On October 3, 2023, the Department of State (DOS) published instructions and eligibility requirements for the Diversity Visa (DV) program for fiscal year (FY) 2025 (DV-2025). The online registration period for the DV-2025 diversity visa program began on Wednesday, October 4, 2023, and concludes on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, at 12 noon ET.
For FY 2025, up to 55,000 DVs will be available. The Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form (E-DV Entry Form or DS-5501) is available online at dvprogram.state.gov. DOS will not accept incomplete entries or entries sent by any other means. There is no cost to register for the DV program, but selectees who are scheduled for an interview must pay a visa application fee before making their formal visa application where a consular officer will determine whether they qualify for the visa. DOS determines selectees through a randomized computer drawing.
Except for the United Kingdom and its dependent territories, which are now eligible for the DV–2025 program, there were no changes in eligibility from the previous fiscal year. For DV–2025, natives of the following countries and areas are not eligible to apply, because more than 50,000 natives of these countries immigrated to the United States in the previous five years: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, The People’s Republic of China (including mainland and Hong Kong born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea (South Korea), Venezuela, and Vietnam. Natives of Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible.
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