Each year, the Diversity Lottery (DV) Program makes 55,000 immigrant visas ("green card") available through a lottery to people who come from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department (DOS) holds the lottery every year, and randomly selects approximately 110,000 applicants from all qualified entries. The DOS selects the approximately 110,000 applications since many will not complete the visa process. However once 55,000 are issued or the fiscal year ends, the DV program is closed.
 
To be eligible to enter the DV Lottery you or your spouse must be a native of a country that is eligible to participate in the DV Lottery. You may also be eligible to apply if your parent was born in a country that is eligible to participate. You must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education; OR you must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. 
  
You cannot enter the DV Lottery through the USCIS website or by filing any application with USCIS. The program is managed by the U.S. Department of State. Before each year's lottery drawing, the Department of State will publish explicit instructions on how to apply in press releases and the Federal Register. Please follow all directions exactly. Millions of applicants are rejected each year for failure to follow the directions. Please watch the State Department Website for more information on the Diversity Visa Lottery Program. Instructions are usually posted in August, and the registration period is usually held in October each year.  The 2010 Lottery online entry began at Noon Eastern Daylight Time, on October 2, 2008, and ended at Noon Eastern Standard Time on December 1, 2008.
 
Applicants who are randomly selected as winners of the green card lottery will be notified by mail within 6-8 months of the entry deadline.  Those who are not selected are not notified.  In this case, no news is bad news.  If you receive a visa through the Diversity Visa Lottery Program you will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. You will also be allowed to bring your spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 to the United States.
 
Once an applicant receives the good news, he must swing into action as he only has a little more than one year to obtain his green card.  If this process has not been completed by that date, then the winner is no longer eligible for a green card.  If the applicant is legally residing in the U.S., then she must file for an Adjustment of Status, Form I-485.  Alternatively, if the applicant is outside of the United States, then she must apply at the nearest U.S. consulate.  In either case, the applicant's immediate family members listed on the EDV Entry Form must follow the same procedures as the applicant.
 
This requirement prevents most J-1 physicians from using the DV lottery, even if they otherwise qualify.  Remember that a J-1 waiver requires the physician to complete all three years of the employment contract before he can apply for and receive a green card.  Consequently, even if the physician wins the lottery, he is ineligible to apply for the green card until he has completed his commitment. 
 
Our next newsletter we will come out the first week of January 2009.  Look for your newsletters in 2009.  Happy New year from the Badmus team!