Every year, the Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) program, popularly known as the “visa lottery,” The US government grants up to 55,000 diversity visas permanent residence to people from countries with low immigration rates.
The call for proposals usually begins two years in advance. For the 2025 visa lottery, citizens of eligible countries must apply by 2023. The draw will take place in 2024 and the following year, once announced, the winners can begin their permanent residency process.
Visa lottery 2025: When does the tender begin?
There is a limited period of time for each fiscal year in which you can enroll in the program. Each year, the State Department publishes detailed instructions for participation in the DV program. These notes contain the dates of the registration period in which you can participate.
According to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs web portal, the online registration deadline for the DV-2025 program is expiring begins on Wednesday, October 4, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. ET and ends on Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. ET.
Once the registration period begins, you can start your process and register online. Registration in the Visa lottery program is free. Detailed instructions for completing the online registration form can be found in the DV instructions.
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All registrations must be submitted electronically on the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website during the specified registration period. Later registrations or registrations in paper form will not be accepted. The law only allows one entry by or for each person per registration period.
Which countries can participate in the 2025 visa lottery?
The State Department annually publishes a list of countries that are ineligible to participate. If the country is not on this list, you can apply for one of the 55,000 diversity visas.
As more than 50,000 natives from these countries have immigrated to the United States in the last five years through 2025, Nationals of the following countries and territories are NOT eligible to apply for the visa lottery:
Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea (South Korea), United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Venezuela and Vietnam.
For more information about registration and other details, visit the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs web portal.