Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery
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Permanent residenceVerified official

Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery

United States

Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery

Fee summary

The two official State Department pages differ. The DV entry page says: "There is no cost to register for the DV Program." The State Department fee page lists a Diversity Visa Registration Fee of USD 1.00 (paid at registration by the principal applicant) and a Diversity Visa Application Fee of USD 330.00 per selectee. Check the E-DV site at the time you register.≈ $1

Processing time

Not stated on the official page we read. Entries are accepted only during the registration period set each year.

Job offer:NoLanguage test:NoFamily possible:YesPath to permanent residence:Yes
Department of State

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Department of StateLast verified: Oct 8, 2026

Source-backed requirements

Total steps: 5
2 Mandatory3 Conditional
2 steps require documents
Jump to phase:
1

Eligibility

(2)
  1. High School Education

    DocumentConditional

    Applicants must have successfully completed a 12-year course of formal elementary and secondary education or its equivalent.

    Verified official
  2. Qualifying Work Experience

    Conditional

    The principal applicant needs 2 years of work in the preceding 5 years in a qualifying occupation; check O*NET Job Zone 4 or 5 and SVP 7.0 or higher.

    Verified official
2

Preparation

(1)
  1. Passport Requirement

    DocumentConditional

    Applicants must provide valid, unexpired passport information and upload a scan of the biographic and signature page in the electronic entry form.

    Verified official
3

Application

(2)
  1. Country Eligibility

    Mandatory

    Use the country of eligibility for the relevant DV year under its official instructions; nationality alone does not determine DV eligibility.

    Verified official
  2. Single Entry Limit

    Mandatory

    Submission of more than one entry for a person during the registration period will result in the disqualification of all entries for that individual.

    Verified official

Steps marked with a document icon require physical documents. Generate your checklist to track them.

Source citations

22 CFR 42.33 — Diversity immigrants

U.S. federal legislation/regulations

Verified official

CurrentOct7,2026eCFR. Education OR work; onlyprincipalqualification. Passportinformation+biographic/signatureJPEGmax5MB with42.2(d),(e),(g)(2)exemptions; singleentry. Do not replaceactual2026passportwitholdpre2026knowledge.

State Department — Confirm DV Qualifications

U.S. Department of State

Verified official

2yearslast5;O*NETJobZone4/5SVP7.0;principalnotderivatives;formal12yearschools/notGED.

Official links

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