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-2008 green card lottery program.

3 . WHAT ARE THE REGIONAL DIVERSITY VISA (GREEN CARD LOTTERY) LIMITS FOR DV-2008?

4. WHEN WILL ENTRIES FOR THE DV-2008 GREEN CARD LOTTERY PROGRAM BE ACCEPTED?

The DV-2008 green card lottery entry period will begin on Saturday, November 1, 2003 and will last for 60 days through Tuesday, December 30, 2003 . 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 gives both them and our embassies and consulates time to prepare and complete entries for green card issuance.

5. MAY PERSONS WHO ARE IN THE U.S. APPLY FOR THE GREEN CARD 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.

6. IS EACH APPLICANT LIMITED TO ONLY ONE ENTRY DURING THE ANNUAL GREEN CARD LOTTERY REGISTRATION PERIOD?

A green card is a US permanent residence visa. It allows you to live and work permanently and legally in the United States.

A green card gives you the legal right to live and work permanently in the United States and to enter and leave the country freely. Green card holders also receive health, education, and other benefits. The green card does not affect present citizenship. A green card holder may later apply for United States citizenship, if desired.

The Green Card Lottery is officially known as the "Diversity Immigrant Visa Lottery Program" and is administered by the US Department of State. It was created by an act of Congress, the Immigration Act of 1990. The program allocates a specified number of diversity visas (green cards) to applicants from certain countries. Winners of the Lottery are chosen in a random drawing.

The Green Card Lottery is intended to increase the diversity of the US population. Natives of countries with historically low immigration rates into the US are encouraged to participate.

Lottery entries are submitted to the appropriate government filing offices during a brief window period lasting approximately 2 months. All entries are individually numbered. Entries that do not meet the requirements, are not prepared correctly, or are not delivered during the 2-month window period are discarded and not included in the Lottery. The US State Department then selects approximately 100,000 names at random and notifications are mailed to the winners. The first 50,000 people who register and qualify will receive several forms to complete and will have a brief interview at the nearest US embassy or consulate before receiving their visas. Additional family members listed on winners' entry forms will also receive visas. Winners residing in the United States may be able to receive their visas without leaving the United States.

By law, the Diversity Immigrant Lottery makes available a maximum of 55,000 permanent residence visas each year to eligible persons. However, the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NCARA) passed by Congress in November 1997 stipulates that beginning as early as DV-1999, and for as long as necessary, 5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated diversity visas will be made available for use under the NCARA program. The actual reduction of the limit to 50,000 began with DV-2000 and remains in effect.

You qualify to participate in the Lottery if you can claim nativity in an eligible country. You must also satisfy education/training requirements. Please do our elegibility test for complete details.

Persons from ALL COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD ARE ELIGIBLE to participate in the Green Card Lottery, EXCEPT persons born in the following countries:

*The following dependent areas of Great Britain are not eligible to participate in the Lottery: Anguila, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn, St. Helena, Turks and Caicos Islands.

You may still qualify to participate in the Lottery even if you were born in one of the ineligible countries listed above. There are 2 exceptions:

• If your spouse was born in an eligible country, then you can claim your spouse's country of birth.
• If one of your parents was born in an eligible country, then you can claim your parent's country of birth.

A short statement explaining how you satisfy this exception must be included on your application.

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 United States. The law states that no diversity visas shall be provided for high admission countries. Those are countries from which during the previous 5 years there were more than 50,000 immigrants in the Family-Sponsored and Employment-Based visa categories. Each year, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (UCIS) adds the family and employment immigrant admission figures for the previous 5 years to identify the countries that must be excluded from the annual Green Card Lottery. Because there is a separate determination made before each Lottery application period, the list of countries that do not qualify can change from one year to the next.

Only your country of birth is considered when determining if you quality to participate in the Green Card Lottery. Citizenship cannot be used to qualify you for the Lottery.

To participate in the Lottery, you must:

1. Complete an application with information about yourself and/or your family.
2. Submit photographs (electronic or hardcopy) for every family member included on your application.
3. Pay an application processing fee, which can be paid online or sent by mail.

You can complete the entire Lottery application process online by completing the online application, paying the processing fee with a credit card, and uploading your electronic photographs. You also have the option to mail your photographs to us by email or regular mail. The processing fee can be paid online at the time you prepare your application or mailed to United States Green Card afterward.

If you want to prepare an application by hand, you can download the application in PDF format.

The form can be mailed to United States Green Card with your photographs and payment. Upon receipt of your application materials, we will review and process your Lottery entry and contact you to inform you of your application's status.

Register immediately! Properly formatted entry forms must be received by the US Government during a 2-month application submission period. Because the window period during which entries will be accepted is very short, we strongly urge you to submit your application today so that your entry will be ready for immediate submission during the appropriate application acceptance period. United States Green Card posts monthly suggested dates by when you are encouraged to apply. This allows us to devote the proper time and care to the preparation of your Lottery application and helps you by maximizing the probability that your application will be complete and ready for submission before the official deadline.

All applications must include recent photographs of the applicant, spouse, and each child (including all natural children, legally-adopted children, and stepchildren, even if the children no longer reside with the applicant).

After signing up with us we will help you with submitting your pictures.

Go to our fees page for details about our different packages.

If you submit an application and we determine that you are not eligible to participate in the Green Card Lottery, we will refund your processing fee.

Because this is a Lottery program, United States Green Card cannot guarantee that you will be selected a winner. If you are not selected, your processing fee is not refundable. However, we use our experience and knowledge to give you the best possible opportunity to win. We carefully satisfy the numerous technical requirements associated with the format and content of every application. The slightest mistake will disqualify your entry. Using our services ensures that your application is prepared correctly!

The only information that is necessary to participate in the Green Card Lottery is the information that is requested on the Lottery application form and your photographs.

Do not send copies of your birth certificate, passport, resume, curriculum vitae, education or training certificates, etc.

If your entry is selected in the Lottery drawing, you will be contacted by the US Government and will be required to complete additional paperwork. At that time, you will be asked to provide evidence of your country of birth, education, training, etc.

On your Green Card Lottery application you must include all unmarried children who are under the age of 21. List all natural children, spouse's children from a previous marriage, and adopted children.

Do not include married children or children over the age of 21.

An individual is allowed only one entry per year. You will be disqualified if you submit more than one entry. However, a husband and wife may each submit separate applications and pay only one processing fee (this includes husband, wife and children, if any). This doubles your odds of winning the Lottery. Please note: If you are married, only one application needs to be submitted to United States Green Card . We prepare two Lottery entries with the information provided on this one application.

You can check your application status online at any time.

After completing your application online, you will be provided with a user name and password that you can use to login to your account. You will be able to view your application details and check the status of your application online.

In addition, United States Green Card contacts you when we receive your application to let you know if it is compete or if any problems exist. We also notify you when your Lottery entry is formally submitted to the US Government for participation in the Green Card Lottery.

You can enter the Green Card Lottery even if you have petitions pending, such as a relative's or employer's petition for work permits, visas, etc. Entering the Lottery does not adversely affect current or past petitions and does not jeopardize your current US visa status. The information you provide on the Lottery application remains confidential and will not be shared with other government offices or agencies. Your participation in the Lottery will not negatively affect any future visa petitions. Participating in the Lottery involves zero risk.

Applicants whose applications are randomly selected from among all qualified entries will be notified by email by United States Green Card . This notification normally occurs within 6 months of the close of the Lottery program. Together with this notification, further instructions will be provided on how to proceed, including information on fees connected with the immigration process.

Yes. All applicants will be notified.

The US Government does not publish a list of individual Lottery winners. No government office, agency, or web site will have such a list available. The only way to learn if you have won the Lottery is by receiving a notice letter by email.

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 Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) for adjustment of status to permanent resident.

You do not need to be married or have children to submit an application to the Green Card Lottery.

To submit a married application, you and your spouse must each satisfy the Lottery eligibility requirements. You need to complete only one application (online or hardcopy) and submit one photo (electronic or hardcopy) for each family member included on the application. Remember to send the correct processing fee.

There is no minimum age to apply. However, you must satisfy the general and education/training requirements.

Yes. An applicant may be in the United States or in another country, and the entry may be mailed from the US or from abroad.

United States Green Card makes registration easy!

United States Green Card offers peace of mind through professional Lottery application assistance. We will:

• Verify your eligibility for participation.
• Review your application for completeness and accuracy.
• Notify you of any errors that must be corrected.
• Advise you on how best to resolve any problems.
• Process your application for submission to the Lottery.
• Update you on any and all Lottery news and developments.
• Give you access to your application file online so that you can check the status of your application, view your information, or edit your application 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Submit your application to the US Government according to strict guidelines.
• Certify that your application was submitted to the Lottery.
• Provide you with Lottery information and updates even after the Lottery drawing.

No other Lottery service offers this level of service or as many benefits as United States Green Card . Only we can provide you with the professionalism and trust you expect. Register for the Green Card Lottery today!