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2004 Diversity Lottery Visa Program

Courtesy of AILA

The Diversity Lottery Program (DV) is a random distribution of immigrant visas to individuals of "low" immigration countries,(i.e., those countries which send less than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. each year).

By following the directions below and mailing in the registration information, a person from one of the eligible countries makes him/herself eligible for random selection for an immigrant visa and, thereby, obtain Permanent Resident status in the U.S.

The mail-in period is from October 7, 2002 to November 6, 2002. All requirements must be strictly adhered to - otherwise the registration application will be discarded. All eligible persons should apply for DV - there is no fee for applying. There is an educational standard of a high school education or higher. Only one entry per person is permitted - multiple entries will disqualify the person.

The only individuals who are NOT eligible are natives of the following countries:

Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic,

El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines

South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Vietnam

Excerpt from Federal Register Announcement of August 21, 2002

Registration for the Diversity Immigrant (DV-2004) Visa Program

Entry Procedures for Immigrant Visas To Be Made Available in the DV Category During Fiscal Year 2004

Entries for DV-2004 must be received at one of the Kentucky Consular Center Mailing Addresses listed in this Notice between noon on Monday, October 7, 2002 and noon on Wednesday, November 6, 2002.

Entries received before or after these dates will be disqualified regardless of when they are postmarked. Entries mailed to any address other than the Kentucky Consular Center addresses listed in this notice will be disqualified.

How Are Visas Apportioned?

Visas are apportioned among six geographic regions with a greater number of visas going to regions with lower rates of immigration, and no visas going to countries sending more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. in the past five years. Within each of the six regions, no one country may receive more than seven percent of the available Diversity Visas in one year. By law, the U.S. Diversity Visa Program makes available a maximum of 55,000 each year. However, the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) stipulates that beginning as early as DV-99 and for as long as necessary, 5,000 of the 55,000 annually- allocated diversity visas will be made available for use under the NACARA Program. This reduction began in DV-1999 and remains in effect for DV-2004.

For DV-2004, natives of the following are not eligible to apply because they sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years:

Canada

China (mainland-born)

Colombia

Dominican Republic

El Salvador

Haiti

India

Jamaica

Mexico

Pakistan

Philippines

South Korea

United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories

Vietnam

(Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible.)

What Are the Requirements To Apply for the DV-2004 Visas?

Chargeability

To enter, an applicant must be able to claim nativity in an eligible country, and must meet either the education or training requirement of the DV program. Nativity in most cases is determined by the applicant's place of birth. However, if a person was born in an ineligible country but his/her spouse was born in an eligible country, such person can claim the spouse's country of birth rather than his/her own. Also, if a person was born in an ineligible country, but neither of his/her parents was born there or resided there at the time of the birth, such person may be able to claim nativity in one of the parents' country of birth.

Education or Training

To enter, an applicant must have either a high school education or its equivalent, defined in the U.S. as successful completion of a 12- year course of elementary and secondary education; or two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. U.S. Department of Labor definitions, as indicated in the O*Net OnLine database, will apply. If a person does not meet these requirements, he/she should not submit an entry to the DV program.

Submitting an Entry

Only one entry may be submitted by or for each applicant during the registration period. Submission of more than one entry will disqualify the person. The applicant must personally sign the entry, in his/her native alphabet. Neither an initialed signature nor block printing of the applicant's name will be accepted and will result in the disqualification of the entry. Failure of the applicant to personally sign his/her own entry will result in disqualification.

Completing the Entry

There is no specific form for the entry. Failure to provide all of the information listed below will disqualify the applicant. Simply use a plain sheet of paper and type or clearly print in the English (Roman) alphabet (preferably in the order listed below):

1. Full name, with the last (surname/family) name underlined: Examples: Public, Sara Jane (or) Lopez, Juan Antonio.

2. Date and place of birth: Date: Day, Month, Year. Example: 15 November 1961. Place: City/Town, District/County/Province, Country. Example: Munich, Bavaria, Germany. The name of the country should be that which is currently in use for the place where the applicant was born (For example, Slovenia, rather than Yugoslavia; Kazakhstan rather than Soviet Union.)

3. The applicant's native country if different from country of birth:

If the applicant is claiming nativity in a country other than his/ her place of birth, this must be clearly indicated on the entry. This information must match with what is put on the upper left corner of the entry envelope. (See ``MAILING THE ENTRY'' below.) If an applicant is claiming nativity through spouse or parent, please indicate this on the entry. (See ``REQUIREMENTS'' section for more information on this item.

4. Name, date and place of birth of the applicant's spouse and unmarried children who are under the age of 21 (other than children who are already U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents). Include natural children, stepchildren, as well as all legally-adopted children. List spouse and children regardless of whether or not they reside with you and whether or not they will immigrate with you. (Failure to provide ALL of this information will disqualify the applicant.) Note: married children and children 21 years or older will not qualify for the DV Program.

5. Full mailing address: This must be clear and complete, as any communications will be sent there. A telephone number is optional, but useful.

6. Photographs. Attach a recent photograph, either black and white or in color, of the applicant, spouse and each child. If photos do not conform to the following specifications, the entry will be isqualified:

The photo must between 1\1/2\ by 1\l/2\ and 2 by 2 inches (37-50 mm) square in size, with the name and date of birth printed on the back of the applicant's, spouse's and child's photo.

The person photographed must be directly facing the camera. The head should not be tilted up, down or to the side and should cover about 50% of the area of the photo.

The person should be in front of a neutral, light-colored background.

The face must be in focus.

The person photographed may not wear a hat or dark glasses or other paraphernalia which detracts from the face.

Photos with the alien wearing head coverings or hats are only acceptable due to religious beliefs, and even then, may not obscure any portion of the face of the applicant.

Photos of applicants wearing tribal, military, airline or other headware not specifically religious in nature will not be accepted.

The photograph (not a photocopy) should be attached to the entry with clear tape--DO NOT use staples or paperclips, which can jam the mail processing equipment.

7. Signature: The entry will be disqualified if the entry is not personally signed by the applicant with the usual and customary signature in his/her native alphabet. Neither an initialed signature nor block printing of the applicant's name will be accepted.

Mailing the Entry

Submit the entry by regular or airmail to the address matching the region of the applicant's country of nativity. Entries sent by express or priority mail, second day airmail, fax, hand, messenger, or any means requiring receipts or special handling will not be processed.

The envelope must be between 6 and 10 inches (15 to 25 cm) long and 3\1/2\ and 4\1/2\ inches (9 to 11 cm) wide.

Postcards are not acceptable.

Envelopes inside express or oversized mail packets are not acceptable.

In the upper left-hand corner of the envelope the applicant must write his/her country of nativity, followed by the applicant's name and full return address, even if both are the same.

Failure to provide this information will disqualify the entry.

Mailing address: The mailing addresses for the six regions are as follows:

Africa........(Includes all countries on the African continent and adjacent islands):.

DV Program, Kentucky Consular Center,

1001 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41901-1000, USA.

Asia.............(Extends from Israel to the Northern Pacific Islands, and includes Indonesia):.

DV Program, Kentucky Consular Center,

2002 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41902-2000, USA.

Europe..............(Extends from Greenland to Russia, and includes all countries of the former USSR).

DV Program Kentucky Consular Center,

3003 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41903-3000, USA.

South America/Central America/Caribbean... (Extends from Central America (Guatemala) and the Caribbean nations to Chile.).

DV Program Kentucky Consular Center,

4004 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41904-4000, USA.

DV Program Kentucky Consular Center,

5005 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41905-5000, USA.

North America.....(Includes the Bahamas)

DV Program Kentucky Consular Center,

6006 Visa Crest,

Migrate, KY 41906-6000, USA.