The US Diversity Visa Lottery Program, also known as the DV Lottery, is an annual lottery that awards 50,000 diversity visas (green cards) to nationals of countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. The DV Lottery is designed to promote diversity among immigrants to the United States.
Registration Dates
The registration period for the DV Lottery typically opens in October and closes in early November. For the 2025 DV Lottery, the registration period will open on October 04, 2023 and close on November 07, 2023.
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible to participate in the DV Lottery, you must:
- Be a native of an eligible country(List given below).
- Have at least a high school diploma or its equivalent.
- Have two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience.
How to Apply
To apply for the DV Lottery, you must submit an electronic application (DS-260) during the registration period. The application can be found on the US Department of State website.
Selection Process
Once the registration period closes, the US Department of State will randomly select 50,000 winners from among all eligible applicants. Winners will be notified by email in May or June of the following year.
Next Steps
If you are selected as a winner of the DV Lottery, you will need to complete the immigration process in order to obtain your diversity visa. This process typically takes several months.
Additional Information
- There is no fee to enter the US Diversity Visa Lottery Program.
- You can only submit one application per registration period.
- You must be honest and accurate on your application. Any false or misleading information may result in your disqualification.
- You can find more information about the DV Lottery Program on the US State Department website.
Eligible Countries
AFRICA
Algeria
Angola
Benin
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cameroon
Cabo Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Congo
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Cote D’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
Djibouti
Egypt*
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Gabon
Gambia, The
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Kenya
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Niger
Rwanda
Sao Tome and Principe
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Sudan
Tanzania
Togo
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
In Africa, natives of Nigeria are not eligible for this year’s Diversity Visa program.
ASIA
Afghanistan
Bahrain
Bhutan
Brunei
Burma
Cambodia
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Israel*
Japan***
Jordan*
Kuwait
Laos
Lebanon
Malaysia
Maldives
Mongolia
Nepal
North Korea
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
Sri Lanka
Syria*
Taiwan**
Thailand
Timor-Leste
United Arab Emirates
Yemen
*Persons born in the areas administered prior to June 1967 by Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Egypt are
chargeable, respectively, to Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Egypt. Persons born in the Gaza Strip are chargeable
to Egypt; persons born in the West Bank are chargeable to Jordan; persons born in the Golan Heights are
chargeable to Syria.
** Macau S.A.R. (Europe region, chargeable to Portugal) and Taiwan (Asia region) do qualify and are listed.
For the purposes of the diversity program only, persons born in Macau S.A.R. derive eligibility from
Portugal.
***Persons born in the Habomai Islands, Shikotan, Kunashiri, and Etorofu are chargeable to Japan. Persons
born in Southern Sakhalin are chargeable to Russia.
Natives of the following Asia Region countries are not eligible for this year’s Diversity Visa program:
Bangladesh, China (including Hong Kong), India, Pakistan, South Korea, Philippines, and Vietnam.
EUROPE
Albania
Andorra
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark (including components and dependent areas overseas)
Estonia
Finland
France (including components and
dependent areas overseas)
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Kazakhstan
Kosovo
Kyrgyzstan
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau Special Administrative Region**
North Macedonia
Malta
Moldova
Monaco
Montenegro
Netherlands (including components and dependent areas overseas)
Northern Ireland***
Norway (including components and
dependent areas overseas)
Poland
Portugal (including components and dependent areas overseas)
Romania
Russia****
San Marino
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Tajikistan
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Ukraine
United Kingdom (including dependent areas)
Uzbekistan
Vatican City
** Macau S.A.R. does qualify and is listed above and for the purposes of the diversity
program only; persons born in Macau S.A.R. derive eligibility from Portugal.
***For purposes of the diversity program only, Northern Ireland is treated separately. Northern
Ireland does qualify and is listed among the qualifying areas.
**** Persons born in the Habomai Islands, Shikotan, Kunashiri, and Etorofu are chargeable to Japan.
Persons born in Southern Sakhalin are chargeable to Russia.
Great Britain (United Kingdom) and its dependent areas do qualify for DV-2025. Great Britain
(United Kingdom) includes the following dependent areas: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin
Islands, British Indian Ocean Territory, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat,
Pitcairn, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, St. Helena, and Turks and Caicos Islands.
NORTH AMERICA
Bahamas, The
In North America, natives of Canada and Mexico are not eligible for this year’s DV program.
OCEANIA
Australia (including components and
dependent areas overseas)
Fiji
Kiribati
Marshall Islands
Micronesia, Federated States of
Nauru
New Zealand (including components and
dependent areas overseas)
Palau
Papua New Guinea
Samoa
Solomon Islands
Tonga
Tuvalu
Vanuatu
SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND THE CARIBBEAN
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Barbados
Belize
Bolivia
Chile
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominica
Ecuador
Grenada
Guatemala
Guyana
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Suriname
Trinidad and Tobago
Uruguay
Countries in this region whose natives are not eligible for this year’s DV program:
Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, and Venezuela.
I hope this article is helpful. Please let me know if you have any other questions.