USLottery permanent residenceLimited

DV visa lottery in the US

The US State Department's lottery draws the right to a green card among natives of countries from which people rarely move to the USA. Registration goes only through the official portal during the announced period, with no intermediaries, and costs a token amount. Winning gives the right to go through further vetting: to evidence school education or work experience, have a medical examination and attend an interview at a consulate. The selection is random and does not guarantee a visa; the current issuance position is worth checking in advance.

Threshold

Registration in the lottery is free of charge

Yes, the lottery draws immigrant visas

Source: travel.state.gov — Diversity Visa Program: Submit an Entry

The education or work experience condition

Every entrant must have one of two things: full school education, or enough experience in a specific occupation. Here is who each option suits.

Qualifying on education

You have a certificate for full-time study on a full school course — not by correspondence and not as an external student
The study could have taken place in any country — an official document from the institution counts as evidence
You must bring the certificate itself to the interview, not an equivalency certificate such as a GED — those are not accepted
No further evidence of work experience is needed in this case

Qualifying on work experience

At least two years of experience within the five years before the entry is filed
The occupation must be in the O*Net database of the US Department of Labor with an SVP preparation level of 7.0 or above
Qualified occupations that require specialist training or practice qualify — from engineer to technician
Experience in the occupation is also evidenced with documents not at registration but at the interview

When the programme will not suit you

You were born in a country with high levels of migration to the USA and cannot claim another country of chargeability through a spouse or a parent

look towards other green card categories — through work, through marriage or through family reunification

You have neither full school education nor two years of suitable work experience within the past five years

close that condition first — finish your studies or build up experience in an occupation from the O*Net list, or choose an immigration category with no such condition

You need a predictable move by a particular date

work or family immigrant visas — here the result depends on a random selection, and even winning guarantees neither the visa nor the timing

An entry has already been filed in this registration cycle — or it was filed twice by mistake, for example through an intermediary

wait for the next cycle and file exactly one entry yourself: a repeat entry disqualifies all of them at once

What it costs

The registration fee for filing an entry in the lotterypaid only by the main applicant, directly while completing the form on the E-DV portal	1 USD
The immigrant visa processing fee for a winnerpaid by everyone for whom a visa is issued — the winner, the spouse, the children — in cash to the consular cashier on the day of the interview	330 USD
The same visa fee where status is adjusted inside the USA instead of at a consulatefor those already in the USA who apply to adjust status — it is sent by cheque or postal money order through the post, rather than paid at the consulate	330 USD
Total government feesThe sum of the mandatory rows in the table. the “The same visa fee where status is adjusted inside the USA instead of at a consulate” branch replaces the “The immigrant visa processing fee for a winner” line — 331 USD.	331 USD

Documents to gather

Some of the details are needed at the point of registering in the lottery; the rest only if the entry wins and the case reaches the interview.

A passport — the spelling of the name in the entry is transferred strictly from it
Colour photographs of the applicant and all family members to the US visa photo standard, no more than six months old
A certificate of full school education, or documents evidencing two years of qualified work experience within the past five years
A completed Form DS-260 — the electronic immigrant visa application for the winner and all accompanying family members
Civil documents: birth and marriage certificates, police certificates — originals or certified copies
The results of a medical examination with a doctor approved by the consulate, in a sealed envelope — you must not open it yourself
A printout of the interview appointment letter from the Entrant Status Check account

How the process runs

The route from entry to visa stretches over several years and at almost every step depends on the entrant's own actions — the State Department does not send reminders or notifications of its own accord.

1
Registering the entry on the E-DV portal
about five weeks, with the dates announced afresh for each cycle
The entry is filed only electronically on the official portal, with no paper forms and no intermediaries. Exactly one entry per person per cycle is allowed — the system detects duplicates automatically and disqualifies all of the offender's entries. Once submitted, a unique confirmation number is issued — there will be no other way of learning the result afterwards, so it must be kept.
2
Checking the results through Entrant Status Check
as a rule from the beginning of May the following year and almost to the end of the following fiscal year
The State Department does not send letters and does not notify anyone by email of a win — the only way to learn of a win or a rejection is to log into the account yourself using the confirmation number. If the number has been lost, it can be recovered through the same service using the email address given at registration.
3
The winner and their family file Form DS-260
The electronic immigrant visa application is completed by the winner themselves and by all the family members named in the entry. Supporting documents do not need to be attached at this stage — they are checked later, at the interview.
4
The medical examination and gathering the documents
You need to be examined by a doctor approved by the consulate and to gather civil documents — birth and marriage certificates, police certificates, and evidence of education or work experience. The results of the examination are issued in a sealed envelope which you must not open yourself — it is brought to the interview.
5
The consular interview and payment of the visa fee
At the interview the applicant presents the documents gathered and pays the visa fee to the consular cashier. If the winner is already lawfully in the USA, they can apply to adjust status through US Citizenship and Immigration Services instead of attending an interview — the same fee is then sent through the post.
6
Issue of the visa before the end of the fiscal year
All visas to winners must be issued before the end of the programme's fiscal year — there is no carry-over into the next year. Even a winning number does not guarantee a visa: if the available visas run out before the deadline, the programme ends early for everyone who has not made it through.

Timelines and rights

Validity

Those selected for DV-2027 have a window to receive the visa from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027. Changes to the registration procedure have not moved that window.

Work

A winner receives permanent resident status and works for any employer without a separate permit.

Residence

For citizenship you need 5 years of permanent residence and 30 months of physical presence in the USA.

Who you can bring with you

The spouse and minor children are included in the winner's entry from the outset — there is no need to file for them separately, but if they are not included in the original entry they lose the right to a visa.

The lawful spouse

Is named in the entry whether or not you live together and whether or not the spouse plans to move; the only exception is a formal divorce or legal separation by court order. If the spouse is already a US citizen or a green card holder, they are not named — they do not need a visa

Unmarried children under 21 at the time the entry is filed

Natural children, adopted children and stepchildren all count — even if they do not live with the applicant and do not plan to move. If a child was under 21 at the time of the entry but turned 21 later, protection against 'ageing out' under the Child Status Protection Act applies in a number of cases

The applicant's parents, brothers and sisters

Cannot obtain a visa as family members of the winner — the programme provides no derivative status for them at all

How it differs from the routes next to it

The comparison is built from the official terms of the routes themselves — the source links sit on their own pages.

	DV visa lottery	Asylum through USCIS	Asylum through the immigration court
Visa term	Those selected for DV-2027 have a window to receive the visa from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027	The status is indefinite and is not renewed; the EAD and the travel document are renewed	The status is indefinite, there is no routine renewal
Grounds	A draw of immigrant visas among nationals of countries with low levels of immigration to the USA	Persecution	Persecution
Money	Registration in the lottery is free of charge	No government fee for Form I-589; no income or sponsor requirement	No government fee for the I-589
Work	A winner receives permanent resident status and works for any employer without a separate permit	After the grant — work without restrictions; while the case is pending, an EAD after 180 days	After the grant — work; while the case is pending, an EAD after 180 days
Residence	For citizenship you need 5 years of permanent residence and 30 months of physical presence in the USA	No minimum period; physical presence is required, filing within 1 year	Physical presence in the United States is required

What comes next: permanent residence and citizenship

Route to citizenship

After 5 years with a green card you file Form N-400.

Frequently asked questions about DV visa lottery

Is it true that taking part in the lottery is free?

The entry itself has historically been filed free of charge. But under the updated schedule of consular fees the State Department has introduced a separate registration fee — one dollar from the main applicant, paid directly while completing the form. That has nothing to do with the visa: if the entry wins, the visa is paid for separately and costs a great deal more.

How much does the visa cost if the entry wins?

Everyone for whom a visa is issued pays a separate flat fee for it — the amount is the same for the winner as for the accompanying spouse and children. The money is paid in cash to the consular cashier at the interview itself, not in advance and not through intermediaries.

If an entry wins right now, will the visa be issued straight away?

Not necessarily. A temporary suspension of visa issuance to winners of the programme is in force: interviews continue and documents are accepted, but the visa itself is not yet being issued — and no exceptions are made for anyone. The measure does not cancel or revoke visas already issued earlier. Before counting on particular timescales, it is worth checking the current position on the State Department's site.

Can you take part if you were born in a country from which particularly many people immigrate to the USA?

Natives of such countries cannot take part directly. But there are lawful alternatives: entering under the spouse's country of birth — provided that both then receive a visa and enter the USA together — or under the country of birth of one of your parents, if neither parent was a native or a resident of your country of birth at the time you were born.

What happens if you file more than one entry?

All of that person's entries are disqualified at once, with no exceptions. The State Department's system is specifically set up to look for duplicates by applicants' personal details, so counting on a repeat entry going unnoticed is not wise.

Can a winner already in the USA obtain the green card without leaving the country?

Yes, if the winner is in the USA lawfully and generally meets the conditions for adjusting status. Instead of a consular interview they then file an application to adjust status with US Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the visa fee is sent by cheque or postal money order through the post rather than paid in cash.

Other ways to move to US

Every route in one list — migration programmes: US.

The terms and the amounts are checked against official sources — the link sits under each section.Last checked on: 7 August 2026.