The Diversity Visa Program is administered annually by the Department of State and provides for a designated number of immigrants known as “diversity immigrants” to receive visas. This program makes visas available through a lottery-like system where a random computer-generator picks the selected applicants. These Visas are then distributed among six different geographic regions with a greater amount allocated to countries with lower immigration rates. Countries sending more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. over the past 5 years are not eligible for this program. It is specifically meant to aid in distributing visas for people in countries that do not send an overwhelming amount of immigrants to the U.S. A few such countries include Columbia, Bangladesh, Brazil and Canada. There is a maximum of 55,000 Visas that are given out per year so for those planning on applying for a diversity visa.
The online registration for the D-2014 Program began on October 2nd at noon and ended on November 3rd at noon. No additional applications will be accepted at this point in time. Entrants will be able to check their status on May 1, 2013 through the E-DV website.
As always, the Hacking Immigration Law warns consumers to beware of fraudulent DV websites. If you are not dealing with an experienced immigration attorney and/or are not using the actual State Department DV visa lottery website, be very careful as we have received numerous complaints about potential DV lottery winners being scammed by unscrupulous con men.
If you have questions about acquiring a Diversity Visa, contact us at 314-961-8200.
