| Media Note Office of the Spokesman Washington, DC September 19, 2006 2008 Diversity Visa Lottery Program Registration
Applications for the 2008 Diversity Visa (DV)
Lottery will be accepted between noon Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT-4),
Wednesday, October 4, 2006 and noon Eastern Standard Time (EST) (GMT-5)
Sunday, December 3, 2006. Applicants may access the electronic Diversity
Visa entry form at
www.dvlottery.state.gov during the registration period. Paper entries
will not be accepted. Applicants are strongly encouraged not to wait until
the last week of the registration period to enter. Heavy demand may result
in website delays. No entries will be accepted after noon EST on December 3,
2006. The congressionally mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa Program is
administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and conducted
under the terms of Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA). Section 131 of the Immigration Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-649) amended
INA 203 provides for a class of immigrants known as "diversity immigrants."
Section 203(c) of the INA provides a maximum of up to 55,000 Diversity Visas
(DV) each fiscal year to be made available to persons from countries with
low rates of immigration to the United States. The annual DV program makes permanent residence visas available to
persons meeting the simple, but strict, eligibility requirements. A
computer-generated random lottery drawing chooses selectees for diversity
visas. The visas, however, are distributed among six geographic regions with
a greater number of visas going to regions with lower rates of immigration,
and with no visas going to nationals of countries sending more than 50,000
immigrants to the United States over the period of the past five years.
Within each region, no one country may receive more than seven percent of
the available Diversity Visas in any one year. For DV-2008, natives of the following countries[1]
are not eligible to apply because they sent a total of more than
50,000 immigrants to the United States over the period of the previous five
years: BRAZIL, CANADA, CHINA (mainland-born), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC,
EL SALVADOR, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, PAKISTAN, PHILIPPINES, PERU,
POLAND, RUSSIA, SOUTH KOREA, UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland) and
its dependent territories, and VIETNAM. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau
SAR and Taiwan are eligible. REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRY To enter the DV lottery, you must be a native of one of the listed
countries. See List Of Countries By Region Whose Natives Qualify, at the end
of this press release. Native of a country whose natives qualify: In most cases this
means the country in which you were born. However, there are two other ways
you may be able to qualify. First, if you were born in a country whose
natives are ineligible but your spouse was born in a country whose natives
are eligible, you can claim your spouse’s country of birth provided both you
and your spouse are on the selected entry, are issued visas and enter the
United States simultaneously. Second, if you were born in a country whose
natives are ineligible, but neither of your parentswas born there or resided
there at the time of your birth, you may claim nativity in one of your
parents’ country of birth if it is a country whose natives qualify for the
DV-2008 program. To enter the lottery, you must meet either the education or
work experience requirement of the DV program. Education or Work Experience: You must have EITHER a high school
education or its equivalent, defined 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. The U.S. Department of
Labor’s O*Net OnLine database
will be used to determine qualifying work experience. For more information
about qualifying work experience, see Frequently Asked Question #13. If you cannot meet these requirements, you should NOT submit an entry
to the DV program. PROCEDURES FOR SUBMITTING AN ENTRY TO DV-2008 The Department of State will only accept completed Electronic
Diversity Visa Entry Forms submitted electronically at
www.dvlottery.state.gov
during the registration period. All entries by an individual will be disqualified if more than ONE entry
for that individual is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. You
may prepare and submit your own entry, or have someone submit the entry for
you. A successfully registered entry will result in the display of a
confirmation screen containing your name, date of birth, country of
chargeability, and a date/time stamp. You may print this confirmation screen
for your records using the print function of your web browser. Paper entries will not be accepted. Your entry will be disqualified if all required photographs are not submitted. Recent photographs of the following people must be submitted electronically with the Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form:
You do not need to submit a photo for a child who is already a U.S. citizen or a Legal Permanent Resident Group or family photographs will not be accepted; there must be a separate photograph for each family member. Failure to submit the required photographs for your spouse and each child will result in an incomplete entry to the E-DV system. The entry will not be accepted and must be resubmitted. Failure to enter the correct photograph of each individual in the case into the E-DV system will result in disqualification of the principal applicant and refusal of all visas in the case at the time of the visa interview. A digital photograph (image) of you, your spouse, and each child must be
submitted on-line with the E-DV Entry Form. The image file can be produced
either by taking a new digital photograph or by scanning a photographic
print with a digital scanner. The image file must adhere to the following compositional specifications
and technical specifications and can be produced in one of the following
ways:
Compositional Specifications: The submitted digital image must
conform to the following compositional specifications or the entry will be
disqualified. Head Position Background Focus Decorative Items Head Coverings and Hats Photographs of individuals wearing head coverings or hats are only acceptable if related to his/her religious beliefs, and even then, may not obscure any portion of the face of the applicant. Photographs of individuals with tribal or other headgear not specifically religious in nature will not be accepted. Photographs of military, airline, or other personnel wearing hats will
not be accepted. Taking a New Digital Image. If a new digital image is taken, it
must meet the following specifications:
Scanning a Submitted Photograph. Before a photographic print is
scanned, it must meet the following specifications:
The photographic print must also meet the Compositional Specifications.
If the photographic print meets the Print Size, Print Color, and
Compositional Specifications, scan the print using the following scanner
specifications.
THE ENTRY There is only one way to enter the DV-2008 lottery. You must submit an Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form (E-DV Entry Form), which is accessible only at www.dvlottery.state.gov. Failure to complete the form in its entirety will disqualify the entry. Those who submit the E-DV entry will be asked to include the following information on the E-DV Entry Form.
2. DATE OF BIRTH - Day, Month, Year 3. GENDER - Male or Female 4. CITY WHERE YOU WERE BORN 5. COUNTRY WHERE YOU WERE BORN - The name of the country should be
that which is currently in use for the place where you were born. 6. COUNTRY OF ELIGIBILITY OR CHARGEABILITY FOR THE DV PROGRAM -
Your country of eligibility will normally be the same as your country of
birth. Your country of eligibility is not related to where you live.
If you were born in a country that is not eligible for the DV program,
please review the instructions to see if there is another option for country
of chargeability available for you. For additional information on
chargeability, please review Frequently Asked Question #1 of these
instructions. 7. ENTRY PHOTOGRAPH(S) - See technical information on photograph
specifications. Make sure you include photographs of your spouse and all
your children, if applicable. See Frequently Asked Question #11 8. MAILING ADDRESS – In Care Of, Address Line 1, Address Line 2,
City/Town, District/Country/Province/State, Postal Code/Zip Code, Country
9. COUNTRY WHERE YOU LIVE TODAY 10. PHONE NUMBER (optional) 11. E-MAIL ADDRESS (optional) 12. WHAT IS THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF EDUCATION YOU HAVE ACHIEVED, AS OF
TODAY? 13. MARITAL STATUS - Unmarried, Married, Divorced, Widowed,
Legally Separated 14. NUMBER OF CHILDREN: Entries must include the name, date
and place of birth of your spouse and all natural children, as well as all
legally-adopted children and stepchildren, who are unmarried and under the
age of 21 (do not include children who are already U.S. citizens or Legal
Permanent Residents), even if you are no longer legally married to the
child’s parent, and even if the spouse or child does not currently reside
with you and/or will not immigrate with you. Note that married children and
children 21 years or older are not eligible for the diversity visa.
Failure to list all children, who are eligible, will result in
disqualification of the principal applicant and refusal of all visas in the
case at the time of the visa interview. See Frequently Asked Question
#11. 15. SPOUSE INFORMATION - Name, Date of Birth, Gender, City/Town of
Birth, Country of Birth, Photograph. Failure to list your spouse will
result in disqualification of the principal applicant and refusal of all
visas in the case at the time of the visa interview. 16. CHILDREN INFORMATION - Name, Date of Birth, Gender, City/Town of Birth, Country of Birth, Photograph: Include all children declared in question #14 above.
SELECTION OF APPLICANTS The computer will select at random individuals from among all
qualified entries. They will be notified by mail between May and July
2007 and will be provided further instructions, including information on
fees connected with immigration to the U.S. Those selected in the random
drawing are NOT notified by email. Those individuals NOT selected
will NOT receive any notification. U.S. embassies and consulates will
not be able to provide a list of successful entrants. Spouses and unmarried
children under age 21 of successful entrants may also apply for visas to
accompany or follow to join the principal applicant. DV-2008 visas will be
issued between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2008. In order to receive a Diversity Visa to immigrate to the United
States, those chosen in the random drawing must meet ALL eligibility
requirements under U.S. law. Processing of entries and issuance of
diversity visas to successful individuals and their eligible family members
MUST occur by midnight on September 30, 2008. Under no circumstances can
diversity visas be issued or adjustments approved after this date, nor can
family members obtain diversity visas to follow to join the principal
applicant in their case in the U.S. after this date. Important Notice FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 1. WHAT DO THE TERMS "ELIGIBILITY", "NATIVE" AND
"CHARGEABILITY" MEAN? ARE THERE ANY SITUATIONS IN WHICH
PERSONS WHO WERE NOT BORN IN A QUALIFYING COUNTRY MAY APPLY? Your country of eligibility will normally be the same as your
country of birth. Your country of eligibility is not related to where you
live. Native ordinarily means someone born in a particular country,
regardless of the individual's current country of residence or nationality.
For immigration purposes "native" can also mean someone who is entitled to
be "charged" to a country other than the one in which he/she was born under
the provisions of Section 202(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
For example, if you were born in a country that is not eligible for this
year’s DV program, you may claim chargeability to the country where
your derivative spouse was born, but you will not be issued a DV-1 unless
your spouse is also eligible for and issued a DV-2, and both of you must
enter the United States together with the diversity visas. In a similar
manner, a minor dependent child can be "charged" to a parent’s country of
birth. Finally, if you were born in a country not eligible to participate in
this year’s DV program, you can be "charged" to the country of birth of
either of your parent as long as neither parent was a resident of the
ineligible country at the time of the your birth. In general, people are not
considered residents of a country in which they were not born or legally
naturalized if they are only visiting the country, studying in the country
temporarily, or stationed in the country for business or professional
reasons on behalf of a company or government. If you claim alternate chargeability, you must indicate
such information on the E-DV electronic online entry form, question #6.
Please be aware that listing an incorrect country of eligibility or
chargeability (i.e. one to which you cannot establish a valid claim)
may disqualify your entry. 2. ARE THERE ANY CHANGES OR NEW REQUIREMENTS IN THE APPLICATION
PROCEDURES FOR THIS DIVERSITY VISA REGISTRATION? All DV-2008 lottery entries must be submitted electronically at
www.dvlottery.state.gov during
the registration period. No paper entries will be accepted. Several questions and options for answers have been added to DV-2008 to
gather additional information. 3. ARE SIGNATURES AND PHOTOGRAPHS REQUIRED FOR EACH FAMILY
MEMBER, OR ONLY FOR THE PRINCIPAL ENTRANT? Signatures are not required on the Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form.
Recent and individual photographs of you, your spouse and all children under
21 years of age are required. Family or group photographs are not accepted.
Refer to the information on the photograph requirements on page 2 of this
bulletin. 4. WHY DO NATIVES OF CERTAIN COUNTRIES NOT QUALIFY FOR
THE DIVERSITY PROGRAM? Diversity visas are intended to provide an immigration opportunity for
persons from countries other than the countries that send large numbers of
immigrants to the U.S. The law states that no diversity visas shall be
provided for natives of "high admission" countries. The law defines this to
mean countries from which a total of 50,000 persons in the Family-Sponsored
and Employment-Based visa categories immigrated to the United States during
the period of the previous five years. Each year, the USCIS adds the family
and employment immigrant admission figures for the previous five years in
order to identify the countries whose natives will be ineligible for the
annual diversity lottery. Because there is a separate determination made
before each annual E-DV entry period, the list of countries whose natives
are not eligible may change from one year to the next. 5. WHAT IS THE NUMERICAL LIMIT FOR DV-2008? By law, the U.S. diversity immigration program makes available a maximum
of 55,000 permanent residence visas each year to eligible persons. However,
the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by
Congress in November 1997 stipulates that beginning as early as DV-1999, and
for as long as necessary, up to 5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated
diversity visas will be made available for use under the NACARA program. The
actual reduction of the limit by up to 5,000 diversity visas began with
DV-2000 and is likely to remain in effect through the DV-2008 program. WHAT ARE THE REGIONAL DIVERSITY VISA (DV) LIMITS FOR
DV-2008? The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) determines the DV
regional limits for each year according to a formula specified in Section
203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Once the USCIS has
completed the calculations, the regional visa limits will be announced. 7. WHEN WILL ENTRIES FOR THE DV-2008 PROGRAM BE ACCEPTED? The DV-2008 entry period will run through the registration period. Each
year millions of people apply for the program during the registration
period. The massive volume of entries creates an enormous amount of work in
selecting and processing successful individuals. Holding the entry period
during October, November, and December will ensure that selectees are
notified in a timely manner, and gives both the visa applicants and our
embassies and consulates time to prepare and complete cases for visa
issuance. You are strongly encouraged to enter early in the registration
period. Excessive demand at end of the registration period may slow the
system down. No entries whatsoever will be accepted after noon EST Sunday,
December 3, 2006. 8. MAY PERSONS WHO ARE IN THE U.S. APPLY FOR THE PROGRAM?
Yes, an applicant may be in the U.S. or in another country, and the entry
may be submitted from the United States or from abroad. 9. IS EACH APPLICANT LIMITED TO ONLY ONE ENTRY DURING THE
ANNUAL E-DV REGISTRATION PERIOD? Yes, the law allows only one entry by or for each person during each
registration period. Individuals for whom more than one entry is
submitted will be disqualified. The Department of State will employ
sophisticated technology and other means to identify individuals who submit
multiple entries during the registration period. People submitting more than
one entry will be disqualified and an electronic record will be permanently
maintained by the Department of State. Individuals may apply for the program
each year during the regular registration period. 10. MAY A HUSBAND AND A WIFE EACH SUBMIT A SEPARATE ENTRY?
Yes, a husband and a wife may each submit one entry if each meets the
eligibility requirements. If either were selected, the other would be
entitled to derivative status. 11. WHAT FAMILY MEMBERS MUST I INCLUDE ON MY E-DV ENTRY? On your entry you must list your spouse, that is husband or wife,
and all unmarried children under 21 years of age, with the exception of
children who are already U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents. You
must list your spouse even if you are currently separated from him/her,
unless you are legally separated (i.e. there is a written agreement
recognized by a court or a court order). If you are legally separated or
divorced, you do not need to list your former spouse. You must list ALL
your children who are unmarried and under 21 years of age, whether they
are your natural children, your spouse’s children, or children you have
formally adopted in accordance with the laws of your country, unless such
child is already a U.S. citizen or Legal Permanent Resident. List all
children under 21 years of age even if they no longer reside with you or you
do not intend for them to immigrate under the DV program. People may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit
the entry for them. Regardless of whether an entry is submitted by the
individual directly, or assistance is provided by an attorney, friend,
relative, etc., only one entry may be submitted in the name of each person
and the entrant remains responsible for insuring that information in the
entry is correct and complete. If the entry is selected, the notification
letter will be sent only to the mailing address provided on the
entry. 13. WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATION OR WORK EXPERIENCE?
The law and regulations require that every entrant must have at least a
high school education or its equivalent or, within the past five years, have
two years of work experience in an occupation requiring at least two years
training or experience. A "high school education or equivalent" is defined
as successful completion of a twelve-year course of elementary and secondary
education in the United States or successful completion in another country
of a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to a
high school education in the United States. Documentary proof of education
or work experience must be presented to the consular officer at the time of
the visa interview. To determine eligibility based on work experience,
definitions from the Department of Labor’s
O*Net Online Database database
will be used. What Occupations qualify for the Diversity Visa Program?
14. HOW WILL SUCCESSFUL ENTRANTS BE SELECTED? At the Kentucky Consular Center, all entries received from each region
will be individually numbered. After the end of the registration period, a
computer will randomly select entries from among all the entries received
for each geographic region. Within each region, the first entry randomly
selected will be the first case registered, the second entry selected the
second registration, etc. All entries received during the registration
period will have an equal chance of being selected within each region. When
an entry has been selected, the entrant will be sent a notification letter
by the Kentucky Consular Center, which will provide visa application
instructions. The Kentucky Consular Center will continue to process the case
until those selected to be visa applicants are instructed to appear for visa
interviews at a U.S. consular office, or until those qualifying to change
status in the United States apply at a domestic USCIS office. 15. MAY SELECTEES ADJUST THEIR STATUS WITH USCIS? Yes, provided they are otherwise eligible to adjust status under the
terms of Section 245 of the INA, selected individuals who are physically
present in the United States may apply to the USCIS for adjustment of status
to permanent resident. Applicants must ensure that USCIS can complete
action on their cases, including processing of any overseas derivatives,
before September 30, 2008, since on that date registrations for the DV-2008
program expire. No visa numbers for the DV-2008 program will be available
after midnight on September 30, 2008 under any circumstances. 16. WILL ENTRANTS WHO ARE NOT SELECTED BE INFORMED? No, entrants who are not selected will receive no response to their
entry. Only those who are selected will be informed. All notification
letters are sent within five to seven months from the end of the application
period to the address indicated on the entry. Since there is no notification
provided to those not selected, anyone who does not receive a letter five to
seven months from the end of the registration period should assume that
his/her application has not been selected. 17. HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS WILL BE SELECTED? There are 50,000 DV visas available for DV-2008, but more than that
number of individuals will be selected. Because it is likely that some of
the first 50,000 persons who are selected will not qualify for visas or
pursue their cases to visa issuance, more than 50,000 entries will be
selected by the Kentucky Consular Center to ensure that all of the available
DV visas are issued. However, this also means that there will not be a
sufficient number of visas for all those who are initially selected. All
applicants who are selected will be informed promptly of their place on the
list. Interviews for the DV-2008 program will begin in October 2007. The
Kentucky Consular Center will send appointment letters to selected
applicants four to six weeks before the scheduled interviews with U.S.
consular officers at overseas posts. Each month visas will be issued, visa
number availability permitting, to those applicants who are ready for
issuance during that month. Once all of the 50,000 DV visas have been
issued, the program for the year will end. In principle, visa numbers could
be finished before September 2008. Selected applicants who wish to receive
visas must be prepared to act promptly on their cases. Random selection
by the Kentucky Consular Center computer as a selectee does not
automatically guarantee that you will receive a visa. IS THERE A MINIMUM AGE FOR APPLICANTS TO APPLY FOR THE E-DV PROGRAM?
There is no minimum age to apply for the program, but the requirement of
a high school education or work experience for each principal applicant at
the time of application will effectively disqualify most persons who are
under age 18. 19. ARE THERE ANY FEES FOR THE E-DV PROGRAM? There is no fee for submitting an electronic lottery entry. DV
applicants must pay all required visa fees at the time of visa application
directly to the consular cashier at the embassy or consulate. Details of
required diversity visa and immigration visa application fees will be
included with the instructions sent by the Kentucky Consular Center to
applicants who are selected. 20. DO DV APPLICANTS RECEIVE WAIVERS OF ANY GROUNDS OF VISA
INELIGIBILITY OR RECEIVE SPECIAL PROCESSING FOR A WAIVER APPLICATION?
No. Applicants are subject to all grounds of ineligibility for immigrant
visas specified in the Immigration and Nationality Act. There are neither
special provisions for the waiver of any ground of visa ineligibility other
than those ordinarily provided in the Act nor special processing for waiver
requests. 21. MAY PERSONS WHO ARE ALREADY REGISTERED FOR AN IMMIGRANT
VISA IN ANOTHER CATEGORY APPLY FOR THE DV PROGRAM? Yes, such persons may apply for the DV program. 22. HOW LONG DO APPLICANTS WHO ARE SELECTED REMAIN ENTITLED TO
APPLY FOR VISAS IN THE DV CATEGORY? Persons selected in the DV-2008 lottery are entitled to apply for visa
issuance only during fiscal year 2008, from October 1, 2007 through
September 30, 2008. Applicants must obtain the DV visa or adjust status
by the end of the fiscal year. There is no carry-over of DV benefits
into the next year for persons who are selected but who do not obtain visas
during FY-2008. Also, spouses and children who derive status from a DV-2008
registration can only obtain visas in the DV category between October 2007
and September 2008. Applicants who apply overseas will receive an
appointment letter from the Kentucky Consular Center four to six weeks
before the scheduled appointment. 23. IF AN E-DV SELECTEE DIES, WHAT HAPPENS TO THE DV CASE? 24. WHEN WILL E-DV ONLINE BE AVAILABLE? Online entry will be available during the registration period beginning at noon EDT (GMT-4) on October 4, 2006 and ending at noon EST (GMT-5) on December 3, 2006.
No, you will not be able to save the form into another program for
completion and submission later. The E-DV Entry Form is a Web form only.
This makes it more "universal" than a proprietary word processor format.
Additionally, it does require that the information be filled in and
submitted while on-line. 26. IF I DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO A SCANNER, CAN I SEND PHOTOGRAPHS
TO MY RELATIVE IN THE U.S. TO SCAN THE PHOTOGRAPHS, SAVE THE PHOTOGRAPHS TO
A DISKETTE, AND THEN MAIL THE DISKETTE BACK TO ME TO APPLY? Yes, this can be done as long as the photograph meets the photograph
requirements in the instructions, and the photograph is electronically
submitted with, and at the same time the E-DV online entry is submitted. The
applicants must already have the scanned photograph file when they submit
the entry on-line. The photograph cannot be submitted separate from the
online application. Only one on-line entry by or for each person can be
submitted. Multiple submissions will disqualify the entry for that person
for DV-2008. The entire entry (photograph and application together) can be
submitted electronically from the United States or from overseas. 27. CAN I SAVE THE FORM ON-LINE SO THAT I CAN FILL OUT PART AND
THEN COME BACK LATER AND COMPLETE THE REMAINDER? No, this cannot be done. The E-DV Entry Form is designed to be completed
and submitted at one time. However, because the form is in two parts, and
because of possible network interruptions and delays, the E-DV system is
designed to permit up to sixty (60) minutes between the downloading of the
form and when the entry is received at the E-DV web site after being
submitted online. If more than sixty minutes elapses, and the entry has not
been electronically received, the information already received is discarded.
This is done so that there is no possibility that a full entry could
accidentally be interpreted as a duplicate of a previous partial entry. For
example, suppose an applicant with a wife and child sends a filled in E-DV
Entry Form Part One and then receives Form Part Two, but there is a delay
before sending Part Two because of trouble finding the file that holds the
child’s photograph. If the filled in Form Part Two is sent by the applicant
and received by the E-DV website within sixty (60) minutes, there is no
problem. However, if the Form Part Two is received after sixty (60) minutes
have elapsed, the applicant will be informed that he or she must start the
entire entry from the beginning. The DV-2008 instructions explain clearly
and completely what information is required to fill in the form. This way
you can be fully prepared, making sure you have all of the information
needed, before you start to complete the form on-line. 28. IF THE SUBMITTED DIGITAL IMAGES DO NOT CONFORM TO THE
SPECIFICATIONS, THE PROCEDURES STATE THAT THE SYSTEM WILL AUTOMATICALLY
REJECT THE E-DV ENTRY FORM AND NOTIFY THE SENDER. DOES THIS MEAN I WILL BE
ABLE RE-SUBMIT MY ENTRY? Yes, the entry can be resubmitted. Since the entry was automatically
rejected, it was not actually considered as submitted to the E-DV website.
It does not count as a submitted E-DV entry, and no confirmation notice of
receipt is sent. If there are problems with the digital photograph sent,
because it does not conform to the requirements, it is automatically
rejected by the E-DV website. However, the amount of time it takes the
rejection message to reach the sender is unpredictable due to the nature of
the Internet. If the problem can be fixed by the applicant, and the Form
Part One or Two is re-sent within sixty (60) minutes, there is no problem.
Otherwise the submission process will have to be started over. An applicant
can try to submit an application as many times as is necessary until a
complete application is received and the confirmation notice sent. The response from the E-DV website which contains confirmation of the
receipt of an acceptable E-DV Entry Form is sent by the E-DV website
immediately. However, how long it takes the response to reach the sender is
unpredictable due to the nature of the Internet. If many minutes have
elapsed since pressing the ‘Submit’ button, there is no harm in pressing the
‘Submit’ button a second time. The E-DV system will not be confused by a
situation where the ‘Submit’ button is hit a second time, because no
confirmation response has been received. An applicant can try to submit an
application as many times as is necessary until a complete application is
received and the confirmation notice sent. 30. HOW WILL I KNOW IF THE NOTIFICATION OF SELECTION THAT I HAVE
RECEIVED IS AUTHENTIC? HOW CAN I CONFIRM THAT I HAVE IN FACT BEEN CHOSEN IN
THE RANDOM DV LOTTERY? After the individuals have been selected at random from among all
qualified entries through the State Department E-DV lottery computer
program, they will NOT be notified by email. Those selected
will be notified only by letter through the mail between May and July 2007
at the addresses listed on their E-DV entry. Only the randomly selected
individuals will be notified. Persons not selected will NOT receive any
notification. U.S. embassies and consulates will NOT be able to provide a
list of those selected to continue the visa process. Kentucky Consular Center (KCC) will send the letters notifying those
selected. These letters will contain instructions for the visa application
process. The instructions say the selected applicants will pay all diversity
and immigrant visa fees in person only at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate at
the time of the visa application. The Consular Cashier or Consular Officer
immediately gives the visa applicant a U.S. Government receipt for payment.
You should never send money for DV fees through the mail, through Western
Union, or any other delivery service. The E-DV lottery entries are made on the Internet, on the official US
Government E-DV website at
www.dvlottery.state.gov. KCC sends only letters to the selected
applicants. KCC, consular offices, or the U.S. Government have never sent
e-mails to notify selected individuals, and there are no plans to use e-mail
for this purpose for the DV-2008 program. The Department of State, Visa Services advises the public that only
Internet sites including the ".gov" indicator are official government
websites. Many other non-governmental websites (e.g., using the suffixes
".com" or ".org" or ".net") provide legitimate and useful immigration and
visa related information and services. Regardless of the content of
non-governmental websites, the Department of State does not endorse,
recommend or sponsor any information or material shown at these other
websites. Some websites may try to mislead customers and members
of the public into thinking they are official websites and may contact you
by email to lure you to their offers. These websites may attempt to require
you to pay for services such as forms and information about immigration
procedures, which are otherwise free on the Department of State Visa
Services website, or overseas through the Embassy Consular Section websites.
Additionally, these other websites may require you to pay for services you
will not receive, often including diversity immigration application and visa
fees in an effort to outright steal your money. Once you send money in one
of these scams, you will never see it again. Also, you should be wary of
sending any personal information that might be used for identity fraud/theft
to these websites. 31. HOW DO I REPORT INTERNET FRAUD OR UNSOLICITED EMAIL?
LIST OF COUNTRIES BY REGION WHOSE NATIVES ARE ELIGIBLE FOR DV-2008
The lists below show the countries whose natives are eligible for DV-2008
within each geographic region for this diversity program. The determination
of countries within each region is based on information provided by the
Geographer of the Department of State. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) identified the countries whose natives are not eligible for
the DV-2008 program according to the formula in Section 203(c) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act. Dependent areas overseas are included
within the region of the governing country. The countries whose natives are
NOT eligible for this diversity program (because they are the principal
source countries of Family-Sponsored and Employment-Based immigration, or
"high admission" countries) are noted after the respective regional lists.
AFRICA EUROPE
Countries in this region whose natives are not eligible for this year's diversity program: Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Jamaica,
Mexico, and Peru. * [1] The term "country" in this notice includes
countries, economies and other jurisdictions explicitly listed beginning on
page 13. 2006/842
Released on September 19, 2006 Source: The US Department of State
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