At a glance
The Diversity Visa (DV) program randomly selects people for a chance to apply for U.S. permanent residence. Eligibility usually depends on your country of birth, not your citizenship, and selection does not guarantee a visa. Consulates are currently prevented from issuing these visas under a State Department pause.
- Selection
- People from eligible countries selected in the lottery
- Requirements
- Selection notice, qualifying education or work experience, and the usual immigration and background checks
- Important detail
- Visa issuance abroad is paused under August 31, 2026 guidance; annual deadlines still apply
Summary
The U.S. Diversity Visa program offers a chance to apply for permanent residence through lottery selection, followed by checks of education or work background and the usual immigration requirements. Selection is only an opportunity to apply within that program year; it does not reserve a visa indefinitely or remove the annual deadline.
The August 31, 2026 guidance paused visa issuance abroad after a court order ended the earlier pause. Applications and interviews may continue, but consulates cannot issue Diversity Visas while this pause remains. Eligible cases inside the United States use a separate adjustment process and still face visa limits and annual deadlines.
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Check the official selection result Use Entrant Status Check and the instructions for the correct program year.
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Check eligibility and documents Confirm the country counted for your entry and the education or qualifying-work requirement.
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Check visa processing and the deadline Read the official pause guidance before relying on a visa timeline.
Visa issuance is paused. Being selected does not guarantee a visa.
Eligibility
The main applicant generally must:
- Have submitted a valid entry during the official registration period and been selected through Entrant Status Check;
- Be counted under an eligible country for that program year, usually your country of birth rather than current citizenship;
- Have completed a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to a U.S. 12-year education, or have two years of qualifying work experience within the past five years in an occupation meeting the State Department's requirements;
- Have correctly listed the existing spouse and all living, unmarried children under 21 when the original entry required it; and
- Meet the remaining requirements for an immigrant visa or a green-card application inside the U.S. (adjustment of status).
Each program year has its own country list and instructions. A spouse's country of birth or a parent's country can sometimes support being counted under a different country, but only under specific rules.
What This Route Allows
If a visa is available, the applicant is fully eligible, and issuance resumes in time, DV can lead to lawful permanent residence for the main applicant, spouse, and qualifying children. A person already eligible to adjust status in the United States may use the USCIS process, but the same fiscal-year deadline and visa-number limits apply.
DV-2026 eligibility ended on September 30, 2026. No visa or green-card application under that year's program can be approved after the deadline, and available places could have run out earlier. Selection cannot carry over to another fiscal year.
What This Route Is Not
DV is not presently a reliable route to visa issuance because of the State Department pause. An interview, fee payment, or favorable document review does not overcome the pause or extend the legal deadline.
The official result appears only in Entrant Status Check; the State Department does not notify winners by email or demand payment by wire transfer. Current nationality-based immigrant-visa restrictions can create an additional bar even if DV issuance resumes.
Next Steps
- Check selection only at the official Entrant Status Check site using the saved confirmation number.
- Read the instructions for the exact program year, including country-of-birth rules, education/work, family-listing, and deadline rules.
- If selected, submit truthful forms and gather civil, police, education/work, and medical records, understanding that issuance remains paused.
- Monitor the State Department pause page for a formal change; do not assume social-media reports lifted it.
- Obtain case-specific advice urgently if seeking adjustment in the United States because timing, lawful-entry, and visa-availability rules are strict.
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