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Applications for the 2023 Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery Program are Now Open

October 8, 2021

Every year the United States sets aside 50,000 permanent resident visas to be given away by lottery in order to preserve diversity among immigrants to the United States. While the odds of being selected are slim, there is no application fee, so anyone who is eligible is encouraged to apply.

As stated on the 2023 Application Instruction, available here, these visas are reserved for immigrants from “countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States.” For 2023, the following countries are not eligible to apply, due to their relatively high rates of immigration to the U.S.:

Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.

According to the DOS, “natives of Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible.”

Beyond the above requirement, each primary applicant must meet one of the following education and/or work requirements:

• at least a high school education or its equivalent, defined as successful completion of a 12-year course of formal elementary and secondary education; OR
• two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. The Department of State will use the U.S. Department of Labor’s O*Net Online database to determine qualifying work experience.

Entry Period

The entry period for the 2023 Diversity Visa lottery is October 6, 2021 – November 9, 2021, and applications must be submitted through dvprogram.state.gov. The DOS emphasizes that applicants should not wait until the 1st week of November to submit applications, “as heavy demand may result in website delays.” They further stress that “no late entries or paper entries will be accepted.”

Odds of being selected

Every year, millions apply for only 50,000 available visas, and the odds of being selected are well under 1%. However, given how unique this program is – nothing else like it exists in the U.S. immigration system – and the fact that there is no application fee, anyone who is eligible is encouraged to apply.

TAGS: Diversity Visa