The Other Immigration Lottery: Diversity Visa

In U.S. immigration, employers and foreign national workers participate in the H-1B lottery each spring, with hopes of securing the temporary work visa, which allows for two, three-year periods of work authorization for highly skilled workers. The visa can often serve as a steppingstone to permanent residence through an employer-sponsored immigrant visa, more commonly known as a "green card." But there is another immigration lottery – for green cards specifically – also conducted each spring, but with the registration period taking place in the prior October to November, which is just around the corner.

This other lottery, known as the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV Program), was established under the Immigration Act of 1990 to diversify the immigrant population in the United States. The program, administered by the U.S. Department of State (DOS), provides 50,000 immigrant visas annually – about five percent of the total for annual legal immigration. The lottery