​The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provides for a class of immigrants known as "diversity immigrants" from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the U.S. Every year, a certain number of Diversity Visas (DVs) is available for immigrants from those countries and there is no cost to register for the program. Historically, this number has been around 50,000. 

The DOS essentially selects the qualified applicants for the visa through a randomized computer drawing. No single country listed may receive more than seven percent of the available DVs in any one year. Every year, the list of countries from which the U.S. is accepting DV applications change. It is important to check the instructions to see if your country is listed. 

There are a couple of simple but strict eligibility requirements:

• Requirement 1: You must be born in the countries whose natives would qualify. If you were not born in one of those countries, you may claim your spouse's country of birth if he/she was born in one of those countries and you are both named on the selected visa entry. You may also claim the country of birth of your parents if that was one of  the eligible countries and if your parents were legal residents of that country at the time of your birth. 

• Requirement 2: Each applicant must have at least a high school education or its equivalent 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. We would refer to O*Net Online to determine whether your work experience would qualify.

If you are from one of the eligible countries, going for the DV is extremely beneficial to you, there is nothing to lose. Generally, the DOS begins accepting applications in October of each year, 2 years before the start of the DV program year. Our firm starts assessing eligibility of our clients for the DV lottery beginning the end of August of each year. 

If you are eligible, we will:

• Gather all the information that we need to complete the DV application;
  
• Take a digital photograph, if you do not have one, that meets the requirements of the DV application;
  
• Submit it as soon as the application acceptance period is open;
  
• Check your status using the Entrant Status Check function of the DOS's website, which is usually available to check the status for your program year during the year prior; 
  
• Notify you of any updates and next steps; and
  
• If you are accepted, complete the Adjustment of Status steps to get you your Green Card! ​