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Diversity Visa Program (DV-2025) Entry Period Opens October 4th

The annual diversity visa lottery registration period opens once again on October 4th until November 7th for those who are eligible to apply for a green card to reside permanently in the United States. Only entries submitted during this period will be accepted and considered for selection in the lottery. Applications will only be accepted online via the U.S. Department of State official website at dvprogram.state.gov.

In recent years there has been an increase in online scams promising green cards or quicker service for a fee.  EIIC’s Immigration Attorney and Director of Immigration Legal Services, John A. Stahl, Esq., urges those interested in applying to note that “[t]here is still no fee to apply and there is only one official website to register.” He advises individuals to ignore any email offers to help complete or expedite the application process.

Please call either of our offices if you need assistance with your application. Alternatively, if you have questions, please note that we will be hosting a livestream presentation on Facebook Live on Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 4pm at https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/.

We will also be collaborating on other presentations over the next few weeks. More details to follow.

The immigration legal services staff at the Center is once again appealing to potential applicants to apply early this year, cautioning that the official DV Lottery website can get frozen closer to the deadline of noon on Tuesday, November 7th.

If you are a member of a local group or organization and would like our staff to speak to your group on the DV Lottery in October or on any immigration topic at a future meeting, please contact John A. Stahl, Esq., Director of Immigration Legal Services and Immigration Attorney at 718-478-5502, extension 201.

Check our website and social media for additional information and upcoming public meeting dates.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EIIC1

Instagram: @eiicny

EIIC Immigration legal services staff has helped many, who are currently in the United States and are still in status, to apply on the visa waiver program or on a temporary work visa. “The green card lottery is a yearly opportunity for qualified applicants who are legally in the United States or overseas to attain permanent resident status here with no strings attached,” according to EIIC’s Immigration Legal Services Director, John A. Stahl.

This year 55,000 green cards will be available through a lottery system to individuals coming from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department’s Kentucky Consular Center holds the annual lottery and chooses winners randomly from about 22 million qualified entries. Over 100,000 entries are selected and given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. If permanent residence is granted, then the individual, their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. “The DV Lottery is one of the few ways that exist to apply for a green card. Despite the low allocation of green cards to Ireland, it is worth the effort, if you really do want a long-term option to stay legally in America,” stated Siobhan Dennehy, EIIC’s Executive Director. “I equate the odds to playing the New York State Lottery as there are around 8 million applications from all over the world annually. Although you apply for the green card in 2023, you will not be notified about your application until 2024 and you won’t actually receive the green card itself until 2025, that’s why they call it the DV-2025 lottery, which can be confusing.”

Only natives of certain countries are eligible to apply for the green card lottery. Those born in the following countries are NOT eligible to apply for the DV-2025 lottery because a total of more than 50,000 immigrants came from these countries to the U.S. in the previous five years: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Venezuela and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. An applicant may, however, claim the country of birth of their spouse, if eligible, or of either parent if they were born in a country of which neither of their parents was a native or a resident at the time of their birth.

For the first time ever, individuals born in the United Kingdom are eligible to enter the lottery this year.

All applicants also must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as the successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education or they must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. Entries for the DV-2025 diversity visa lottery must be submitted electronically from noon EDT on Wednesday, October 4, 2023 through noon EST on Tuesday, November 7, 2023. Applicants may access the electronic diversity visa entry form at dvprogram.state.gov only during the registration period beginning October 4th. Paper entries will not be accepted. All entries by an applicant will be disqualified if more than one entry for the applicant is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. Applicants may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit the entry for them. The Department of State will issue DV lottery entrants an electronic confirmation number and notice upon receipt of a correctly completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form.

Applicants must also attach separate digital photographs of themselves, their spouses and unmarried children less than 21 years of age (except spouses or children who are already permanent residents or U.S. citizens). The photographs must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format and meet specific resolutions (minimum 600 pixels high by 600 pixels wide), color depths (24-bit color) and kilobytes (maximum 240 KB) requirements. If a photograph print is scanned, the print must be two inches square and be scanned at a resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi) and with specific color depths. The photograph must be taken within the last six months and no glasses may be worn in the photo. If the digital image does not conform to the specifications, the application will be automatically disqualified.

Applicants will be selected at random by computer from among all qualified entries. All applicants will be required to go back to the website to find out whether their entry has been selected in the DV-2025 lottery or to find out they have not been selected. Selectees will only be notified of their selection through the “entry status check” available starting May 4, 2024 at the website dvprogram.state.gov. The online entry status check will be the ONLY means by which selectees will be notified of their selection for DV-2025. The Kentucky Consular Center will not be mailing out notification letters. Those selected in the random drawing are not notified of their selection by e-mail. Those individuals not selected will be notified of their non-selection through the web-based “entry status check.”

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 submissions 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.

The current immigration laws carry heavy penalties for visa overstays. Those who have overstayed their visa by 6 months, face a 3 year bar upon their departure from the United States, if they have overstayed for one year or more, they are subject to a 10 year bar. Successful lottery applicants who are undocumented in the US must be processed for a visa at a US Consulate abroad under existing immigration laws. Departing the US will trigger the 3 or 10 year bars making them ineligible for a visa. Undocumented lottery winners with a relative petition or an employer labor certification pending before April 30, 2001, may be eligible to be interviewed in the United States under Section 245(i), provided they have not already triggered the 3/10 year bars by leaving the US.

Inquiries may be made to the EIIC at their Woodside, Queens’s office at (718) 478-5502 or at their Woodlawn, Bronx office at (718) 324-3039, on the EIIC website at www.eiic.org, Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/, on Twitter @EIIC1 and Instagram at @eiicny.

The EIIC is a member of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, for further information about Irish centers in the US providing free assistance with DV lottery applications please refer to their website at www.ciic.usa-org

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DV-2024 Green Card Lottery Entry Status Check Now Open

Applicants who submitted an entry under the Diversity Visa 2024 green card lottery (DV-2024) can check the status of their application online starting on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at noon (EDT). The DV-2024 entry period opened on October 5, 2022, and closed on November 8, 2022. Only confirmation information for entries submitted during this period are valid for checking your status.

All DV-2024 applicants must check their status online, and will not receive a notification letter or e-mail from the U.S. government. Diversity Visa Entry Status Check will only be provided through the Department of State secure online site. Until September 30, 2024, entrants are able to check the status of their entry through the E-DV website at https://dvprogram.state.gov/. Entrants need to use their own confirmation page information from the time of their entry to check the status to find out if their Diversity Visa Lottery entry was or was not selected. Entrants will need to enter their last name, year of birth and confirmation number from the receipt.

The Department of State advises the public of a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to potential Diversity Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. The scammers behind these fraudulent emails and letters are posing as the U.S. government in an attempt to extract payment from DV applicants.

Please keep your confirmation number until at least September 30, 2024, even if you are not selected on May 6, 2023. The Department of State may select more DV-2024 entries on October 1, 2023 or thereafter.

Entrants who have lost their confirmation number can enter further identifying details on the official website to retrieve it by clicking the “Forgot Confirmation Number” link.

All lottery applicants who were assisted at our office would have received a copy of their application confirmation page with their confirmation number. Please contact our office if you need the information again.

Selected entrants must confirm their qualifications, submit their immigrant visa and alien registration application, prepare supporting documents, and have a consular interview. Visa number allocations are determined by the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act which determines the number of diversity immigrant visas available each year. Selected entrants will only be scheduled for an interview when and if there is a visa number available. Before being interviewed, each applicant must pay the Diversity Visa Lottery fee of $330 per person which is not refundable. For more detailed information, including steps to take to prepare for the consulate interview, go to https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/diversity-visa/if-you-are-selected.html.

It is expected that the next application period for the DV Lottery will be between October and November this year. Official dates, rules and eligible countries should be announced by late September. For more information, go to the official US State Department website at https://dvprogram.state.gov/. You may also contact our office in the early fall for more information and assistance to complete another application. Be aware that the application for the DV lottery is free and you do not need to pay anyone to enter.

Diversity Visa (DV-2024) Entry Period Opens October 5th

The annual diversity visa lottery registration period opens once again on October 5th until November 8th for those who are eligible to apply for a green card to reside permanently in the United States. Only entries submitted during this period will be accepted and considered for selection in the lottery. Applications will only be accepted online via the U.S. Department of State official website at dvprogram.state.gov.

In recent years there has been an increase in online scams promising green cards or quicker service for a fee.  EIIC’s Immigration Attorney and Director of Immigration Legal Services, John A. Stahl, Esq., urges those interested in applying to note that “[t]here is still no fee to apply and there is only one official website to register.” He advises individuals to ignore any email offers to help complete or expedite the application process.

Please call either of our offices if you need assistance with your application. Alternatively, if you have questions, please note that we will be hosting a livestream presentation on Facebook Live on Monday, October 17, 2022 at 5pm at https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/.

We will also be collaborating with the Queens Public Library on another virtual presentation on Monday, October 24, 2022 at 6pm. See https://www.queenslibrary.org/calendar/virtual-diversity-visa-lottery-dv2024-information-presentation/004589-0922.

The immigration legal services staff at the Center is once again appealing to potential applicants to apply early this year, cautioning that the official DV Lottery website can get frozen closer to the deadline of noon on Tuesday, November 8th.

If you are a member of a local group or organization and would like our staff to speak to your group on the DV Lottery in October or on any immigration topic at a future meeting, please contact John A. Stahl, Esq., Director of Immigration Legal Services and Immigration Attorney at 718-478-5502, extension 201.

Check our website and social media for additional information and upcoming public meeting dates.

Website: www.eiic.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EIIC1

EIIC Immigration legal services staff has helped many, who are currently in the United States and are still in status, to apply on the visa waiver program or on a temporary work visa. “The green card lottery is a yearly opportunity for qualified applicants who are legally in the United States or overseas to attain permanent resident status here with no strings attached,” according to EIIC’s Immigration Legal Services Director, John A. Stahl.

This year 55,000 green cards will be available through a lottery system to individuals coming from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department’s Kentucky Consular Center holds the annual lottery and chooses winners randomly from about 6-8 million qualified entries. Over 100,000 entries are selected and given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. If permanent residence is granted, then the individual, their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. “The DV Lottery is one of the few ways that exist to apply for a green card. Despite the low allocation of green cards to Ireland, it is worth the effort, if you really do want a long-term option to stay legally in America,” stated Siobhan Dennehy, EIIC’s Executive Director. “I equate the odds to playing the New York State Lottery as there are around 8 million applications from all over the world annually. Although you apply for the green card in 2022, you will not be notified about your application until 2023 and you won’t actually receive the green card itself until 2024, that’s why they call it the DV-2024 lottery, which can be confusing.”

Only natives of certain countries are eligible to apply for the green card lottery. Those born in the following countries are NOT eligible to apply for the DV-2024 lottery because a total of more than 50,000 immigrants came from these countries to the U.S. in the previous five years: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Venezuela and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. An applicant may, however, claim the country of birth of their spouse, if eligible, or of either parent if they were born in a country of which neither of their parents was a native or a resident at the time of their birth.

All applicants also must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as the successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education or they must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. Entries for the DV-2024 diversity visa lottery must be submitted electronically from noon EDT on Wednesday, October 5, 2022 through noon EST on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. Applicants may access the electronic diversity visa entry form at dvprogram.state.gov only during the registration period beginning October 5th. Paper entries will not be accepted. All entries by an applicant will be disqualified if more than one entry for the applicant is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. Applicants may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit the entry for them. The Department of State will issue DV lottery entrants an electronic confirmation number and notice upon receipt of a correctly completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form.

Applicants must also attach separate digital photographs of themselves, their spouses and unmarried children less than 21 years of age (except spouses or children who are already permanent residents or U.S. citizens). The photographs must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format and meet specific resolutions (minimum 600 pixels high by 600 pixels wide), color depths (24-bit color) and kilobytes (maximum 240 KB) requirements. If a photograph print is scanned, the print must be two inches square and be scanned at a resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi) and with specific color depths. The photograph must be taken within the last six months and no glasses may be worn in the photo. If the digital image does not conform to the specifications, the application will be automatically disqualified.

Applicants will be selected at random by computer from among all qualified entries. All applicants will be required to go back to the website to find out whether their entry has been selected in the DV-2024 lottery or to find out they have not been selected. Selectees will only be notified of their selection through the “entry status check” available starting May 6, 2023 at the website dvprogram.state.gov. The online entry status check will be the ONLY means by which selectees will be notified of their selection for DV-2024. The Kentucky Consular Center will not be mailing out notification letters. Those selected in the random drawing are not notified of their selection by e-mail. Those individuals not selected will be notified of their non-selection through the web-based “entry status check.”

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 submissions 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.

The current immigration laws carry heavy penalties for visa overstays. Those who have overstayed their visa by 6 months, face a 3 year bar upon their departure from the United States, if they have overstayed for one year or more, they are subject to a 10 year bar. Successful lottery applicants who are undocumented in the US must be processed for a visa at a US Consulate abroad under existing immigration laws. Departing the US will trigger the 3 or 10 year bars making them ineligible for a visa. Undocumented lottery winners with a relative petition or an employer labor certification pending before April 30, 2001, may be eligible to be interviewed in the United States under Section 245(i), provided they have not already triggered the 3/10 year bars by leaving the US.

Inquiries may be made to the EIIC at their Woodside, Queens’s office at (718) 478-5502 or at their Woodlawn, Bronx office at (718) 324-3039, on the EIIC website at www.eiic.org, Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/EIICNY/ and on Twitter @EIIC1.

The EIIC is a member of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, for further information about Irish centers in the US providing free assistance with DV lottery applications please refer to their website at www.ciic.usa-org




DV-2023 Green Card Lottery Entry Status Check Now Open

Applicants who submitted an entry under the Diversity Visa 2023 green card lottery (DV-2023) can check the status of their application online starting on Saturday, May 7, 2022, at noon (EDT). The DV-2023 entry period opened on October 6, 2021, and closed on November 9, 2021. Only confirmation information for entries submitted during this period are valid for checking your status.

All DV-2023 applicants must check their status online, and will not receive a notification letter or e-mail from the U.S. government. Diversity Visa Entry Status Check will only be provided through the Department of State secure online site. Until September 30, 2023, entrants are able to check the status of their entry through the E-DV website at https://dvprogram.state.gov/. Entrants need to use their own confirmation page information from the time of their entry to check the status to find out if their Diversity Visa Lottery entry was or was not selected. Entrants will need to enter their last name, year of birth and confirmation number from the receipt.

The Department of State advises the public of a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to potential Diversity Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. The scammers behind these fraudulent emails and letters are posing as the U.S. government in an attempt to extract payment from DV applicants.

Please keep your confirmation number until at least September 30, 2023, even if you are not selected on May 7, 2022. The Department of State may select more DV-2023 entries on October 1, 2022 or thereafter.

Entrants who have lost their confirmation number can enter further identifying details on the official website to retrieve it by clicking the “Forgot Confirmation Number” link.

All lottery applicants who were assisted at our office would have received a copy of their application confirmation page with their confirmation number. Please contact our office if you need the information again.

Selected entrants must confirm their qualifications, submit their immigrant visa and alien registration application, prepare supporting documents, and have a consular interview. Visa number allocations are determined by the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act which determines the number of diversity immigrant visas available each year. Selected entrants will only be scheduled for an interview when and if there is a visa number available. Before being interviewed, each applicant must pay the Diversity Visa Lottery fee of $330 per person which is not refundable. For more detailed information, including steps to take to prepare for the consulate interview, go to https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/diversity-visa/if-you-are-selected.html.

It is expected that the next application period for the DV Lottery will be between October and November this year. Official dates, rules and eligible countries should be announced by late September. For more information, go to the official US State Department website at https://dvprogram.state.gov/. You may also contact our office in the early fall for more information and assistance to complete another application. Be aware that the application for the DV lottery is free and you do not need to pay anyone to enter.

DV-2023 Green Card Lottery Registration Period Opens on Wednesday, October 6th

The annual diversity visa lottery registration period opens once again on October 6th until November 9th for those who are eligible to apply for a green card to reside permanently in the United States. Only entries submitted during this period will be accepted and considered for selection in the lottery. Applications will only be accepted online via the U.S. Department of State official website at dvprogram.state.gov.

In recent years there has been an increase in online scams promising green cards or quicker service for a fee.  EIIC’s Immigration Attorney and Director of Immigration Legal Services, John A. Stahl, Esq., urges those interested in applying to note that “[t]here is still no fee to apply and there is only one official website to register.” He advises individuals to ignore any email offers to help complete or expedite the application process.

Please call either of our offices if you need assistance with your application.

Alternatively, if you have questions about any immigration matter, please note that we will be offering a free information session from 6pm to 7:30pm on Thursday, October 7th at the New York Irish Center at 1040 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City, NY 11101. More details here.

The immigration legal services staff at the Center is once again appealing to potential applicants to apply early this year, cautioning that the official DV Lottery website can get frozen closer to the deadline of noon on Tuesday, November 9th.

If you are a member of a local group or organization and would like our staff to speak to your group on the DV Lottery in October or on any immigration topic at a future meeting, please contact John A. Stahl, Esq., Director of Immigration Legal Services and Immigration Attorney at 718-478-5502, extension 201.

Check our website for additional information and upcoming public meeting dates at www.eiic.org

EIIC Immigration legal services staff has helped many, who are currently in the United States and are still in status, to apply on the visa waiver program or on a temporary work visa. “The green card lottery is a yearly opportunity for qualified applicants who are legally in the United States or overseas to attain permanent resident status here with no strings attached,” according to EIIC’s Immigration Legal Services Director, John A. Stahl.

This year 55,000 green cards will be available through a lottery system to individuals coming from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department’s Kentucky Consular Center holds the annual lottery and chooses winners randomly from about 6-8 million qualified entries. Over 100,000 entries are selected and given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. If permanent residence is granted, then the individual, their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. “The DV Lottery is one of the few ways that exist to apply for a green card. Despite the low allocation of green cards to Ireland, it is worth the effort, if you really do want a long-term option to stay legally in America,” stated Siobhan Dennehy, EIIC’s Executive Director. “I equate the odds to playing the New York State Lottery as there are around 8 million applications from all over the world annually. Although you apply for the green card in 2021, you will not be notified about your application until 2022 and you won’t actually receive the green card itself until 2023, that’s why they call it the DV-2023 lottery, which can be confusing.”

Only natives of certain countries are eligible to apply for the green card lottery. Those born in the following countries are NOT eligible to apply for the DV-2023 lottery because a total of more than 50,000 immigrants came from these countries to the U.S. in the previous five years: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Venezuela and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. An applicant may, however, claim the country of birth of their spouse, if eligible, or of either parent if they were born in a country of which neither of their parents was a native or a resident at the time of their birth.

All applicants also must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as the successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education or they must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. Entries for the DV-2023 diversity visa lottery must be submitted electronically from noon EDT on Wednesday, October 6, 2021 through noon EST on Tuesday, November 9, 2021. Applicants may access the electronic diversity visa entry form at dvprogram.state.gov only during the registration period beginning October 6th. Paper entries will not be accepted. All entries by an applicant will be disqualified if more than one entry for the applicant is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. Applicants may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit the entry for them. The Department of State will issue DV lottery entrants an electronic confirmation number and notice upon receipt of a correctly completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form.

Applicants must also attach separate digital photographs of themselves, their spouses and unmarried children less than 21 years of age (except spouses or children who are already permanent residents or U.S. citizens). The photographs must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format and meet specific resolutions (minimum 600 pixels high by 600 pixels wide), color depths (24-bit color) and kilobytes (maximum 240 KB) requirements. If a photograph print is scanned, the print must be two inches square and be scanned at a resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi) and with specific color depths. The photograph must be taken within the last six months and no glasses may be worn in the photo. If the digital image does not conform to the specifications, the application will be automatically disqualified.

NEW AGAIN FOR DV-2023: Applicants must now provide their passport details in the online application. Specifically, the applicant must indicate the passport number, country of issuance, and expiration date for the principal entrant’s valid, unexpired international travel passport. This requirement applies to the principal entrant only, not to dependents. All applicants must enter valid international travel passport information unless they are stateless, nationals of a Communist-controlled country and unable to obtain a passport from the government of the Communist-controlled country, or the beneficiary of an individual waiver approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State.

Applicants will be selected at random by computer from among all qualified entries. All applicants will be required to go back to the website to find out whether their entry has been selected in the DV-2023 lottery or to find out they have not been selected. Selectees will only be notified of their selection through the “entry status check” available starting May 8, 2022 at the website dvprogram.state.gov. The online entry status check will be the ONLY means by which selectees will be notified of their selection for DV-2023. The Kentucky Consular Center will not be mailing out notification letters. Those selected in the random drawing are not notified of their selection by e-mail. Those individuals not selected will be notified of their non-selection through the web-based “entry status check.”

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 submissions 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.

The current immigration laws carry heavy penalties for visa overstays. Those who have overstayed their visa by 6 months, face a 3 year bar upon their departure from the United States, if they have overstayed for one year or more, they are subject to a 10 year bar. Successful lottery applicants who are undocumented in the US must be processed for a visa at a US Consulate abroad under existing immigration laws. Departing the US will trigger the 3 or 10 year bars making them ineligible for a visa. Undocumented lottery winners with a relative petition or an employer labor certification pending before April 30, 2001, may be eligible to be interviewed in the United States under Section 245(i), provided they have not already triggered the 3/10 year bars by leaving the US.

Inquiries may be made to the EIIC at their Woodside, Queens’s office at (718) 478-5502 or at their Woodlawn, Bronx office at (718) 324-3039 or on the EIIC website www.eiic.org.

The EIIC is a member of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, for further information about Irish centers in the US providing free assistance with DV lottery applications please refer to their website at www.ciic.usa-org

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