The U.S. State Department has announced that registration for the 2015 Diversity Visa (DV-2015) Lottery will be available from noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST), on Tuesday, October 1, 2013 through noon EST on Saturday, November 2, 2013. Individuals seeking to enter the lottery program must register online by completing the electronic diversity visa entry form at www.dvlottery.state.gov during the registration period. Paper entries will not be accepted. No entries will be accepted after noon EST on Saturday, November 2, 2013.
In order to be eligible to apply for the DV-2015 Lottery, the following two conditions must be met:
1. Applicant must be a native of one of the qualifying countries, which is any country EXCEPT the following: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.
- Individuals’ native to Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible.
- Please note an important change in eligibility from previous years: For DV-2015, natives of Nigeria are no longer eligible for selection.
- “Native” generally means someone born in a particular country, regardless of the individual’s current country of residence or nationality. There are, however, exceptions to this general definition.
2. Applicant must meet either the education or work experience requirement of the DV program. An applicant must possess either a high school education or its equivalent, defined as successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education OR two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform.
- If the applicant cannot meet these requirements, he/she should not submit an entry to the DV program.
- Detailed instructions for the 2015 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program can be found at www.uscis.gov
Our firm is available to discuss eligibility for the Visa Lottery program and to assist individuals in submitting applications. If you have any questions regarding the above, please feel free to contact our office by calling 205-823-1223, or via e-mailing Michael or Allen Shabani at mike.shabani@gmail.com.