardless of the source of the entry.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT DV
REGISTRATION
1. WHAT DOES THE
TERM "NATIVE" MEAN? ARE THERE ANY SITUATIONS IN WHICH
PERSONS WHO WERE NOT BORN IN A QUALIFYING COUNTRY
MAY APPLY?
"Native" ordinarily means someone born in a
particular country, regardless of the individual's current country of
residence or nationality. But for immigration purposes "native" can also
mean someone who is entitled to be "charged" to a country other than the
one in which he/she was born under the provisions of Section 202(b) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
For example, if a principal applicant was born
in a country that is not eligible for this year’s DV program, he/she may
claim "chargeability" to the country where his/her derivative spouse was
born, but he/she will not be issued a DV-1 unless the spouse is also
eligible for and issued a DV-2, and both must enter the U.S. together on
the DVs. In a similar manner, a minor dependent child can be "charged" to
a parent’s country of birth.
Finally, any applicant born in a country
ineligible for this year’s DV program can be "charged" to the country of
birth of either parent as long as neither parent was a resident of the
ineligible country at the time of the applicant’s birth. 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
temporarily or stationed in the country for business or professional
reasons on behalf of a company or government. An applicant who claims alternate chargeability
must indicate such information on the application for registration.
2. ARE THERE ANY
CHANGES OR NEW REQUIREMENTS IN THE APPLICATION PROCEDURES FOR THIS
DIVERSITY VISA REGISTRATION?
All DV-2006 lottery entries must be
submitted electronically at http://www.dvlottery.state.gov/
between Friday, November 5, 2004 and Friday, January 7, 2005. No paper
entries will be accepted.
The Department of State implemented an
electronic registration system for last year’s lottery in order to make
the Diversity Visa process more efficient and secure. The Department
utilizes special technology and other means to identify applicants who
commit fraud for the purposes of illegal immigration or who submit
multiple entries.
The DV-2006 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program
registration period will run from noon Eastern Standard Time November 5,
2004 through noon Eastern Standard Time January 7, 2005.
3. ARE SIGNATURES
AND PHOTOGRAPHS REQUIRED FOR EACH FAMILY MEMBER, OR ONLY FOR THE PRINCIPAL
APPLICANT?
Signatures are not required on the
Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form. Recent and individual photos of the
applicant, his/her spouse and all children under 21 years of age are
required. Family or group photos are not accepted. Check the information
on the photo requirements on page 2 of this bulletin.
4. WHY DO NATIVES
OF CERTAIN COUNTRIES NOT QUALIFY FOR THE DIVERSITY PROGRAM? Diversity visas are intended to provide an
immigration opportunity for persons from countries other than the
countries that send large numbers of immigrants to the U.S. The law states
that no diversity visas shall be provided for natives of "high admission"
countries. The law defines this to mean countries from which a total of
50,000 persons in the Family-Sponsored and Employment-Based visa
categories immigrated to the United States during the previous five years.
Each year, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) adds the
family and employment immigrant admission figures for the previous five
years in order to identify the countries whose natives must be excluded
from the annual diversity lottery. Because there is a separate
determination made before each annual DV entry period, the list of
countries whose natives do not qualify may change from one year to the
next.
5. WHAT IS THE
NUMERICAL LIMIT FOR DV-2006?
By law, the U.S. diversity immigration
program makes available a maximum of 55,000 permanent residence visas each
year to eligible persons. However, the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central
American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997
stipulates that beginning as early as DV-99, and for as long as necessary,
5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated diversity visas will be made
available for use under the NACARA program. The actual reduction of the
limit to 50,000 began with DV-2000 and remains in effect for the DV-2006
program.
6. WHAT ARE THE REGIONAL
DIVERSITY VISA (DV) LIMITS FOR DV-2006? The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
(USCIS) determines the DV regional limits for each year according to a
formula specified in Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA). Once the USCIS has completed the calculations, the regional visa
limits will be announced. 7. WHEN WILL ENTRIES FOR THE DV-2006 PROGRAM BE
ACCEPTED? The DV-2006 entry period will begin on noon EST
Friday, November 5, 2004 and will last for 63 days through noon EST
Friday, January 7, 2005. Each year millions apply for the program during
the registration period. The massive volume of entries creates an enormous
amount of work in selecting and processing successful applicants. Holding
the entry period during November and December will ensure successful
applicants are notified in a timely manner, and provides both the
applicants and our embassies and consulates time to prepare and complete
entries for visa issuance. Applicants are strongly encouraged to enter
early in the registration period. Excessive demand at end of the
registration period may slow the system down. No entries whatsoever will
be accepted after noon EST Friday, January 7, 2005.
8. MAY PERSONS WHO ARE IN
THE U.S. APPLY FOR THE PROGRAM?
Yes, an applicant may be in the U.S. or in another
country, and the entry may be submitted from the U.S. or from abroad.
9. IS EACH APPLICANT LIMITED
TO ONLY ONE ENTRY DURING THE ANNUAL DV REGISTRATION PERIOD?
Yes, the law allows only one entry by or for each
person during each registration period; applicants for whom more than
one entry is submitted will be disqualified. The Department of State
will employ sophisticated technology and other means to identify
individuals that submit multiple entries during the registration period.
Applicants submitting more than one entry will be disqualified and an
electronic record will be permanently maintained by the Department of
State. Applicants may apply for the program each year during the regular
registration period.
10. MAY A HUSBAND AND A WIFE
EACH SUBMIT A SEPARATE ENTRY?
Yes, a husband and a wife may each submit one entry if
each meets the eligibility requirements. If either were selected, the
other would be entitled to derivative status.
11. WHAT FAMILY MEMBERS MUST I INCLUDE ON MY DV ENTRY?
On your entry you must list your spouse, that is husband or wife, and all unmarried children under 21
years of age, with the exception of children who are already U.S. citizens
or Legal Permanent Residents. You must list your spouse even if you are
currently separated from him/her, unless you are legally separated (i.e.
there is a written agreement recognized by a court or a court order.) If
you are legally separated or divorced, you do not need to list your former
spouse. You must list ALL your children who are unmarried and under 21
years of age, whether they are your natural children, your spouse’s
children, or children you have formally adopted in accordance with the
laws of your country, unless such child is already a U.S. citizen or Legal
Permanent Resident. List all children under 21
years of age even if they no longer reside with you or you do not intend
for them to immigrate under the DV program.
The fact that you have listed family members on your
entry does not mean that they later must travel with you. They may choose
to remain behind. However, if you include an eligible dependent on your
visa application forms that you failed to include on your original entry,
your case will be disqualified. (This only applies to persons who were
dependents at the time the original application was submitted, not those
acquired at a later date.) Your spouse may still submit a separate entry,
even though he or she is listed on your entry, as long as both entries
include details on all dependents in your family. See question 10 above.
Applicants may prepare and submit their own entries, or
have someone submit the entry for them. Regardless of whether an entry is
submitted by the applicant directly, or assistance is provided by an
attorney, friend, relative, etc., only one entry may be submitted in the
name of each person. If the entry is selected, the notification letter
will be sent only to the mailing address provided on the entry.
13. WHAT ARE THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATION OR WORK EXPERIENCE?
The law and regulations require that every applicant
must have at least a high school education or its equivalent or, within
the past five years, have two years of work experience in an occupation
requiring at least two years training or experience. A "high school
education or equivalent" is defined as successful completion of a
twelve-year course of elementary and secondary education in the United
States or successful completion in another country of a formal course of
elementary and secondary education comparable to a high school education
in the United States. Documentary proof of education or work experience
should not be submitted with the lottery entry, but must be presented to
the consular officer at the time of the visa interview. To determine
eligibility based on work experience, definitions from the Department of
Labor’s O*Net OnLine database will be used.
14. HOW WILL SUCCESSFUL
ENTRANTS BE SELECTED?
At the Kentucky Consular Center, all entries received
from each region will be individually numbered. After the end of the
registration period, a computer will randomly select entries from among
all the entries received for each geographic region. Within each region,
the first entry randomly selected will be the first case registered, the
second entry selected the second registration, etc. All entries received
during the registration period will have an equal chance of being selected
within each region. When an entry has been selected, the applicant will be
sent a notification letter by the Kentucky Consular Center, which will
provide visa application instructions. The Kentucky Consular Center will
continue to process the case until those who are selected are instructed
to appear for visa interviews at a U.S. consular office, or until those
able to do so apply at a USCIS office in the United States for change of
status.
15. MAY WINNING APPLICANTS
ADJUST THEIR STATUS WITH USCIS?
Yes, provided they are otherwise eligible to adjust
status under the terms of Section 245 of the INA, selected applicants who
are physically present in the United States may apply to the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for adjustment of status to
permanent resident. Applicants must ensure that
USCIS can complete action on their cases, including processing of any
overseas derivatives, before September 30, 2006, since on that date
registrations for the DV-2006 program expire. No visa numbers for the
DV-2006 program will be available after midnight on September 30, 2006
under any circumstances.
16. WILL APPLICANTS WHO ARE NOT SELECTED BE INFORMED?
No, applicants who are not selected will receive no
response to their entry. Only those who are selected will be informed. All
notification letters are sent within about five to seven months from the
end of the application period to the address indicated on the entry. Since
there is no notification provided to those not selected, anyone who does
not receive a letter about five to seven months from the end of the
registration period should assume that his/her application has not been
selected.
17. HOW MANY APPLICANTS WILL
BE SELECTED?
There are 50,000 DV visas available for DV-2006, but
more than that number of individuals will be selected. Because it is
likely that some of the first 50,000 persons who are selected will not
qualify for visas or pursue their cases to visa issuance, more than 50,000
entries will be selected by the Kentucky Consular Center to ensure that
all of the available DV visas are issued. However, this also means that
there will not be a sufficient number of visas for all those who are
initially selected. All applicants who are selected will be informed
promptly of their place on the list. Interviews with those selected will
begin in early October 2005. The Kentucky Consular Center will send
appointment letters to selected applicants four to six weeks before the
scheduled interviews with U.S. consular officers at overseas posts. Each
month visas will be issued, visa number availability permitting, to those
applicants who are ready for issuance during that month. Once all of the
50,000 DV visas have been issued, the program for the year will end. In
principle, visa numbers could be finished before September 2006. Selected
applicants who wish to receive visas must be prepared to act promptly on
their cases. Random selection by the Kentucky Consular Center computer
does not automatically guarantee that you will receive a visa.
18. IS THERE A MINIMUM AGE
FOR APPLICANTS TO APPLY FOR THE DV There is no minimum age to apply for the program, but
the requirement of a high school education or work experience for each
principal applicant at the time of application will effectively disqualify
most persons who are under age 18.
19. ARE THERE ANY FEES FOR
THE DV PROGRAM?
There is no fee for submitting an entry. A special DV case processing fee will be payable later by persons
whose entries are actually selected and processed at a U.S. consular
section for this year’s program. DV applicants, like other immigrant visa
applicants, must also pay the regular visa fees at the time of visa
application. Details of required fees will be included with the
instructions sent by the Kentucky Consular Center to applicants who are
selected.
20. ARE DV APPLICANTS
SPECIALLY ENTITLED TO APPLY FOR A WAIVER OF ANY OF THE GROUNDS OF VISA
INELIGIBILITY?
No. Applicants are subject to all grounds of
ineligibility for immigrant visas specified in the Immigration and
Nationality Act. There are no special provisions for the waiver of any
ground of visa ineligibility other than those ordinarily provided in the
Act.
21. MAY PERSONS WHO ARE
ALREADY REGISTERED FOR AN IMMIGRANT VISA IN ANOTHER CATEGORY APPLY FOR THE
DV PROGRAM?
Yes, such persons may apply for the DV program.
22. HOW LONG DO APPLICANTS
WHO ARE SELECTED REMAIN ENTITLED TO APPLY FOR VISAS IN THE DV CATEGORY?
Persons selected in the DV-2006 lottery are entitled
to apply for visa issuance only during fiscal year 2006, i.e., from
October 2005 through September 2006. Applicants must obtain the DV visa
or adjust status by the end of the Fiscal Year (September 30, 2006).
There is no carry-over of DV benefits into the next year for persons
who are selected but who do not obtain visas during FY-2006. Also, spouses
and children who derive status from a DV-2006 registration can only obtain
visas in the DV category between October 2005 and September 2006.
Applicants who apply overseas will receive an appointment letter from the
Kentucky Consular Center four to six weeks before the scheduled
appointment.
23. WHEN WILL E-DV ONLINE BE AVAILABLE?
Online entry will become available at 12:00 pm EST
(GMT-5) on November 5, 2004 and will end at 12:00 pm EST (GMT-5) on
January 7, 2005.
24. WILL I BE ABLE TO DOWNLOAD AND SAVE THE E-DV ENTRY
FORM TO A MICROSOFT WORD PROGRAM (OR OTHER SUITABLE PROGRAM) AND THEN FILL
IT OUT?
No, you will not be able to save the form into another
program for completion and submission later. The E-DV Entry Form is a Web
form only. This makes it more "universal" than a proprietary word
processor format. Additionally, it does require that the information be
filled in and submitted while on-line.
25. IF I DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO A SCANNER, CAN I SEND
PHOTOS TO MY RELATIVE IN THE U.S. TO SCAN THE PHOTOS, SAVE THE PHOTOS TO A
DISKETTE, AND THEN MAIL THE DISKETTE BACK TO ME TO APPLY?
Yes, this can be done as long as the photo meets the
photo requirements in the instructions, and the photo is electronically
submitted with, and at the same time the E-DV online entry is submitted.
The applicant must already have the scanned photo file when they submit
the entry on-line. The photo cannot be submitted separate from the online
application. Only one on-line entry by or for each person can be
submitted. Multiple submissions will disqualify the entry for that person
for DV-2006. The entire entry (photo and application together) can be
submitted electronically from the United States.
26. CAN I SAVE THE FORM ON-LINE SO THAT I CAN FILL OUT
PART AND THEN COME BACK LATER AND COMPLETE THE REMAINDER?
No, this cannot be done. The E-DV Entry Form is
designed to be completed and submitted at one time. However, because the
form is in two parts, and because of possible network interruptions and
delays, the E-DV system is designed to handle up to sixty (60) minutes
between downloading of the form and when the entry is received at the E-DV
web site after being submitted online. If more than sixty minutes elapses,
and the entry has not been electronically received, the information
received so far is discarded. This is done so that there is no possibility
that a full entry could accidentally be interpreted as a duplicate of a
previous partial entry. For example, suppose an applicant with a wife and
child sends a filled in E-DV Entry Form Part One and then receives Form
Part Two, but there is a delay before sending Part Two because of trouble
finding the file which holds the child’s photograph. If the filled in Form
Part Two is sent by the applicant and received by the E-DV website within
sixty (60) minutes then there is no problem, but if the Form Part Two is
received after sixty (60) minutes has elapsed then the applicant will be
informed that they need to start over for the entire entry. The DV-2006
instructions explain clearly and completely what information needs to be
gathered to fill in the form. This way you can be fully prepared, making
sure you have all of the information needed, before you start to complete
the form on-line.
27. IF THE SUBMITTED DIGITAL IMAGES DO NOT CONFORM TO
THE SPECIFICATIONS, THE PROCEDURES STATE THAT THE SYSTEM WILL
AUTOMATICALLY REJECT THE E-DV ENTRY FORM AND NOTIFY THE SENDER. DOES THIS
MEAN I WILL BE ABLE RE-SUBMIT MY ENTRY?
Yes, the entry can be resubmitted. Since the entry was
automatically rejected it was not actually considered as submitted to the
E-DV website. It does not count as a submitted E-DV entry, and no
confirmation notice of receipt is sent. If there are problems with the
digital photograph sent because it does not conform to the requirements,
it is automatically rejected by the E-DV website. However, the amount of
time it takes the rejection message to reach the sender is unpredictable
due to the nature of the Internet. If the problems can be fixed by the
applicant, and the Form Part One or Two re-sent within sixty (60) minutes
then there is no problem. Otherwise the submission process will have to be
started over. An applicant can try to submit an application as many times
as is necessary until a complete application is received and the
confirmation notice sent.
28. WILL THE ELECTRONIC CONFIRMATION NOTICE THAT THE
COMPLETED E-DV ENTRY FORM HAS BEEN RECEIVED THROUGH THE ONLINE SYSTEM BE
SENT IMMEDIATELY AFTER SUBMISSION?
The response from the E-DV website which contains
confirmation of the receipt of an acceptable E-DV Entry Form is sent by
the E-DV website immediately, but how long it takes the response to reach
the sender is unpredictable due to the nature of the Internet. If many
minutes have elapsed since pressing the ‘Submit’ button there is no harm
in pressing the ‘Submit’ button a second time. The E-DV system will not be
confused by a situation where the ‘Submit’ button is hit a second time
because no confirmation response has been received. An applicant can try
to submit an application as many times as is necessary until a complete
application is received and the confirmation notice sent.
LIST OF COUNTRIES BY REGION WHOSE NATIVES QUALIFY
The lists below show the countries whose natives are
QUALIFIED within each geographic region for this diversity program. The
determination of countries within each region is based on information
provided by the Geographer of the Department of State. The countries whose
natives do not qualify for the DV-2006 program were identified by the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) according to the formula in
Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Dependent areas
overseas are included within the region of the governing country. The
countries whose natives do NOT qualify for this diversity program (because
they are the principal source countries of Family-Sponsored and
Employment-Based immigration, or "high admission" countries) are noted
after the respective regional lists.
AFRICA
Algeria ASIA
Afghanistan Natives of the following Asian countries do not qualify
for this year's diversity program: EUROPE
Albania Natives of the following European countries do not qualify
for this year's diversity program: Great Britain and Russia. Great Britain
(United Kingdom) includes the following dependent areas: Anguilla,
Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands,
Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn, St. Helena, Turks and Caicos Islands.
Note that for purposes of the diversity program only, Northern Ireland is
treated separately; Northern Ireland does qualify and is listed among the
qualifying areas.
NORTH AMERICA
The Bahamas
In North America, natives of Canada and Mexico do not
qualify for this year's diversity program.
OCEANIA
SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND THE CARIBBEAN
Antigua and
Barbuda Countries in this region whose natives do not qualify for
this year's diversity program: 2004/1041 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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