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Updated on 23.01.2022

Green Card lottery registration period

The U.S. government gives away 55,000 permanent residence permits (= Green Cards) in its annual "diversity visa lottery". Each year, the U.S. Department of State determines and announces the date for online registration and the date on which the Green Card winners will be drawn. In the following, we describe the participation rules and registration deadlines for the Green Card lottery.
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Bild von der Freiheitsstatue und New York Skyline

Immigrant visa via Green Card lottery

Green Card Lottery Registration Period

The Green Card Lottery registration period will be from the U.S. Department of State determined a new in each year. As a rule, the official Green Card application takes place in the fall, i.e. between the beginning of October and the beginning of November.

The registration for this year's Green Card Lottery DV-2025 is already running. The application window for DV-2025 applications started on October 4, 2023 at 12:00PM EDT (6:00 PM Central European Summer Time, CEST) and will end on November 7, 2023 at 12:00PM EST (6:00 PM Central European Time, CET).

Green Card applications can be submitted either online at the Website of the U.S. Department of State or through a specialized green card agency.

By the way, DV stands for "Diversity Visa" and the number 2025 in the DV program stands for the U.S. fiscal year.which begins on October 1, 2024 and ends on September 30, 2025. At the same time, this corresponds to the period in which the winners receive their green cards.

Drawing of the winners / Entrant Status Check

The drawing of the Green Card winners by the US authorities normally takes place in the spring of the following year. The exact date is decided each year in analogy to the registration period.

Bild von der Green Card vor der USA-Flagge

What does participation in the Green Card Lottery mean?

Participation in the Green Card Lottery means that you can emigrate to the USA if you win. Anyone who wants to live and / or work permanently in the USA needs a so-called Immigrant visa, also known as Green Card.

There are three ways to obtain a green card:

  1. Green Card through the workplace
  2. Green Card through family reunification or
  3. Green Card by winning the Green Card Lottery

In particular, applicants who want to obtain a green card through their employer or through family reunification often have to fulfill very strict admission requirements and also have to put up with long waiting periods. A better option can therefore be theParticipation in the annual green card rafflebe. This is because a green card won in the lottery also gives you the unrestricted right to live and work permanently in the U.S. without being tied to a specific employer. Also for people who do not have a Nonimmigrant Visa(e.g. E- or H-1B work visa), participation in the Green Card Lottery is an alternative, as registration for the lottery is subject to much lower entry requirements.

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Updated on 23.01.2022