So, you want to enter the green card lottery?

Before Lauren and I won permanent residence cards (aka, green cards) in the annual Diversity Immigration Visa program (or, green card lottery) we thought it was a hoax. It’s not. Two years ago I filled in a form on the internet and didn’t think much of it. Today I’m writing this post in an apartment in Brooklyn, New York.

Granted, I’m jobless, it’s 31ºC and humid, and my life savings look pretty dismal when converted to US dollars, but I’m here. In a few weeks, I’ll have my social security number and I’ll be able to work like any other US citizen. That feels like an amazing opportunity, even if its also pretty daunting.

Maybe you don’t have any desire to live in the U.S. Maybe you hate bread that tastes like cake, impenetrably complex electoral systems, or the notion of four timezones in one country. So be it, you can walk away now.

But if you’ve ever wanted to live and work in the U.S., you should enter. Because there’s probably no easier way to get into the U.S. as a foreigner. Here’s what you need to know to get started.

The basics

Each year the US gives out 50,000 diversity visas. There’s no cost to enter, and any site or service that asks for money, or claims it can improve your odds of winning or fast-track your entry, is definitely a scam. At best, they’re going to fill in the very same forms for you. At worst, they’re going to take your money and run.

To enter, you need to head to the DV lottery landing page, complete the necessary forms, upload a suitable photo of yourself, and you’re good to go. (You can absolutely use a picture shot on a smartphone, just make sure it complies with the guidelines. My application pic was a selfie.)

The program takes about two years, so if you enter this year you’ll be doing so under the 2021 intake, and if you’re successful, you will only be able to move to the U.S. in 2021. For example, I entered the 2019 program in late 2017, had my interview in April 2019, and moved to the US in September 2019.

Who can enter?

If you’re over the age of 18, hold a high school diploma (or equivalent secondary school qualification) and your country isn’t on the exclusions list below, you can enter the DV lottery. If you’re already in the US legitimately (on, for instance, a student visa) you can enter. And you can enter every year, so if at first you don’t succeed…

Because the program is intended to “improve diversity” in the US, countries that have had more than 50,000 immigrants to the US in the past five years are excluded from the DV lottery. For the current entry period the excluded countries and regions are:

Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible.

Applications for 2021 are now open

The window to apply is roughly a month in October each year. Applications for 2021 opened today, Wednesday, October 2, 2019 at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Applications close on Tuesday, November 5, 2019 at 12:00 noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST).

If you’re thinking of entering, I’d suggest doing so promptly. While there’s no telling whether it makes any difference to your odds if you enter sooner, completing entry form is a lengthy process, and you may have to spend some time gathering some of the required information — like, say, the dates of any previous visits to the US.

Seriously, don’t wait. My then-partner-now-wife Lauren meant to enter when I did back in 2017… but promptly forgot to. Luckily my number came up, but if it hadn’t we’d be cursing her forgetfulness.

Dos and don’ts

It should go without saying that the information you supply on your entry form should be true, but I’m going to say it anyway. If you misrepresent anything you’ll almost certainly be disqualified. Fill in the forms with the facts as they are, not as you’d like them to be. This isn’t a self-assessment form at a new gym.

If you’re unmarried but expect to be married soon, put down single. If you’re in the process of getting divorced but it’s not yet finalized, you’re still married. If you have any children you need to include their details, even if you’re estranged or don’t intend moving to the US with them.

Also, follow the instructions carefully, and that includes only entering once. Your spouse, partner, boyfriend, girlfriend, siblings, parents or the like can all enter themselves, so you might want to encourage them to do so. But neither you nor they should submit more than one entry. It won’t improve your odds. Instead, it’ll ensure you get disqualified.

Do make a note of your confirmation number that’ll be generated once you finish the application form. You’ll need that to log in and check to see if your application’s been successful, and you might need it for months thereafter, so keep it somewhere safe.

You can start checking your application status with your confirmation number from the May following your application (so, for example, those who apply this year for the 2021 program will be able to start checking in May 2020).

Get ready to wait

The DV process is a slow one. The initial form can take hours to complete, and once you’ve done so, you have to wait more than six months to see if your number’s come up. If it does, you then have to supply other documents (more on that in another post), await an interview, and only then can you consider selling up and making plans to move to the US.

But, as with all lotteries, “you’ve got to be in it to win it”. So, complete the form and then set a reminder on your calendar, phone, or whatever else works, to start checking in May to see if your application’s been successful.

I promise you, stranger things have happened.