Lottery Changes
By Debbie McGoldrick

AS readers of last week’s Irish Voice will have discovered, there are big changes in store for the upcoming 2005 diversity green card lottery, the application period for which will be held starting Saturday, November 1 and ending on Tuesday, December 30.

The U.S. postal service in Migrate, Kentucky, which used to accept the 10 million-plus annual lottery entries, is probably breathing a sigh of relief, as this year’s applications must be submitted electronically at a special State Department website. Having access to the Internet, therefore, is vital for those wishing to obtain one of the 50,000 green cards on offer, as paper entries will no longer be accepted.

The new rules were put in place for the usual reasons – to combat fraud, and specifically to make it easier to detect multiple entries submitted by a single applicant. As in previous years, each applicant can only submit one entry. Those who send more are automatically disqualified.

Given that the entries must be submitted via the Internet, the requirement that they must be signed by the applicant has been omitted. However, photographs are still part of the process, and there are specific instructions that need to be followed.

Many of the diversity visa lottery’s basic requirements remain the same. Applicants must possess the equivalent of a U.S. high school education, or two years of work/training experience in a field that requires same. The acceptable employment fields can be found on the State Department’s website at www.travel.state.gov; just click to the section which gives information for the 2005 diversity visa lottery.

Countries that have sent 50,000 or more legal immigrants to the U.S. for the past five years cannot participate in the lottery program – this year’s ineligibles include Canada, China, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines and the perennial non-runner the United Kingdom. (As in previous years, though, those from Northern Ireland are allowed to participate.)

For those who were born in one of the above ineligible countries, it is possible to enter the lottery through the principle of “chargeability.” For example, a native of England married to a woman from Ireland can apply in his own right and claim chargeability to Ireland through his wife. The husband must make mention of this on his application form, and the wife must also be issued with a visa at the same time. 

The other area where chargeability applies is for those born in a non-eligible country to parents who were neither natives of that country or resident there at the time of birth.

The State Department site where the entry must be lodged is http://dvlottery.state.gov. The site is not yet operational, but will be on November 1, the first day of the entry period. It will contain the form including all the items that need to be included, as given in the order as follows.

Full name: Last name must come first, followed by first name and middle name. (For example, Egan, Sean Patrick. Patrick is the middle name.)

Date of birth: Day, month, year. (30, January, 1965.)

Gender: Male or female.

Place of birth: City/town, district/county/province. (Thurles, Co. Tipperary.)

Country of birth: 

Applicant’s photograph:

Mailing address: address, city or town, state, zip or country code, country. 

Phone number: Optional.

Email address: Optional.

Country of eligibility if different than birth country: Only for those who are claiming chargeability to a DV-1 eligible country, as described by rules above.

Marital status: Yes or no.

Spouse information: Name, date of birth, gender, city/town of birth, country of birth, photograph.

Children information: Name(s), date of birth, gender, city/town of birth, country of birth, photograph.

A very important note for those with spouses and/or children – the spouse’s information, as well as that for all natural children, adopted children and stepchildren, who are unmarried and aged under 21, must appear on the application form. The only children who can be omitted from the entry are those who are already U.S. citizens or green card holders. Failure to do this will result in disqualification of the entry.

The photograph requirements are extensive. Each applicant will have to electronically submit a photo in a particular format, and photos must also be submitted for a spouse and any children included on the entry. 

Because of the detail involved in the photo requirements, it’s best to visit the State Department website at www.travel.state.gov to obtain them first hand. Again, just scroll down on the site’s home page to the 2005 diversity visa details. 

Other pertinent DV-1 facts to bear in mind – though applicants are permitted to submit only one entry each, a husband and wife can submit separate entries, and if either is selected, the spouse and any children will also be considered as winners. 

Winning entries will be selected at random at the conclusion of the entry period. Therefore, there is no advantage in logging on to the entry website at the stroke of midnight on November 1. 

The 50,000 green cards available will be divvied up according to six eligible regions – Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South/Central America/Caribbean. The number of green cards available for each region has yet to be announced, but Europe is traditionally in line for at least 20,000. No one country can receive more than 7% of the available green cards, thus ensuring that larger countries don’t swamp those with smaller populations.

As in previous years, there is no fee required to enter the lottery. Those who are selected will be notified within the nine month period following December 30, so entrants must make sure the address provided on the application is one where mail is sure to be received. Those who are not selected will not be notified.

Interviews for the visas will begin in October of 2004, and all processing by law must be completed 12 months later. 

Those residing here illegally must take extra-special care if by chance they submit a winning entry, and because of the potential harsh penalties that await the undocumented who leave the U.S. for visa processing, legal counsel is an absolute must. However, that issue is a whole other column by itself, and there’s certainly nothing stopping an undocumented resident from entering the lottery. 

Taking part in the DV-1 lottery is simple and does not – repeat, DOES NOT! – require the assistance of an attorney or other paid advisor. For those who need help, there’s plenty of it out there, and undoubtedly, given all the new requirements – especially the photographs – the Irish immigration centers will have plenty of work on their hands.