Getting a Green Card for the USA through the Diversity Visa Lottery
The Immigration Act of 1990 created a new green card category known as the Diversity Visa to benefit persons from countries that in recent years have sent the fewest numbers of immigrants to the USA. You can enter the lottery if you are a native of one of these countries and meet certain educational and other requirements.
Different qualifying countries are selected each year based on how many of their citizens immigrated to the US during the past 5 years in proportion to the size of their populations.
Each year there are 50,000 diversity winners. These 50k are distributed by dividing the world into regions and allocating varying percentages of the total green cards to each region. Additionally, each qualifying country within the region is limited to no more than 7% of the available lottery green cards per year or 3,850.
Not all winners succeed in receiving a US Green card because the lottery winners are found to be inadmissible to the United States.
The diversity visa rules and deadlines change every year about September.
Here are the advantages and disadvantages of the diversity visa:
The minimal entry requirements help people who might not fit into any other green card eligibility category.
Winning the diversity visa does not guarantee you a green card. You must still show that you are not inadmissible including that you will be able to support yourself in the United States.
If you win your spouse and unmarried children under 21 years may also get green cards as accompanying relatives.
As with all Green cards yours can be taken away away if you misuse it, for example - if you live outside the US for too long, commit a crime, or even fail to advise the immigration authorities of your change of address. However, if you keep your green card for 5 years you can apply for citizenship.
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