WIN A GREEN CARD IN THE LOTTERY: HOW TO DO IT?

The United States really has the art of dreaming. With their national parks, skyscrapers and huge beaches, it’s hard not to succumb to their charm. In addition, this country is promising both professional and personal opportunities. It is for all these reasons, and much more, that millions of people travel to the United States each year using ESTA or a USA visa .

Others want more and want to become permanent residents on American soil; they then try their luck in the green Card lottery.

THE GREEN CARD, WHAT IS IT?

The Lawful Permanent Resident Card, more commonly known as the Green Card or American Green Card, is a document that functions like an identity card and which gives its holder the right to work and live permanently in the United States. It is an American immigration visa that can be obtained, for example, through the annual Green Card lottery. People who already have a US visa or meet certain conditions can also obtain a green card through other procedures.

This Green Card Lottery, which bears the official name of “Diversity Visa lottery” is a lottery which takes place once a year, in October of each year. The winners can in some cases already emigrate to the USA only a few months after winning their Green Card.

PARTICIPATE IN THE GREEN CARD LOTTERY

Each year, the United States government draws more than 100,000 potential winners from the famous USA Green Card. Only 50,000 will be able to have the document at the end of the procedure, which takes just under a year.

ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS FOR APPLYING FOR A GREEN CARD

Almost any country in the world can participate in this green card lottery: however, they must have sent less than 50,000 emigrants to the USA during the previous five years, which means that citizens of countries like Mexico, Canada , China or the United Kingdom are no longer eligible for the lottery at this time. There is however a possibility of overriding this first condition:

• your spouse was born in an eligible country: your two names must be noted on the selected application;
• if you were born in a non-eligible country but neither of your parents was born there and had no legal residence: you can then use the country of birth of one of your parents (provided that he is eligible).

All Green Card lottery applicants must also meet at least one of the following two conditions:

• have had their baccalaureate (12 years of studies in the primary, middle and secondary cycles);
• demonstrate two years of professional experience in the past five years.

If these eligibility conditions have not been met, it is not recommended to participate in the lottery.

REGISTRATION FORM TO BE COMPLETED

The request to participate in the Green Card lottery is made online only, and registrations are usually opened in October each year. To do this, you must fill out your E-DV Entry Form for the diversity visa on the official website dvlottery.state.gov. There is no registration fee. Incomplete or incorrect registrations will not be processed.

It is advisable to fill out the form yourself, and to make sure that the data provided is correct. There is no way to increase your chances of getting your Green Card, so it is strongly discouraged from using spurious independent sites.

There is an explanatory video on the official website to help you fill out the famous form correctly.

HOW TO OBTAIN THE GREEN CARD: INFORMATION TO PROVIDE

To complete your registration for the Green Card Lottery, you must complete the following information:

1. your first and last names, in the order in which they appear on your passport ;
2. your gender;
3. your date of birth;
4. your birth place ;
5. your native country;
6. your country of eligibility (which should normally be the same as your country of origin);
7. a recent photo of you respecting the format and technical requirements of the form;
8. your postal address;
9. your country of current residence;
10. your phone number ;
11. an email address to which you have access;
12. your highest level of education;
13. your current marital status;
14. your biological and adopted children alive (the number, first and last names, dates and places of birth, gender, and passport photos).

Once your registration has been submitted, save your confirmation page and your confirmation number. These two documents will then allow you to have access to the system for checking the selected registrations, so it is essential not to lose them. We recommend that you print your personal confirmation number.

You must then wait until May to find out if you are one of the lucky pre-selected Green Card lotteries that will allow you to work in the United States. You will then have to go to the official website, click on the “Entering Status Check” tab and enter the famous confirmation number mentioned above. This is the only way to know if you have been selected or not: you will not receive confirmation, whether by email or by post, from the American authorities.

CANDIDATES SELECTED TO OBTAIN A GREEN CARD

The selection of candidates for the Green Card Lottery is done randomly and electronically among the contenders whose registration is complete and admissible according to the standards in force.

This selection is also made through quotas, taking into account the number of visas available for each region of the world (Africa, Asia, Europe, etc.) and each country. For example, nationals of Oceania countries are more likely to win their Green Cards, as they are under-represented in the USA compared to other regions of the world.

As explained, you will have to go to the official website to find out about your status (selected or not). If you have been selected, you will be directed to a new confirmation web page with all the information relating to your visa application, as well as the immigration fees to be paid.

To be able to immigrate, the selected candidate must be able to demonstrate their admissibility to the USA and must fill out the DS-260 (Online Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Application) form. He will also have to undergo an interview at the American embassy in his country, provide a great deal of information about him and undergo a medical examination by a doctor approved by the American government.

Your children under 21, as well as your spouse can benefit from your Green Card if you get it. They will be able to immigrate to the USA, find work there, study at an American university or even carry out an internship in the USA.

It is possible, if you are selected, but not married to your spouse, to proceed to your union so that the chosen one of your heart can also leave to live in the USA by your side.

THE GREEN CARD LOTTERY, IN SUMMARY

The American Green Card Lottery allows thousands of expatriates to live their American dream every year. They can thus become legal permanent residents by a lot which authorizes them to reside and work in the USA.

However, you must be sure that you want to leave everything to expatriate to the USA, because once the green card is obtained, you are obliged to reside in the USA very quickly after obtaining it, and are not allowed to leave the country any more. 364 consecutive days. It’s a lifestyle choice to make, but if you win you won’t regret it! We wish you good luck !