Diversity Immigrant Visa
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The Diversity Immigrant Visa program is a United States congressionally mandated lottery program for receiving a Green Card. It 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 to provide for a new class of immigrants known as "diversity immigrants" (DV immigrants). The Act makes available 50,000 permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.
Those born in any territory that has sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the US in the previous 5 years are ineligible to receive a diversity visa. For 2006, natives of the following nations are ineligible: Canada, China (mainland born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam [1]. For DV-2007, the ineligible countries are the same, with the addition of Poland. The entry period for DV-2007 was October 5, 2005 through December 4, 2005.
The ineligible countries may change from year to year, and are determined by counting those countries which sent 50,000 "immigrants" in the five years including that covered by the last published immigration statistics. The term 50,000 "immigrants" is partial and refers only to people who immigrated via the family-sponsored, employment, or immediate relatives of U.S. citizen categories, and does not include other categories such as refugees, asylees, NACARA beneficiaries, or previous diversity immigrants. It is for this reason that Cuba and Ukraine are not on the ineligible list despite sending over 50,000 immigrants in the previous five years.
Changes to the ineligible list over the years include the following:
- DV-2002: Poland and Taiwan removed, Pakistan added.
- DV-2005: Russia added.
- DV-2007: Poland re-added.
The visas are distributed on a regional and national basis, with each regions sending less immigrants to the US in the previous 5 years receiving more diversity visas.
In order to allow for those who do not pursue immigrant visas, more 'winners' are selected in the lottery than there are visas available. Hence being selected from the lottery does not guarantee an immigrant visa to the U.S.
In December 2005 the United States House of Representatives voted 273-148 to add an amendment to the border enforcement bill H.R. 4437 abolishing the DIV. Opponents of the lottery said it was susceptible to fraud and was a way for terrorists to enter the country. However, this bill now sits before the Senate, which has yet to ratify the amendment.