Are your chances of winning high?
To plan your own life, it's worth looking into, what is the probability of winning a green card. Formally, the draw is a lottery, not a competition, but in practice regional quotas play a significant role (which are higher for densely populated parts of the world) and local coefficients, which sometimes apply to individual countries. Sometimes anti-fraud mechanisms also play a role..
To assess your own chances, useful to find out, who wins a green card most often. If we talk about global regions, then most often the natives win:
- from Africa: 49 000 (42 % from all winners) V 2019 Mr. and 38 000 (43 %) V 2019 Mr.;
- from Europe: 42 000 (37 %) V 2019 Mr. and 30 000 (34 %) V 2019 Mr.
By itself, and the majority of applications come from these same regions: almost 11 million per year from Africa and 7 million - from Europe. North Americans almost never receive visas (15 man in 2019 Mr. and 19 - V 2019).
The well-known statistics of green card winners by country looks interesting.. Most often in 2019 citizens of such countries won:
- Iran and Russia - each 4 500 winners, 4,5 % from all the winners and 0,02 % from all applications;
- Congo – 4 497 Human;
- Ethiopia – 4 496;
- Egypt - 4 495;
- Uzbekistan – 4 494 person;
- Albania – 4 484;
- Ukraine – 4 478;
- Nepal - 4 097 or 4,1 % from all winners;
- Liberia - 3 989;
- Sudan - 3 781;
- Ghani - 3 549;
- Kenya – 2 997 or 3 % all winners;
- Armenia - 2 844 person.
Because of, that a strictly limited number of quotas are allocated to a certain region and country, number of green card applications in each country, region and throughout the world also greatly influences the likelihood of victory. At the same time, due to rumors about US President Donald Trump’s intentions to cancel the drawing or reduce the number of quotas, the number of applications is growing every year. So the sooner you apply, the more chances she will have of winning.
To assess the chances you need to know approximately, how many people participate in the green card drawing, and this information becomes available only after applications are closed. However, you can roughly focus on the figures for previous years. So, Only for 2019 year it was filed 22 425 053 applications - which gives an estimate of the chances of winning in 0,4 %.
Due to the limited number of quotas for each country, the chances of Russian citizens to win will largely depend not even on the total number of participants, and from that, how many Russians participate in the Green Card lottery. For example, for participation in DV-2018 received from citizens of the Russian Federation 221 372 applications, of which the winners were 4 500.
For that, to increase your chances of winning, Each family member must apply, meeting program requirements.
What is a Green Card?
The issue with an American residence permit is quite complex and voluminous., to consider it together with the nuances of the visa lottery. Therefore, we will very briefly give a few formulations for a better understanding and move on to the main analysis.
United States Permanent Resident Card - permanent resident card (resident) U.S.A. This is the view of the permanent (long-term) residence in the USA, granting the right to unlimited stay in the country, study and/or work. The status is confirmed by the relevant document, which is colloquially called a Green Card, green card, green card, green card.
The document design has changed many times, and was not always “green”. For the first time an analogue of the green card appeared in 1940 year. Until this time, the concept of legal and illegal emigration did not exist - foreigners freely entered the United States and settled there.
Security required registration of visitors, then the institution of residence permit was introduced. You could receive your first documents... at any post office throughout the USA. Only over time did the procedure become enormous, sometimes overwhelming, bureaucratic mass.
Wait for the result
After that, how do you apply for the canada visa lottery, you need to wait for the results. Depending on, how many applications were received, this may take from several weeks to several months.
When will your application be processed?, you will receive an email from the Canadian Embassy, informing you about the result. If your application is approved, you will be granted a Canadian visa.
You will then need to fill out the required paperwork and follow the instructions, provided to you by the embassy, to complete the process.
The Canadian Embassy will also contact you, if your application is rejected. They will provide you with an explanation of the reasons, for which your application was not approved, and advise, what can you do, to increase your chances of a successful application in the future.
Regardless of the result, It is important to remain patient and keep in touch with the Canadian Embassy until then, until your application is successfully processed
Photo for DV-lottery
One of the most common reasons for refusal when applying for a Green Card is the discrepancy between the photos provided and the established requirements., therefore, planning to participate in 2025 this year you should pay special attention to this. When adding a photo to the application form on dvprogram.state.gov, only a technical check of the image is carried out to ensure that the file size corresponds to the size of the picture
The photo itself will be assessed by a consular officer during the interview.
When adding a photo to the application form on dvprogram.state.gov, only a technical check of the image is carried out to ensure that the file size corresponds to the size of the picture. The photo itself will be assessed by a consular officer during the interview..
So that it doesn't turn out like this, that if you win the lottery you will not receive a visa due to a photo mismatch, take these requirements into account:
- photo must be in color, but with a white background and without any computer processing;
- the oval of the face should occupy 50-69% photo;
- minimum resolution 600×600 px maximum – 1200×1200 px;
- there should be no glare in the image, blur and any other effects;
- you need to look clearly into the camera;
- Any accessories and uniforms are prohibited.
Worth considering, that the photo should be completed in no more than 6 months before registration (This is especially important for photographs of children). It is not recommended during the period of submitting documents and a radical change in appearance
What is the Green Gard lottery? What does the card give??
Diversification Green Card Lottery (DV) – official drawing of American visas, initiated by the US State Department.
The key rules of the Internet lottery are as follows::
- The timing is tied to the US fiscal year;
- The Russian Federation is a participating country in the drawing, as well as other CIS countries;
- subject to play 55 thousands of immigrant visas;
- The winners are selected randomly by a computer;
- no more than one country is allowed 7% winning profiles from the total number of registered;
- participation in the lottery is free.
Green card holders have the right:
- enter and exit the USA an unlimited number of times, also visit many other countries without a visa;
- study, work, do business;
- invite relatives remaining in their homeland to permanent residence;
- receive pension benefits, subject to working in the state for 10 years;
- purchase real estate, cars, firearms;
- use lending services, insurance, other government benefits.
Green card holders are prohibited from participating in elections, leave the country for a long period of time (more than a year). Forced deportation and revocation of green cards are provided for those, who has committed a crime or is suspected of other criminal violations of the law.
How to apply
Submission of the application is carried out exclusively online on the official website. After filling out the form on the website (which will take about 30 minutes) you will receive a confirmation code, which you will need to use to check the status of your application.
The timing of the Green Card lottery is determined annually. Applications typically open at the beginning of October and close at the beginning of November.. The drawing itself and summing up last until the beginning of May next year.
For example, Acceptance of documents for DV-2021 will begin 03.10.2019 and ends 08.11.2019 Mr. S 07.05.2019 year, it will be possible to find out the results of the previous drawing - DV-2020 - documents for which were accepted from 01.10.2018. The last day for accepting documents was 03.11.2018.
Since the chances of winning do not depend on the moment of application (except for the canceled draw 2011 of the year, when due to a software error 98 % the winners were from among those, who applied first), then the question, when to apply for a green card, should not occupy you too much - you need to submit documents strictly on time and only then, when they are completely ready.
If you do not have time to collect all documents by the deadline for submission, then find out, when will the next green card draw begin and until what date will it last?, available on the US State Department website.
Diversity Visa Winners Legally Residing In the United States: Apply Through USCIS
There are, however, a small number of lottery winners each year who, at the time of “winning the lottery,” are residing in the United States in a nonimmigrant or other legal status. For these winners residing inside the United States, USCIS processes adjustment of status applications.
The following information applies to winners legally residing in the United States only.
Eligibility Criteria
For an applicant to adjust status under the DV Program, you must establish that you:
- Have been selected for a diversity visa by DOS’s lottery;
- Have an immigrant visa immediately available at the time of filing an adjustment application (Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status); and
- Are admissible to the United States.
Visa Availability
For visa availability, check the latest month’s DOS Visa Bulletin. Section B contains a chart showing the current month’s visa availability in the Diversity Immigrant category. The chart shows when the Diversity Immigrant cut-off is met. When the cut-off is met, visas will be available in that month for the applicants with Diversity Immigrant lottery rank numbers below the specified cut-off numbers for their geographic areas.
Section C contains a chart showing the Diversity Immigrant category rank cut-offs for the following month, which represents the advance notification of Diversity Immigrant visa availability. As soon as a monthly Visa Bulletin is published, anyone with a lower rank number than the rank cut-off number shown in Section C is eligible to file for adjustment of status. This provides lottery winners the opportunity to file for adjustment of status up to six or seven weeks before a visa number can actually be allocated. This gives USCIS additional time to determine your eligibility for adjustment of status before the end of the fiscal year.
A Diversity Immigrant-based adjustment application cannot be adjudicated until a visa can be allocated, as indicated in the Visa Bulletin’s current Diversity Immigrant rank cut-offs for a particular month.
Application Process and Supporting Evidence
To obtain a Green Card, you must file Form I-485.
Supporting Evidence for Form I-485
Submit the following evidence with your Form I-485:
- Two passport-style photos
- Copy of birth certificate
- Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record
- Copy of passport page with nonimmigrant visa (if applicable)
- Copy of passport page with admission (entry) or parole stamp (if applicable)
- Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record
- Certified copies of court records (if the individual has been arrested)
- Copy of the principal applicant’s selection letter for the diversity visa lottery from DOS
- Copy of the receipt from DOS for the diversity visa lottery processing fee
- Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (if applicable)
- Applicable fees
Other Considerations
The adjustment of status process for diversity visa winners must be completed by September 30 of the fiscal year the lottery pertains to. Visas cannot be carried over to the next fiscal year.
Fraud Warning
What to do if you win?
Winning a green card in the lottery also means, that the participant will have to go through a lot of trouble in order to, to get a visa. After all, in case of winning the lottery green card, the contestant will receive further registration.
The procedure consists of several simple steps:
- submitting a form in the prescribed form (DS-260);
- collection of additional documents;
- passing a medical examination and interview.
Survey DS-260
To 2014 year, all winners of the drawing filled out two types of questionnaires - DS-230 and DSP-122. But due to relevant organizational issues, all winners must submit a DS-260 form.
This can be done online on the website of the Consular Electronic Application Center.
The procedure is as follows:
- The winner must open the website and enter the code, received after winning.
- Click Continue.
- Next you need to indicate your date of birth and your status (Applicant - Applicant). Click Continue.
- Then, to fill out the form on a new page, click Not Started.
After this, the contestant signs up for an interview at the nearest American consulate and provides personal information.
Standard information – full name, citizenship, Family status, presence of children, etc.. Contact information is required.
An important block of the questionnaire is the provision of information about the place of residence in the USA. The winner of the green card lottery must have a person, capable of receiving it upon arrival (or at least, location).
Another important point is information about previous trips to the USA. If they were, you need to indicate everything in great detail - dates, document details, purpose of the trip.
The questionnaire also includes a section on health status and offenses:
- In the first case, you will have to indicate the presence of vaccinations, which are required for the USA. It's better to be honest here, what was done, and what not. During the medical examination, you will still have to undergo all the necessary procedures..
- The section on offenses consists of several parts, including violation of immigration laws.
After filling out the form, you need to indicate your code and send the information for verification.
If you still have questions about the nuances of filling out Form DS-260, watch the following video instructions:
Preparation and submission of documents
Next stage, which the green card lottery winner will have to go through 2020 of the year, consists of preparing documents. The main ones include:
- passport;
- documents on education and work experience;
- birth certificates, about marriage;
- medical examination results (the envelope must be sealed);
- military ID, certificate of no criminal record.
Winner will be required to provide adoption papers if required., real estate title papers, certificate of bank account status.
Registration cost
The winner must pay the consular fee. A green card for one person will cost approximately 330 dollars.
If your spouse or children are traveling, then you need to pay for each of them separately.
Medical examination and interview
The winner will undergo a medical examination only in an institution accredited by the American consulate. In Russia, such a hospital exists only in Moscow..
As soon as all documents are in hand, you can go for an interview. This is the last stage, which the future owner of a green card in the USA must pass according to the results of the lottery.
The interview is conducted in English. And first of all, the consul is interested in the following questions::
- applicant's occupation;
- what is he going to do in the USA?.
Besides, the consul often asks questions from the questionnaire, therefore it is important to answer correctly. Any inaccuracy, even if it happened due to forgetfulness, will be considered not in favor of the applicant
Where and how to fill out the application
To participate in the Green Card drawing, you need to fill out a form on the official website of the US State Department -
https://dvprogram.state.gov/
You must provide all requested information in full. For example, you need to list all available
unmarried children up to 21 of the year, even if one of them is not going to move to America with you.
Upon successful registration of the application form, the applicant receives a unique confirmation number. It must be preserved, He
needed to view lottery results.
The rules do not prohibit both spouses from submitting applications at the same time, provided that each includes information in their application form
about the other spouse. This doubles your chances of winning!
Help in filling out an application for the Green Card lottery
We wish you to be among the lucky ones!
And together with our wishes of good luck in the lottery, we strongly recommend that you start preparing the documents directly
Now.
Our specialists will provide assistance in filling out an application for the Green Card lottery:
-
will check first, are you qualified to participate in the green card lottery according to your
data; - will help you prepare correctly information, which you will indicate in the application form;
- check the information with the data in your documents;
- will advise and answer your questions.
Our clients gain confidence, that their application will definitely participate in
lottery. And if you win, there will be no problems with the validity of the application form or refusal of a visa in
interview day due to any errors in participation.
Although no one can guarantee winning, correct
filling out an application – a necessary condition for receiving it.
I want to participate in the lottery
When and where to find out the result?
The results of the drawing can be checked from 4 May 2024 of the year. Actually, the winner is not only himself
applicant, but also his husband (wife), as well as minor children, indicated in the application form.
How much does it cost to participate??
There are no official fees for participation in this event.. This means, that is independent
filling out and registering the application will not require any payment from you.
However, if you are not sure, that you can handle filling out the form correctly on your own, highly recommend
take advantage of immigration experts.
A correctly completed application form is the first step to a Green Card. A large number of applications do not reach the drawing:
a lot
rejected due to incorrectly specified data or inconsistency with the photograph.
If you need help filling out, contact us. Many years of experience of our specialists in design
immigration
cases will help avoid disqualification of the application.
