US Diversity Visa Lottery 2021 – How to Apply

There is a limited period of time during which you can register for the US Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program during each fiscal year. Each year, the Department of State publishes detailed instructions for entering the DV Program.

These instructions include the dates of the registration period during which you will be able to enter. 

All entries must be submitted electronically on the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website during the specified registration period.

No late entries or paper entries are accepted. The law allows only one entry by or for each person during each registration period.

The Department of State uses sophisticated technology to detect multiple entries. If you submit more than one entry you will be disqualified. 

This website does not become active for submitting an entry until the date and time specified on the DV Instructions webpage.

After you submit a complete entry, you will see a confirmation screen containing your name and a unique confirmation number. Print this confirmation screen for your records. 

It is extremely important that you retain your confirmation number. It is the only way you can check the status of your entry, and you will need it to obtain further instructions or schedule an interview for a visa if you are selected.

There is no cost to register for the DV Program. You are strongly encouraged to complete the entry form yourself, without a “Visa Consultant,” “Visa Agent,” or other facilitators who offers to help.

If somebody else helps you, you should be present when your entry is prepared so that you can provide the correct answers to the questions and retain the confirmation page and your unique confirmation number.

US Diversity Visa Program Application Process

• Step 1- Submit an Entry
• Step 2- Selection of Applicants
• Step 3- If You Are Selected
• Step 4- Confirm Your Qualifications
• Step 5- Submit Your Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Application
• Step 6- Submit Supporting Documents
• Step 7- Interview
• Step 8- Prepare for the Interview
• Step 9- Applicant Interview
• Step 10- After the Interview

Selection of Applicants

Each year, the Department of State conducts a random selection of Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) applicants, based on allocations of available visas in each region and country, from all registered entries.

On or about May 7, information on the Entrant Status Check on the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website is updated to inform all entrants if their online registration was selected or not.

You will need to enter your confirmation number, which you obtained when you filled out your entry form, to check your entry status.

If you have lost your confirmation number, you will not be able to check the status of your entry. They will not be able to resend the confirmation number to you.  

Please note: The Department of State will not mail notification letters or notify selectees by email.  U.S. embassies and consulates will not provide a list of selectees.  Entrant Status Check on the E-DV website is the ONLY means by which the Department of State notifies selectees of their selection.

Entrants in the Diversity Visa 2021 program may check the status of their entries on the E-DV website from June 6, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

Selected entrants are encouraged to complete the online DS-260 application immediately to schedule an interview appointment at the appropriate U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

If your entry is selected, you will be directed to a confirmation page that will provide further instructions, including information on fees connected with immigration to the United States. Entrant Status Check is the ONLY means by which selectees are notified of their selection.

The Department of State does not mail out notification letters or notify selectees by email, and U.S. Embassies and Consulates will not provide a list of selectees.

Individuals who have not been selected also will be notified ONLY through Entrant Status Check. You are strongly encouraged to access Entrant Status Check yourself and not to rely on someone else to check and inform you.

See the Frequently Asked Questions at the end of the DV Instructions for further information about the selection process.

If You Are Selected for the US Diversity Visa Lottery

Selected entrants for the US Diversity Visa Lottery are encouraged to complete the online DS-260 application immediately to schedule an interview appointment at the appropriate U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

Please note: The Department of State will not mail notification letters or notify selectees by email.  U.S. embassies and consulates will not provide a list of selectees. 

Entrant Status Check on the E-DV website is the ONLY means by which the Department of State notifies selectees of their selection. 

If you receive notification through the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website that you have been selected for further processing in the Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program, you must successfully complete the steps on the following pages before a consular interview can be scheduled to determine if you will receive a visa.

You should complete these steps as soon as possible.

If you receive notification through the E-DV website that you have been selected for further processing in the DV Program, and you are physically present in the United States, you may be eligible to adjust status to obtain permanent residence through the DV Program.

For more information, see Adjustment of Status.

It is important to remember that selection does not guarantee you will receive a visa. In order to receive a DV to immigrate to the United States, selectees must still meet all eligibility requirements under U.S. law.

Confirm Your Qualifications

The Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program requires the principal DV applicant to have a high school education, or its equivalent, or two years of qualifying work experience as defined under provisions of U.S. law.

If you do not have either the required education or qualifying work experience, you are not eligible for a diversity visa. (Only you, as the principal applicant, must meet this requirement.

Your spouse and children do not have to meet this requirement.) 

You should consider not pursuing a DV application if you do not meet the qualifying education or work experience requirements explained below as you may not be eligible for a diversity visa and any fees you pay for the visa application will not be refunded.

High School Education: A high school education means successful completion of a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to a 12-year course in the United States. Only formal courses of study meet this requirement; equivalency certificates (such as the G.E.D.) are not acceptable.

Work Experience: If you are qualifying with work experience, you must have two years of experience in the last five years, in an occupation which, by U.S. Department of Labor definitions, requires at least two years of training or experience that is designated as Job Zone 4 or 5, classified in a Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP) rating of 7.0 or higher. 

The U.S. Department of Labor provides information on job duties, knowledge and skills, education and training, and other occupational characteristics on their website http://www.onetonline.org/.

The O*Net online database groups work experience into five “job zones.” While many occupations are listed, only two years of experience in certain specified occupations qualify an individual for a Diversity Visa.

How to Find the Qualifying Occupations on the Department of Labor Website: Qualifying DV Occupations are shown on the Department of Labor O*Net Online Database.

Follow these steps when you are in O*Net Online to find out if your occupation may qualify you for a Diversity Visa:

• Under “Find Occupations” select “Job Family” from the pull down;
• Then Browse by “Job Family”. (For example, select Architecture and Engineering) and click “GO”;
• Then click on the link for your specific occupation. (As an example, select Aerospace Engineers. At the bottom of this Summary Report for Aerospace Engineers, under the Job Zone section, you will find the designated Job Zone 4, SVP Range, 7.0 to < 8.0. This means using this example, Aerospace Engineering is a qualifying occupation.)

Passport Requirement: Beginning with entries for DV-2021, the Department of State’s regulations require all entrants to provide a valid passport number at the time of DV entry, unless they are unable to obtain a passport and fall under one of three limited exemptions. 

You should consider not pursuing a DV application if you listed a false or invalid passport number on your DV entry, or if you selected an exemption from the passport requirement and you did not meet the requirements for that exemption, as you may not be eligible for a diversity visa and any fees you pay for the visa application will not be refunded. 

(Only you, as the principal applicant, must meet this requirement. Your spouse and children do not have to meet this requirement.)

Exemptions from the Passport Requirement: The Department of State’s regulations provide for three limited exemptions from the passport requirement. 

These three exemptions include: individuals who are stateless, nationals of a Communist-controlled country who are unable to obtain a passport from the government of the Communist-controlled country, and beneficiaries of individual waivers approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State.

If you selected one of these exemptions on your DV entry, you will be required to explain how you meet one of the three exemptions.

The exemptions apply only to individuals who are unable to obtain a passport.

If you selected an exemption because of a delay in obtaining a passport, whether or not that delay was within your control, you do not qualify for an exemption and you may not be eligible for a diversity visa. 

You should consider not pursuing a DV application if you selected one of the exemptions on your DV entry and you do not in fact fall into one of the exempted categories, as you may not be eligible for a diversity visa and any fees you pay for the visa application will not be refunded.

• Stateless Individuals: In general, statelessness is a rare situation. If on your DV entry you checked the box corresponding to this exemption, you must provide evidence to establish that you did not acquire the nationality of your country of birth under the laws of that country and that you do not have any other nationality.
• Nationals of a Communist-controlled country: If, on your DV entry, you checked the box corresponding to this exemption, you must provide evidence to establish that you are unable to obtain a passport from the government of your country of nationality.
• Beneficiaries of individual waivers: If, on your DV entry, you checked the box corresponding to this exemption, you must provide evidence that you are unable to obtain a passport, and the reason you should receive an individual passport waiver, such as:
  1)    A previous U.S. visa issued to you on form DS-232 because you were unable to obtain a passport, and that the same reasons that you previously sought a passport waiver still apply;
  2)    Form I-193 approved by USCIS because you were unable to obtain a passport, and that the same reasons that you previously sought a passport waiver still apply; or
  3)    Documentation showing that you have been granted refugee status in a country other than your country of nationality because you have been persecuted by the government of your country of nationality, making it impossible for you to obtain a passport from that government without experiencing further harm.

Again, you should consider not pursuing a DV application if you do not meet the qualifying education or work experience requirements explained above, or if you provided an invalid passport number with your entry or selected an exemption for which you do not qualify. 

Such errors may render you ineligible for a diversity visa and any fees you pay for the visa application will not be refunded.

Interview

After the Kentucky Consular Center has reviewed your completed DS-260, you may receive an e-mail from KCC to let you know that an interview has been scheduled at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate you selected on your DS-260 form.

The e-mail will instruct you to log into the Entrant Status Check on the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website, using your DV entry confirmation number, to view the date, time and location of your interview.

Print this information to take with you to your interview.

You will need to be present at the interview, as well as your spouse and children (as applicable) who are applying for a diversity immigrant visa.

Note: You will only be scheduled for an interview when and if there is a visa number available for you. Visa number allocations are determined by provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) which determines the number of diversity immigrant visas available each year.

The total number of diversity visas is allocated by visa category and region of the world.

The allocations are revised monthly as available visas are issued. Each month the Department of State publishes the Visa Bulletin which contains important information about updated allocations and the likelihood of a diversity visa number being available.

Anyone may view the most recent updated information by clicking Visa Bulletin.

Your completed Form DS-260 will be accessible by the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where you will be interviewed. You do not need to fill out a new application.

Important Applicant Notice:

Based on U.S. law, not everyone who applies for a visa will be found eligible to come to the United States. There are a number of possible reasons why someone might not qualify for a visa.

The circumstances of each case are different. Approved visas generally are not available on the day of interview.

It is important that you do not make arrangements such as selling your house, car or property, resigning from your job or making non-refundable flight or other travel arrangements until you have received your immigrant visa.