The U.S. Department of State will start accepting applications to enter the DV-2020 program (Green Card Lottery 2020) between “Wednesday, October 3, 2018, at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT-4), until Tuesday, November 6, 2018 at 12:00 noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST) (GMT-4)”.
Through the DV lottery program, commonly known as the green card lottery, the U.S. government makes 50,000 immigrant visas available every year to eligible foreign nationals categorized as “diversity immigrants.” These are the immigrants who are nationals of foreign countries that have not sent many immigrants to the U.S. If you are from one of the eligible countries and you wish to become a legal resident of the U.S., you can submit your green card lottery entry at no cost directly with the government. Remember, you can submit only one entry per year. If you submit more than one entry for one year, your entry will be rejected. You also need to submit photos that meet the specifications. Failure to do so may lead to the rejection of your application.
Though you can submit your own entry for the lottery online, you may choose to use the below service if you’re not comfortable doing it on your own. This service does charge a fee for submitting your registration for you, but by using this service, you can rest assured knowing you will be submitting your entry correctly. They also provide customer support via phone and email.
Register for the Green Card Lottery Program
Belonging to an eligible country alone will not make you eligible to take part in the lottery. You will need to meet the age and the education or the work experience requirements to be eligible.
The winners of the lottery are chosen randomly by a computer. Selected winners who are deemed eligible for a green card in the U.S., will be issued immigrant visas after they appear for interviews and undergo the required medical examinations.
Immigrant visas will be issued equally to people belonging to six geographical regions. All eligible countries will receive around seven percent of the available immigrant visas and no country will receive more number of visas than the other.
Green card lottery eligibility requirements have not changed and the same countries that were ineligible for the lottery last year are still ineligible for the lottery this year.
Following are the countries on the green card lottery ineligible list.
“Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, 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.
If you wish you file an application to enter DV-2020 on your own, you can file your entry online with the Department of State. Make sure that your entry is complete to make sure that it is valid.
Click here to register for the green card lottery 2020 using our service.
Resources:
How does the green card lottery program work?
Green Card Through the Green Card Lottery Program
To-Do List for the Green Card Lottery 2019 Winners
How can Green Card Lottery Help a Person Win U.S. Citizenship?
Next Step After Winning the Green Card Lottery
Green Card Lottery Helped Brazilian Immigrant Live His American Dream
