U.S. Immigrant Visa Lottery now open

THE 2007 Diversity Immigrant Visa Lottery was formally declared open in Washington, DC on October 5, 2005. This program allows randomly selected applicants to immigrate to the United States on an expedited basis, provided they meet all the criteria.

Individuals wishing to participate in the visa lottery are strongly urged to apply early to avoid any possible delays. 50,000 individuals will be selected for the lottery worldwide, states a US Embassy press release.

The lottery registration period will run until December 4, 2005.

For the third year in a row, the lottery will be conducted entirely by electronic means. Paper entries will no longer be accepted. The State Department has established a website for the submission of entries, which can be accessed at: www.dvlottery.state.gov

Successfully registered entries will result in the display of a conformation screen containing the applicant's name, date of birth, country of chargeability (the country the applicant enters the lottery from), and a date and time stamp. This confirmation screen can be printed as proof of registration in the lottery.

People selected for an interview to obtain an immigrant visa will be notified in April/May, 2006.

If they qualify, they will then have a one-year window in which they may emigrate to the United States. Under the 2006 Diversity Visa program, 605 Sri Lankans qualified for immigrant visa interviews.

Important Notice

No fee is charged to enter the annual DV program. The U.S. Government employs no outside consultants or private services to operate the DV program.

Any intermediaries or others who offer assistance to prepare DV casework for applicants do so without the authority or consent of the U.S. Government. Use of any outside intermediary or assistance to prepare a DV entry is entirely at the applicant's discretion.

A qualified entry submitted electronically directly by an applicant has an equal chance of being selected by the computer at the Kentucky Consular Center as does an entry submitted electronically through a paid intermediary who completes the entry for the applicant.

Every entry received during the lottery registration period will have an equal random chance of being selected within its region. However, receipt of more than one entry per person will disqualify the person from registration, regardless of the source of the entry.